Setting Professional Development Goals in 2013

PRESIDENT’S COLUMN - Chris Smith, Greater Fort Worth PRSA
If you aren’t constantly learning something new, you can lose your competitive advantage rather quickly in our fast-paced profession. So even if you don’t make New Year’s resolutions, you might consider at least setting some professional development goals in 2013.

Luckily, PRSA makes that easy. Each month except July, our Greater Fort Worth Chapter offers a luncheon program on a timely topic, including two half-day professional workshops planned this year. Already an expert on that topic? Go anyway. Members say they often get valuable tips simply from sharing a conversation at the table.

Can’t make a midday program? Try one of our evening mixers, primarily designed for networking but also to inform.

Senior-level practitioner? Go anyway. Giving back to your profession not only offers intrinsic rewards, but some senior members suddenly out of a job have learned the hard way that networking isn’t just something you do when you’re looking for work.

Feeling on the fringe? Get involved. With numerous chapter committees, there’s something for everyone to do. The important thing is to stay connected.

You can’t afford not to in 2013.

The Agency of the Future

by Margaret Ritsch, APR

What do the decades ahead hold for the Edelmans, Richards Groups, and other agencies of the world?

Four top agency CEOs shared their outlook at PRSA International Conference in San Francisco in October. Fred Cook, CEO and president of Golin Harris, completely overhauled his 700-employee global agency to adapt to a rapidly changing marketplace.

“As our world evolves, so do the needs of our clients,” said Cook, according to the Holmes Report from June of last year when the 55-year-old agency unveiled its restructuring plan. “Clients look to us for one: insights; two, ideas; and three, engagement,” Cook explained last week to a packed audience at the Marriott Marquis. “We’ve reorganized the entire company around that.”

Golin Harris abolished the traditional agency hierarchy and replaced it with four communities of specialists: Connectors, Creators, Catalysts, and Strategists, he said. Connectors handle traditional and media engagement; creators create; catalysts lead accounts; strategists plan, conduct research, forward big ideas. The agency of the future will have a much broader suite of services and new skill sets are needed, he said.

Colleges and universities are turning out thousands of generalists every year and there are not enough jobs for them, said Rob Flaherty, APR, Ketchum’s CEO and president. He encourages students to specialize in an area such as research, media relations, video, digital or writing. His agency no longer hires generalists, but instead looks for new college graduates who already have specialized skills.

At Ketchum, new jobs and titles reflect the rapidly changing needs to the marketplace. Community and conversation manager is one example. “Storyteller” is another, he said.

Flaherty said the availability of so much consumer data augurs a sea change in how the agency advises its clients. “Big data allows us to market to the individual,” he said. “There are a huge wave of new jobs at Ketchum around this.” The employee of the future, Flaherty said at the conference, “understands the power of data, is a connector, digitally nimble, and believes in the power of community.”

One way the agency is tapping the boundless creativity of digital natives is Ketchum’s new crowd-sourcing idea site, MindFire. Originally envisioned as a tool to solicit creative ideas from college students for Ketchum’s clients, Mindfire has now become a talent recruitment site, he said.

Hill & Knowlton’s Jack Martin said his agency is investing heavily in research and digital. Measurement is very important – one of the most critical things in the business, he said.

The client of the future will unleash the power of big data, desire transparency, appreciate smart risk-taking, and be willing to turn over its brand to the community, Flaherty asserted.

The good news for our students is that public relations is one of the top 10 careers with a future, Flaherty said. “The most valuable media in the world is something you can’t buy: earned conversation, word-of-mouth, face-to-face,” he said.
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Margaret Ritsch, APR is director of Roxo, TCU’s new student-driven agency for strategic communication. Formerly director of public relations at the Balcom Agency, then owner of her own firm, Perception, Ritsch joined the TCU faculty in January 2012. She and five Roxo interns traveled to San Francisco for the PRSA and PRSSA annual conferences.

PR lessons from 'Kate' and Tarrant Area Food Bank's hunger campaign

The billboard asks a compelling question: What does hunger feel like? JustAskKate.org 

It strikes me that putting a (cartoon) face to hunger with a compelling narrative is a creative way to generate curiosity and hopefully leads to awareness, donations, volunteers, etc. The video component is simple but effective:

I reached out to Andrea Helms, Director of Communications for the Tarrant Area Food Bank and a Ft. Worth PRSA member for some insight into the campaign. I'm so thankful that she was wiling to share since I believe there are some interesting lessons and processes from this effort for PR and communication professionals:

Why did TAFB implement the 'Kate' concept campaign? 
Akron Canton Regional Food Bank in Ohio shared the Kate video concept with the Feeding America network of regional food banks, to which Tarrant Area Food Bank (TAFB) belongs. TAFB decided to customize this video for the organization not only because of the impact of Kate’s message, but to also join in creating a sense of unity across the network.

