I have been thinking about what it means to manage a reputation or deploy a communications strategy. So often, public relations professionals will start with a strategic vision for a brand, public figure or idea and then quickly be pulled into the vortex of tactical responses as context and circumstances overwhelm strategy. Why does this …
Continue reading "Law vs PR: is there an arena or a court of public opinion"
Building and managing relationships strategically is at the core of a business startup. When you have an idea for a new product or service, the first thing you do is build the relationships you need to nurture the idea. You find people you trust: mentors, partners, financiers, potential founding clients, gauging carefully whether they will …
I have recently had occasion to witness how those who have little can give almost everything to others. I was attending a board meeting recently, where we were fed gourmet pizza, given that the meeting happened over the dinner hour. This privilege seemed normal - a proper compensation. After all, we were giving up our …
There are moments when you hear news that affects you deeply, when hearing the news actually has a profound impact on your life. I recently was sad to hear of the death of Fred Granek, one of the most decent, honest and honourable men I have known. I came to know Fred when he joined …
I find, as the years pass, that the number of resolutions I commit to dwindles, but that I also feel an increasing urgency to keep them. This is the year that I turn 40 - a new decade, ready to be defined. I feel that it will be new chapter in my life. As such, …
My thoughts are featured on this week's Data Points, the FP Infomart blog. In it, I make the point that we need metrics to tell the story of our professional practices. The biggest challenge we have now in professional communication is our general fear of numbers. Many people who excel in our fields are creative, …
Continue reading "My FP Infomart blog Q & A: Overcoming the right brained fear of numbers"
I was reading Aaron Henninger's (Director, Unted States Air Force Public Affairs Center of Excellence) JPC article "The argument against winning hearts and minds". He makes the point that it is impossible for the United States to try and win the hearts and minds of an occupied place against a backdrop of humvees and fighter planes. …
Continue reading "Can a warrior Canada win hearts and minds?"
In 2009, my colleague, mentor and friend Terry Flynn, suggested that I join the Canadian Public Relations Society. I did, and I have found it to be incredibly rewarding. I now recommend joining a professional society to every professional communicator I know. Here are five reasons to join a professional association: 1. Ethics Code: One of …
Continue reading "5 reasons to join a professional association"
I have been having many discussions - with colleagues and practitioners - about what it means to teach ethics to professional communicators. Ethics is a challenging subject to teach at the best of times, because it requires that the practitioner have experience. How do you get a student or a mentee to have that experience, …
Continue reading "The challenges of teaching professional ethics"
Everyone seems to be talking about building and managing community these days. But what does it really mean? I think some of the answers lie in awareness of what culture is and how it works. We used to be a print and language based culture. Things were only deemed to be "official" or legally or …
Continue reading "Community building in the emerging oral culture"
