Today I took on a new responsibility at McMaster University. I will be the new Director of Professional Communication Programs – this is a diverse portfolio that I will explain in several blog entries. In this blog posting, I will focus on the flagship Master of Communications Management program, which is the jewel in the crown of McMaster communications research and teaching.
This appointment means that I am now Director of the superb Master of Communications Management (MCM) program, Canada’s leading executive education program for professional communicators and communications managers. The MCM was created by my colleague and friend, Dr. Terry Flynn, who conceived of, created, and implemented the program. He is leaving to focus on research and writing, after having been director for 7 successful years. I recognize that I am trying to fill some big shoes, but I will do my best to move the MCM forward, making it even better than it already is.
The MCM is an MBA for communicators – catered to meet their every need, and designed to give them the skills, theory an strategic management knowledge, so they can take their careers to the next level. The students in the program are amazing people – truly the leaders in their fields. In the class I just taught, we had leaders from the corporate, agency, government, not-for-profit and consulting sectors of the industry. Every class is a learning and networking opportunity for the students. Every class is an opportunity to be challenged intellectually and improve your professional practice.
My goal over the next year will be to bring the MCM to a new level of participation, drawing the top industry leaders from across Canada.
This is an exciting challenge – I look forward to making the MCM an even greater success than it is now.