What are some of the strategic objectives you hope to achieve?
AWARENESS. We would like Kate’s message to be shared all over our community, through our Partner Agencies, donors and volunteers, and the general public. As part of our annual awareness initiative, we hope the community learns that hunger and food insecurity exist right here in our own neighborhood and we, together, can do something about it.

Through various print ads, billboards, and social media, we seek to increase awareness about hunger and direct people to the Kate video. We hope the Kate video and her message goes viral. The more that people share the video with their networks, the bigger the awareness of hunger we can create within our community. The video not only educates the public about the face of hunger--for example, Kate could be your next door neighbor, a co-worker or friend--but it also educates them about Tarrant Area Food Bank’s role in fighting local hunger.

When did it start and how long will the campaign run? 
The campaign started mid-October and will run through December. We will do another flight of the campaign in the Spring of 2013. The Kate video will remain active on our website and on justaskkate.org and through social media when the campaign is not active.

How would you say your version of the campaign differs from the original version?
We are the first Feeding America food bank to launch a traditional marketing campaign around the video. Up until now, the Kate video has been used as a tool in food banks for educating volunteers and donors and has been used through social media and word of mouth.

What communication channels are you using to share Kate? 
Facebook and Twitter posts, Facebook ads, billboards, print ads in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and Fort Worth Business Press, the Just Ask Kate web page, the TAFB website, YouTube, e-blasts, email signatures, volunteer training and exclusive showings at TAFB related events.

We also have several collateral pieces our staff use for various audiences, such as children’s activities and giveaways, including Kate as a fan with suggestions on the backside for taking action to build awareness about hunger.  Our life-sized Kate cut-out is being used for photo opportunities with key people in our community for posting on social media.

How will you determine the success of this campaign?
Because this is an awareness campaign, we are most interested in how viral the campaign becomes. The more video views, shares and likes we get from the Kate video, the more we know the word is being spread around our community. We have been using Facebook and Google analytics to track where our viewers are coming from and what actions they are taking after they view the video, such as visiting our website or liking our Facebook page.
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What do you think? Is this a compelling campaign to help generate awareness for the food bank's fight against local hunger? As always, the comments are yours.
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The post is from the Next Communications blog.

PRSA Assembly Highlights 2012 #prsaicon

PRSA Assembly Highlights 2012 
Submitted by Andra Bennett House, APR

National Board 
Even though the PRSA Southwest District does not have a district rep on the board (because no one ran), Blake Lewis, APR of Dallas was elected as National Treasurer. Blake will be an excellent “go-to” person for our district, if the need arises.

PRServing America PRServing America is a competition for the best pro-bono community service project by a chapter. PRSSA can participate as well. For 1st place, the prize is $2,500 and the prize amounts go down from there. Our Chapter could think about a pro bono project that would be a possible submission for this recognition and reward.

Advocacy 
PRSA submitted an op-ed to Roll Call re: Senate inquiry into federal agencies and contractors payments to PR firms.

PRSA advocated on behalf of PR pros being able to edit Wikipedia for clients. The owner of Wikipedia apparently was against this. The name of the Facebook group in favor of it is called Corporate Representatives for Ethical Wiki Engagement (CREWE).

Get more PRSA advocacy news.

Business Case of PR 
PRSA wrote Forbes op-ed for business schools including reputation management in MBA programs. (MBA Initiative)

Commission on Public Relations Education gave a lengthy presentation on the disparity of what colleges require for PR degrees.

Membership 
Currently PRSA National has 21,378 members. This is down from 2008 highs, but steadily climbing back up.

Free webinars this year – 63 have been offered, with 6,500 participants, exponentially up from any previous time.

Chapter resources – document sharing platform is being developed for online. No more chapters keeping stuff in shoeboxes!

Next year, ALL Members will be able to pay dues quarterly for a $15 processing fee. This will be optional for chapters to allow members to do this or not. It may allow more members to join, but could affect chapter cash flow.

Issues & Trends emails have been upgraded to be more user friendly and quickly read.

Priorities for 2013 are Ethics, Diversity, Advocacy and the Brand: One PRSA.

Unconference
Value of Districts – upshot of discussion was that National should look at possibly re-drawing the Districts into smaller territories, separating it from board representation, or subsidizing districts to help pay for regional conferences. There are members who do not belong to Chapters, yet chapters fund the Districts, so some members are benefiting without contributing.

Member Benefits – Districts could help aggregate benefit information for the Districts and provide it in a canned fashion for the chapters for newsletters, luncheon announcements, etc. Districts could help pen op-eds and localize the advocacy efforts of National for chapters to submit to their local publications.

Many topics discussed and videotaped – National to condense and make available soon.

Town Hall
Many delegates expressed concern that the Assembly did not vote on anything except the board slate. We listened to reports and gave feedback, but some did not feel the expense of the travel was worth being there in person, and did not feel the Assembly “accomplished” much.

I predict if there is no “beefy” agenda next year, and only voting on board nominees, many chapters will send proxies vs. delegates unless they are staying for the conference.

Thank you to Andra Bennett House, APR and Holly Ellman for representing the Greater Ft. Worth Chapter of PRSA as delegates to the Assembly during the 2012 PRSA International Conference.

JPS Health Network: A Changing Vision and Communication Lessons

The best way to tour a hospital and check out its fluorescent lighting is from a standing position, not while lying on your back. At least that's what we were told by JPS Health Network President and CEO, Robert Earley.

For the record, he's right.

Robert Earley, 

 JPS Health Network
President and CEO

Recently, the Ft. Worth Chapter of PRSA took its monthly lunch program on the road and got an "unfiltered view tour" [his words] of Tarrant County's public hospital with Mr. Robert Earley. This tour was our chance to hear from this local leader who is using a strategic communication and community outreach campaign to help change hearts and minds about the Tarrant County Hospital District.

"We're in the life and death business," said Earley of the work JPS does for what last year was over 1 million people. "We hope it's more life." 

As the county's public hospital, JPS gets a bit of bad rap. There's a misconception that since it's funded by tax dollars, people tend to think the care would be sub-par and that there's no need to provide additional resources through private funding. To be clear, his pre-tour talk did not come across to me like a fundraising effort. Instead, he just pointed out parallels to other publicly funded institutions getting additional resources from benefactors to programs they support. (cough - college football coaches salaries - cough) Funding challenges are typical for public institutions and there were many of those challenges he inherited.

As for the care, he explains that he wants a cultural shift. They had previously been operating in a realm of mediocrity. "We're not there yet," he said. Earley recognized, "while the care was good, [they] weren't treating people right." So he made some changes and expected more.

He wants JPS to be a place where best-practices in healthcare are created and then followed by others. Earley expects more from his 4,500 employees: "When people walk in the front door, everybody gets respect."

When they hire, he says they take a "360° approach." They want people with the right skill-set and heart.

Robert Earley has Three Rules for the JPS Health Network staff:

1. Own It. He wants staff to be proud of where they work. When they hear about the good, it's ok to share that they work for JPS. When there are challenges, it's still ok to share that they work for JPS.
2. Seek Joy. He wants employees to smile. Ideally, he hopes they have reasons to smile throughout the day. Healthcare can make for a stressful environment, providing clear direction and positivity can go a long way.  
3. Don't Be A Jerk! Earley is on a personal campaign to against "jerkdom." He cites examples in our society where we seem to raise up jerks and jerk-like behavior ahead of being simply good people.

"We are trying to be a transparent organization." Earley is using what I consider to be a smart community relations tactic with on-site tours. One example of this unfiltered view was that we were encouraged to ask any question along the way; anything was fair game. He's proud of JPS being the Level 1 Trauma Center for Tarrant County. We saw operating rooms, including two that stay staffed, stocked, and ready 24-hours a day, seven days a week. Honestly, it's highly impressive.

Here are some additional public relations take-aways from Robert Earley and the JPS tour:

• The JPS team observe other healthcare systems going through challenges and then they look internally to see if they have the same issue(s).
• They want to establish a network by which they can communicate directly with stakeholders and not be reliant on traditional media methods.
• The quality and safety standards as an organization are constantly in need improvement.
• Training is top-notch: A JPS nurse receive approximately $64,000 in training. (Trauma nurses get double that amount!) The problem they have is talent retention. Nurse get well-trained, work a while then split. Earley said they have about a 20% turnover rate, which is way too high. (I wouldn't be surprised if JPS starts an aggressive campaign to keep their talent.)
• Earley instituted a chair policy in the hospital. A folding chair hangs behind the door of the hospital rooms and doctors are required to remove the chair and set it next to patients so that they can be at eye-level with them to talk.
• There are so many electronic and networked aspects of healthcare in general and especially within the hospital, but not much in their communication. Yet.

During the Q&A period, someone asked how do they tell the JPS story. Earley responded with a smile, "we hired J.R. Labbe."

Jill "J.R." Labbe is the former editorial director for the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram. I think this is an intriguing move for JPS and for Labbe. I'm interested to see how she can bring her skills to the other side of the news for storytelling and work from within the organization. She expressed some parting words in the newspaper about her new role:

While my responsibilities as vice president of communications and community affairs at JPS will differ greatly from what I've been doing the past 20 years -- and the irony of going from inflicting pain on government employees to being a government employee is not lost -- my love for this community and the people who call it home will not.

Wise move, JPS.

Robert Earley concluded by letting attendees know that others are welcome. They'd appreciate more people coming to JPS and seeing first-hand what's happening and how things are changing for the better. There's work to be done and it's wonderful to see organizational communications and community relations take starring roles in the process for this organization.
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This is cross-posted from the Next Communications blog by Richie Escovedo, Fort Worth PRSA 2012 VP of Programs.

'From the Everyday to the Bad Day' with Kristie Aylett, APR

Have I mentioned how much I dig Storify? In addition to being super-easy to use (drag-n-drop), it's a great tool for capturing tweets, pics, posts, slide decks, videos, links and more on a topic, event, news item or anything really if you are creative. I recommend PR pros experiment with Storify.

Enough with the unpaid praise for Storify. Here's the latest from the June 2012 Ft. Worth PRSA lunch program with Kristie Aylett, APR.

May is all about leadership

by Allyson Cross, Greater Fort Worth PRSA Chapter President

On May 31 we will host our first Worthy Awards Gala at The Marquis on Magnolia beginning at 7:00 PM. We will honor the year’s best in public relations work and leadership. Bob Ray Sanders will serve as emcee and will also present our award to the Communicator of the Year, an individual who is not in day-to-day public relations but who exemplifies communication leadership.

I’m so pleased to announce that at 49 submissions we exceeded our awards entry goal. Feedback from across the country suggests that this is a fabulous response for an inaugural awards program. I hope you’re as excited as I am to see the judging results.

Our May 9 luncheon will feature Sam Sims, PRSA’s Southwest District chairman for 2012. Mr. Sims will speak to us on communications and leadership — a great topic as we honor our own local communications leaders! And speaking of leadership, kudos to Dr. Amiso George, APR, Fellow PRSA, with the launch of her new book, “Case Studies in Crisis Communication: International Perspectives on Hits and Misses.” (On April 26, Dr. George, pictured below at left, shared her thoughts during a chapter mixer on coordinating and editing her book's production with contributors across the globe.)

For a final note on leadership, it’s a good time to honor those in our chapter who have been designated PRSA fellows. The PRSA College of Fellows is an honorary organization of more than 400 senior practitioners and educators, each of whom has left a footprint on our profession. Our local fellows are Carolyn Bobo, APR, Fellow PRSA; Mary Dulle, APR, Fellow PRSA; Dr. Amiso George, APR, Fellow PRSA; Bill Lawrence, APR, Fellow PRSA; and Dr. Doug Newsom, APR, Fellow PRSA. Special thanks to each of you for your tremendous impact on public relations.

Help Define Public Relations - #PRDefined

by Richie Escovedo (@vedo)

In 1982, a first-class stamp was 20 cents, Michael Jackson's Thriller was released, the world's population was 4.6 billion, and Johnson & Johnson had a PR nightmare on their hands that led to what is now a model crisis response case study. Ironically, 1982 was also the last time the Public Relations Society of America defined public relations.

Last week, PRSA launched a campaign to create a modern definition for PR with a dedicated site and a strategic Media & Advertising column placement in the New York Times.  I was thrilled to see this collaborative effort to get an updated (and hopefully better) answer to the question, "What is public relations?"

We've needed something new. Public relations takes a beating outside the industry from those who relegate it to only media relations or worse, spin. And honestly, we seldom do an adequate job within the ranks of PR pros of fighting these and other misconceptions. So it's time for a change. (Disclosure: I've been a member of PRSA since 2001.)

Out with the old, in with the new
In 1982, PRSA adopted a definition for PR as:

“Public relations helps an organization and its publics adapt mutually to each other.”

Today, we have an opportunity to adapt this definition to better fit what it is that we do. Take some time to review the notes from the one-day summit of the Definition of Public Relations Task Force.

The group concluded that a modern definition of public relations should be limited to a single sentence: 

Public relations [DOES WHAT] with/for [WHOM] to [DO WHAT] for [WHAT PURPOSE].

The group also saw the need for the modern PR definition to explain two specific things:

1. How public relations drives business success; and
2. How public relations protects and/or promotes the organization or brand.

Submit your definition by Friday, December 2, 2011.

Only the beginning
The campaign is just a start to what could be something really fantastic for public relations. Will the final definition end the debate? No way. Consider it the start to a much greater conversation within our field. I can't wait to see what's next.

Follow the conversation on Twitter with the #PRDefined hastag.

(This is cross-posted from the Next Communications blog.)

Related articles

• What is PR? An Updated Definition for Public Relations (comprehension.prsa.org)
• AdVoice: Defining PR: Words with Friends (forbes.com)
• Have your say in redefining public relations for the modern age (nevillehobson.com)
• Public Relations ... Defined (prsay.prsa.org)
• Redefine PR? No, just learn to listen (globalneighbourhoods.net)

What is your reputation worth? (#PRethics)

What is your reputation worth? It’s worth protecting if you expect to flourish in the field of public relations.

Yes, it’s your reputation at risk, always, on the job or not. Some of the most serious hazards are on the job.

Check out the values of the organization or client who is paying for your public relations efforts. You are not the conscience of top management, including its Board. You can’t be if management has no conscience.

If you are asked to do something that conflicts with your own personal code of ethics, your own values, you have three choices.
The first is to talk about the risks to the organization if it is taking, or plans to take, a wrong turn. If personal, professional counsel fails, you can turn to PRSA’s code for behavior for its members and simply say the plans are putting your career in jeopardy. When that doesn’t work, you can quit. I’ve done it. Only once. I had four small children, a husband out of work and was in a similar economic climate to what we are experiencing now. It worked. I was coaxed back, and listened to thereafter.

If you don’t do this, you hurt yourself and the practice of PR.

Once when teaching at TCU, I had the idea of asking a philosophy professor who taught ethics to teach a class for us. When I asked him, his first response was, “I didn’t know PR people had any ethics.” You are still up against that perception. Now it’s called “spin.”
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Guest post by Dr. Doug Newsom, APR, Fellow PRSA, Professor Emerita Texas Christian University, for PRSA September Ethics Month.

Photo credit: nylffn via Flickr Creative Commons

Related articles

• Guest Post: The Importance of Ethics to the PR Industry (mediabistro.com)
• The State of Ethics in Public Relations (prsay.prsa.org)

PRSA Southwest District Quick Start 2011 - #prsasw

#Fail: Social Media #PR Disasters - recap

(Cross-posted from the Next Communications blog)

Thanks to Stephanie Scott and Corey Lark for sharing their 10 Lessons from Social Media PR Disasters for the June Ft. Worth PRSA luncheon: (Get their presentation slide deck.)

1. You are not in a vacuum
2. Err on the side of caution; Respond swiftly
3. Be prudent; Accept responsibility
4. Update your tactics
5. Context matters
6. If you apologize, mean it
7. Mocking your customers = bad
8. Be transparent
9. Manage your social media presence (or someone may manage it for you)
10. Sometimes you are the problem

Below is a recap built on Storify from last week's Fort Worth PRSA luncheon. Aside: This was the first time for me to use Storify. (Way cool tool.)

Our chapter blog went to the dogs

(Photo credit: readinginpublic via Flickr Creative Commons)

Ok, I suppose it's not fair to blame Lucy for not coming up with anything good for our chapter's blog. She tried her best, it was just too much to ask this furry friend to write posts for us with any consistent frequency for this blog. Of course, most canines can't understand the in's and out's of public relations, corporate and nonprofit communications trends or thoughts on the profession. Plus, her spelling was atrocious.

We should have tried to get the PR professionals to handle the writing process. Unfortunately, we've not had a major push within the chapter to offer up this blog as a place for members to write posts. And thus, we haven't had anything new since January. (Face in palms)


But, things are about to change. We've let Lucy run free in the backyard and have now opened the blog up to posts from our fellow PRSA members. 

Here's how you can help: Use the online submission form for your guest post. Blog writing is a great way for PR pros to hone writing skills. If you don't have your own blog, feel free to use our chapter blog submission opportunity to share your thoughts. If you do blog elsewhere, be sure to note where you blog so we can include it.

We're looking for posts that cover public relations trends, tools, topics and more. What's happening in your industry or area of expertise? Be creative and share.

What do you think? Is this a good way to add writers to our chapter blog? Have you wanted to write for the blog but didn't know how? We can't wait to see our members' posts.

Congratulations, Dr. Amiso George

Dr. Amiso George, APR, Fellow PRSA, was recently inducted into the PRSA College of Fellows at the 2010 International Conference. 

The Greater Ft. Worth Chapter of PRSA held a reception for Amiso at Dos Gringos on October 29. 

Also, please read the thank you letter from Amiso to the chapter (PDF).

Dr. George with two of her TCU students.
 

Group shot of the PRSA Fellows from the Fort Worth chapter, including (from left) Mary Dulle, APR; Carolyn Bobo, APR; Dr. Doug Newsom, APR; Bill Lawrence, Dr. Amiso George, APR.

 Dr. George at her induction ceremony

 Dr. George at her induction ceremony

Dr. George with Dr. Julie O’Neil (left) and Carolyn Bobo, APR (right) 

Read the full release from PRSA on the 2010 College of Fellows Inductees. Amiso George, Ph.D., APR, Fellow PRSA, is an associate professor of strategic communication at Texas Christian University.

Translucency and the No Comment Debate in the Era of Transparency (September)

The following are notes provided by GFW PRSA chapter member and past president, Holly Ellman from the September luncheon:
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Rob Wakefield, Ph.D. and Susan Walton - Brigham Young University

Two years ago Brad Rawlins was one of the first to get information on transparency into the public relations body of knowledge.

Three Concepts of Transparency

1.      Embrace open and honest communication of both successes and failures

2.      Engage with your publics, facilitate ongoing dialogue

3.      Relinquish the intent to hide things to make your organization look perfect

Sometimes there are limitations to what you can say. When and how should you be transparent?

No Comment

There are traditional reasons for not being transparent:

·         You don’t know the answer

·         You feel a different spokesperson, perhaps with more or specialized knowledge, should respond

·         Response involves a legal issue

·         The activity/event deals with personal or confidential information

Consider Translucency. It’s not a replacement for transparency, but is a necessary supplement, or corollary.

Translucency discerns the outline of an object, but does not completely reveal the object.

When should you be transparent?

1. Is what you are disclosing the truth? (Not just a collection of facts – appropriate context is important.)
2. Does it meet cultural norms and expectations? (For example, in the Toyota recalls, the Japanese people were insulted that the Toyota CEO addressed the company’s crisis. In this culture, it is sometimes more important to save face.)
3. Is it authentic? Does it reflect who you are and who you say you are?
4. Is it the best ethical and emotional choice? Could reputation be damaged?
5. If releasing the information available at the time, when you know more information will be available at a later date, would you cause someone to act too early without all the facts?

Photo: dbl90 via Flickr Creative Commons

Transparency

A complaint is lodged.

An investigation is launched.

Public is informed about investigation.

The complainant is absolved.

Reputation is potentially damaged.

Translucency

A complaint is lodged.

An investigation is launched.

The complainant is absolved.

Public is informed.

Reputation is maintained.

Toward Translucent Transparency

Does not give permission to hide things.

1. Most important thing is commitment to open communication with stakeholders to the highest extent possible.
2.  Maintain open, transparent communication always – in good times and bad – ahead of a crisis as well as in the midst of one.
3.  Recognize and freely acknowledge that you rarely have all the answers. Say this clearly and frequently, and explain why this is true.
4. Hold both sides of the debate accountable for transparency. What are the motives on both sides? (i.e., the media)

Question and Answer Period

Translucency is becoming more acceptable to attorneys, who are beginning to realize the importance of the court of public opinion.

In the non-profit world, transparency is hugely important. A lot of the organization’s credibility depends on its past behavior. Carefully think through and explain why you can’t share some financial information, for example. (i.e., problems the Red Cross faced when it was discovered that some of the money donated for Katrina victims went instead to operating funds or to save for future needs)

         

Should PRSA Board Service be tied to Public Relations Accreditation?

This is cross-posted from a post by Ft. Worth PRSA member, Dan Keeney, APR.
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The big debate in public relations circles these days has nothing to do with the outrageous efforts to sully the reputation of  Wiki Leaks founder Julian Assange and its implications for the profession and journalism in general, BP’s ham handed response to the biggest manmade environmental disaster in U.S. history or even whether PR staffers caught posting phony reviews online should be tarred and feathered. Instead, the greatest minds of our profession are embroiled in a no-win argument about whether the Public Relations Society of America should require professional accreditation before being considered for service on the Society’s Board of Directors.


Established in 1964, the Accredited in Public Relations credential (APR) is awarded by the Universal Accreditation Board (disclosure: I earned my APR in 2000). It measures a public relations practitioner’s fundamental knowledge of communications theory and its application; establishes advanced capabilities in research, strategic planning, implementation and evaluation; and demonstrates a commitment to professional excellence and ethical conduct.

The APR credential has nothing to do with a person’s ability to govern effectively on the board of a national PR society. Zip. Zero. Nada.

Currently, PRSA requires that any prospective board member be accredited. When a ground-up rewrite of the PRSA bylaws was proposed last year, the organization’s General Assembly (the PRSA version of Congress) rejected the proposed language that would have stripped accreditation from board requirements. Despite voting a few years ago to drop the requirement that all Assembly Delegates be accredited, the Assembly balked at taking the next logical step.

The reason the PRSA general assembly voted to drop the requirement that Assembly Delegates be accredited (or “decouple” service from accreditation as we called it then) was that doing so eliminated so many highly qualified PRSA chapter leaders. How could a person serve as the president of a large chapter and not qualify to represent that chapter as a PRSA Assembly Delegate?

The rationale for keeping the accreditation requirement for Assembly Delegates then (as it is now for board service) is that it illustrates an organizational commitment to the credential. If PRSA’s leaders aren’t willing to pursue and achieve the credential, how can the organization suggest it has value for everyone else? What kind of PR practitioner would seek a leadership position but not consider it worthwhile to seek this profession’s credential?

That is a pretty good argument, but we aren’t in a world where everything makes sense. The fact is that only about 20 percent of PRSA members have achieved the APR credential. As a result, until the middle of the last decade, the organization basically had a class system of governance. Only 20 percent of the membership had the ability to serve on the PRSA General Assembly and/or Board of Directors. The other 80 percent, for which everything else was the same (including dues) could not participate in leadership.

Included in that 80 percent are highly capable PR practitioners, including accomplished leaders in corporate communications and agency management. Included in that 80 percent are people who have been leaders of the profession for 20 or more years and regularly shape thoughts about effective strategies, trends and ethics. And included in that 80 percent who, until the mid-00s, could not serve as an Assembly Delegate and STILL cannot serve as a PRSA Board Member are practitioners who have given countless hours of their time as leaders at the chapter and regional levels.

It didn’t make sense for the PRSA General Assembly and it does not make sense for the PRSA Board of Directors.

Last year when the general assembly passed an amendment to the proposed new bylaws that re-inserted the accreditation requirement for board service, I thought it was wrong. To make a point, I presented an amendment to re-insert the accreditation requirement for service as a General Assembly Delegate. I knew it would be defeated, but I wanted to make a point that their insistence on requiring an APR for board service made no sense given their vehement distaste for requiring APR for the assembly.

It was and is a blatant contradiction. If you believe accreditation should be a requirement for PRSA leadership, I respect that. But I can’t understand how you can require accreditation for one set of leaders but drop the same requirement for the other set of leaders.

I don’t think anyone really got the point I was trying to make. Turns out PR people are a very literal group and don’t really get irony.

Fast forward to today with forum posts and e-mails flying with semi-respectful insults pitting the leaders of our profession against each other. Each side is entrenched with very little likelihood that many will be influenced by the back and forth argument. But here’s the bottom line:

• It makes no sense to require accreditation of the PRSA Board of Directors, especially since the PRSA General Assembly dropped the requirement for accreditation for itself and nearly all chapters have no APR requirements for leadership.
• Given the fact that a majority of the leaders of PRSA chapters, regions and the PRSA General Assembly are not accredited, it is impossible to argue that accreditation has any impact on the ability to govern. The organization is already largely governed by unaccredited PR practitioners.
• The inability of four out of five PRSA members to serve on the PRSA board regardless of their level of achievement, track record of service to the organization or interest in serving is patently unfair.
• If the real goal is to illustrate the organization’s commitment to the credential, there must be better ways to accomplish that goal than coupling accreditation and board service.

That last point is where a meaningful and productive conversation really should start, but unfortunately year after year the PRSA General Assembly gets a glossed over report on the status of the organization’s accreditation promotion efforts. Let’s hope this year it is different.
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This post was shared in the spirit of having a Point / Counterpoint discussion. What do you think? We are also open to posting a counter argument from membership.

Not the Usual Suspects: Diversity in public relations work (August)

The following is a guest post provided by Bill Prickett, APR:
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Photo by clevercupcakes via Creative Commons

The August program focused on “outsiders,” so I guess it’s appropriate that this post is written by someone from the Dallas chapter. I’ve been active in PRSA for many years, and served as the first co-chair of the Dallas Diversity Committee and was also involved in the diversity initiative with PRSA national. When I saw this topic, I knew I wanted to attend.

First, I want to report that the speaker, Jacquie Lambiase, Ph.D., was stellar, offering so much insight into a difficult and sometimes uncomfortable topic. She’s an associate professor in the strategic communication division of TCU's Schieffer School of Journalism and has co-edited and co-written two books on advertising's use of sexually oriented appeals, along with writing journal articles and books chapters on ethics, social media, and gendered images in mass media. Her content was informative and her style was casual, encouraging the interactive discussion that the audience obviously didn’t want to end.

She informed the group of her intentions to cover three basic areas on the topic of diversity: religion (specifically Islam) and disabilities, though her primary concentration would focus on gays, lesbian and transgendered in the workplace. At the very beginning, she shared that all three of these barriers would be helped by each of us adopting an attitude of hospitality—making people feel welcomed, valued and accepted.

I will attempt a brief (sigh) overview of some highlights from the presentation and discussion.

The day of the luncheon happened to be the first day of Ramadan, and it was brought out that neither of the DFW primary newspapers had carried any stories about the event or the religion. “Can you imagine Christmas without a front page story? Or Easter?” Jacquie asked the group.

On the subject of disabilities, Jacquie pointed out that most accommodations cost nothing. She said the best way to deal with people with disabilities is to “have the conversation”—talk about it and get it out in the open. Our differences keep us at a distance, but communication can bridge the gap.

When it comes to sexual orientation and gender identity, Jacquie encouraged companies to “come out of the closet” in their open, vocal support of GLBT employees. The group made numerous suggestions to help GLBT employees :

• Provide domestic partnership benefits
• Change the options on forms (Male and Female only; Single, Married, Divorced… Partnered?)
• Use of offensive terminology: sexual preference, chosen lifestyle, etc.

I wish there was time and space to share all the insights I recorded in my notebook; they were helpful. (I learned the new term “Gay Vague Advertising” and how some companies are content with a casual ‘wink’ in the direction of the gay/lesbian market. That discussion was worth the price of the meal for me.) But it’s my hope that what I have shared here will give you an idea of what was discussed…and the incredible value of such programs.

As Jacquie pointed out, it’s not that we don’t need to continue our discussion on issues such as racial and gender diversity, but we must broaden our perspective and our hospitality. I applaud the Fort Worth chapter for addressing this topic in such a (pardon the pun) straight-forward and thoughtful approach.
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Bill Prickett, APR works in Public Relations/Communications at Certified Payment Processing and is a Dallas PRSA chapter member.

In the hot Texas sun, sweating and wondering...

Image via Wikipedia

PRESIDENT’S COLUMN -- Tom Burke, APR, Greater Fort Worth PRSA 

Just sitting here in the hot Texas sun, sweating and wondering ...

... When is it okay to call a woman a fellow? Well, when that woman is Dr. Amiso M. George, APR. Amiso is a member of the Greater Fort Worth PRSA Chapter, and she's just been accepted by the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) into its prestigious College of Fellows. The College of Fellows is an honorary organization within PRSA comprised of nearly 500 accredited practitioners and educators with at least 20 years of experience in the business. That's the top two percent of the profession who are members of PRSA.

Dr. George is an associate professor of strategic communication and advisor of the TCU-PRSSA/Bateman Team, Schieffer School of Journalism, Texas Christian University. Dr. George will be inducted into the College of Fellows at the PRSA International Conference in Washington, D.C., in October. She will be the fifth member of the Greater Fort Worth PRSA Chapter to become a Fellow. The four others are Dr. Doug Newsom, APR, Carolyn Bobo, APR, Bill Lawrence, APR and Mary Dulle, APR. It's a tribute to our Chapter that nearly four percent of our members are PRSA Fellows.

... What would we have done, and what would have happened, if the BP oil well in the Gulf couldn't be capped and the flow of oil stopped? What happens if we can't stop the flow of an underground oil well in the future?

... Was Neil Armstrong chewing gum when he walked on the moon 41 years ago, last month?

... How can millions of people daily be able to view a video being transmitted from a mile underwater, but the local cable company can't maintain service to my house during a thunderstorm?

... If there now are 400 billionaires in the world, why aren't we hearing about the many good things they are doing with their money to benefit the human race?

... If members of the millennial generation are supposed to be such collaborative communicators, why are they like so many other youngsters and do not talk to their parents?

... Shouldn't there be a national holiday for the original Anthora's inventor, who recently died?

... If we are supposed to be flying the friendly skies, why are so many pilots depressed? Just recently, the FAA changed a generations-old policy and began allowing pilots with mild to moderate depression to fly while taking antidepressants. The thought of having a depressed pilot in the cockpit depresses me.

... If after reading the August issue of Texas Monthly, you wondered, as I did, if John Graves found a back porch while he was at TCU.

Try to stay cool. Hopefully, August will fly by and give way to cooler weather and the 2010 college football season!

Do you have 20/20 vision? Who will rule the business and political world in 2020

PRSA Monthly Luncheon, Wednesday, July 14, 2010
By Corey Lark, Open Channels Group

The Fort Worth PRSA July 2010 presentation was a little different than usual. The main focus was business and the International business environment. For those that missed it, here's a summary of lessons learned and take-aways from the program, Do you have 20/20 vision? Who will rule the business and political world in 2020, with Bill Moncrief, Ph.D., senior associate dean and professor of international business at the Neeley School of Business at Texas Christian University. (See the notes in Flashpaper below or get the PDF.)



Key PR Take-Aways:

• The Internet is a blessing, has brought the world together
• We always need to be looking 10 years out, change is always coming
• In order to thrive in business, you need to be doing business in the world market
• When the Obama administration took office, the world's perception of the U.S. became more positive and international business picked up
• The world is constantly changing, we need to be prepared to work in the global marketplace; we need to be prepared for the rapid change that is constantly occurring

Grow your social media measurement skills

President's Column: Tom Burke, APR, Greater Fort Worth PRSA
(This post appeared in the May 2010 issue of the eChaser)

It’s continual learning for me at IBM. Every day. It’s that way when you’re on a team of 400,000 people helping to build a smarter planet and 399,999 of those people are smarter than you!

Thankfully, in today’s intensely competitive and dynamic global marketplace, IBM continues to invest in employee development. Through various avenues, the company provides resources necessary to grow your skills, gain new experiences and build a high-impact career. A career differentiated by expertise. In fact, IBM’s achievements in learning and development recently earned Fortune magazine recognition as the No. 1 company for leaders.

This focus on skills and career development is also true of the Public Relations Society of America. Professional development is one of the most cherished benefits of PRSA membership. At Greater Fort Worth PRSA we continually strive to exceed this expectation of our members through relevant monthly programs and engaging events.

One of our most exciting professional development meetings is set for Wednesday, May 19, at Colonial Country Club. Katie Delahaye Paine, CEO and founder of KDPaine & Partners and author of “Measuring Public Relationships: The Data-Driven Communicator’s Guide to Success,” will lead a three-hour morning workshop focusing on key elements of engagement, including quantitative, qualitative and new relationship metrics. Over lunch she will review measurement principles and how they apply to the new, wild world of social media. It promises to be four hours of exceptional expertise building that you won’t want to miss.

In this crazy world we live in, it is more true than ever that if you’re not learning and growing, you are slowly fading away. And that doesn’t sound like too much fun, does it?

(Photo credit: Sarah Scissors)