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In a world where communication budgets are shrinking and impact expectations are rising, the development sector can no longer afford to see communication as “soft power.” This session will explore how ROI-based communication—a framework rooted in measurable outcomes, behavioral insights, and data-driven storytelling—can transform the way we approach visibility and advocacy in public health programs.  Drawing on real-world experiences from projects implemented across the globe with global health partners, governments and donors, I will share how strategic communication plans have directly influenced funding outcomes, partner engagement, and community trust. Participants will learn innovative and cost-effective ways to measure the impact of communication—from digital analytics to qualitative behavior tracking—and how to integrate these insights into program design from day one.  This interactive session is designed for communication professionals working in the public, private, and nonprofit sectors who want to move from awareness-based to impact-driven communication. Expect practical tools, relatable case studies, and frameworks you can apply immediately to prove that good communication doesn’t just tell stories—it drives results. Read more

Couldn’t attend IABC World Conference or missed a must-see session? We’ve got you covered. Our Session Takeaways are speaker-created summaries packed with key points, standout ideas, and actionable takeaways from each breakout session. Whether you were there and want a refresher—or couldn’t make it this year—these documents help you tap into the insights and strategies shared at the event. Read more

Community Roundtable - World Conference 2026, Insights and Takeaways 25 June 2026 | 12:00 PM ET Let’s get together (virtually) and talk about the key insights and valuable connections from IABC's World Conference 2026 in Toronto (June 14-16, 2026). Whether you attended the conference or not, this roundtable offers a unique opportunity to: Hear first-hand accounts of the most impactful sessions and emerging communication trends. Discuss practical takeaways specifically relevant to consultants' businesses. Learn about important developments from the Annual General Meeting (AGM). Explore potential collaboration opportunities that emerged during the conference. Our community roundtables create a safe and confidential space for consultants to exchange ideas, ask questions, and build meaningful professional relationships. Come prepared to share your conference experience or bring your questions for those who attended. FREE for IABC members. Register via your member portal. About IABC's Consultants SIG The IABC Consultants shared interest group provides a space for communication consultants to develop business connections, exchange ideas with their peers, and advance their careers through collaborative learning. We serve as a trusted resource where members can find real-time support, thoughtful conversations and valuable partnerships that enhance the services they deliver to clients. Read more

Everyone wants to be sold to, with Ron Ben-Joseph  Thursday 28 May 2026 | Noon Eastern | Virtual Conventional wisdom says no one wants to be sold to. Ron Ben-Joseph respectfully disagrees. People eagerly welcome solutions that address their specific needs—they just don’t want to feel like generic targets. This session flips the script on sales, transforming it from a pushy monologue into a collaborative discovery process. Ron is the founder of Artful Speaking™ and Artful Sales™, blending 25+ years of performance, teaching, and sales coaching to help mission-driven professionals sell with story-centred integrity. He has worked with hundreds of entrepreneurs and organizations, including Adobe, Medtronic, and 1871 Chicago, and has taught at Northwestern, DePaul, and Front Range Community College. In this session, you’ll learn how to:​ Develop deep listening skills to understand your prospects’ actual challenges. Ask insightful questions that help clients articulate needs they may not fully recognize. Craft compelling narratives that connect your solutions to your clients’ aspirations. Position yourself as a trusted advisor who genuinely understands their situation. You’ll leave equipped with practical techniques to uncover what clients truly want and demonstrate how your work helps them achieve their goals. When selling becomes about the client’s journey, people don’t just tolerate it; they embrace it. FREE for IABC members. Register via your member portal. About IABC's Consultants SIG The IABC Consultants shared interest group provides a space for communication consultants to develop business connections, exchange ideas with their peers, and advance their careers through collaborative learning. We serve as a trusted resource where members can find real-time support, thoughtful conversations and valuable partnerships that enhance the services they deliver to clients. Read more

The sales tool for people who hate selling, with Dominique Blain  Thursday 30 April 2026 | Noon Eastern | Virtual Communications consultants are often the cobbler's children: brilliant at telling others’ stories, yet stuck when it comes to their own. But no more! Let’s explore how you can get your story to shine. Dominique Blain, founder of boutique communications agency Bien dit and co-lead of IABC’s Consultants SIG, will show you how she manages to present the full scope of what she does and who can vouch for her without feeling the ‘ick’ of sales. It’s an approach that has got her hired multiple times, and led one prospect to ask, “Forget why I scheduled this; can you build a deck like this for us?” In this session, Dominique walks us through that deck — the content, the philosophy, and how it launches fruitful conversations — offering an immersive experience that shows: ​ How to establish credibility and range before a prospect has described their problem, preventing the pigeonhole effect from day one. How to plant seeds for work that may take months to close. How to build clarity on what you do well and what you actually want to do. How to reframe your relationship with selling: less performance, more conversation. Note that this is not a methodology workshop. Dominique will share her own presentation and her own process as a starting point for reflection and discussion. FREE for IABC members. Register via your member portal. About IABC's Consultants SIG The IABC Consultants shared interest group provides a space for communication consultants to develop business connections, exchange ideas with their peers, and advance their careers through collaborative learning. We serve as a trusted resource where members can find real-time support, thoughtful conversations and valuable partnerships that enhance the services they deliver to clients. Read more

What GLP-1 drugs can teach us about information overload at work 14 May 3:00 pm UK Time / 9:00 am CT Many organisations are suffering from what could be described as infobesity a constant stream of emails, alerts, updates and messages competing for the same limited slice of employee attention. The problem isn’t that communications teams aren’t working hard enough the problem is volume. When people are faced with hundreds of signals every day, the brain simply does what it’s designed to do: it tunes out. In this thought-provoking session, Sharon O'Dea uses the analogy of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs to explore what organisations can learn about communication overload. Just as GLP-1 drugs change how people experience hunger, Sharon argues that organisations need to rethink the way they “feed” employees information. Instead of constantly pushing more content, the focus should shift to information restraint  creating communication systems that prioritise relevance, quality and timing. Please join live if your timezone permits it.  IABC members will be able to watch the recording through the OnDemand portal ——— Speaker Biography:  Sharon O'Dea is co-founder of Lithos Partners, a boutique digital workplace and internal communications consultancy based in Amsterdam. She works with major global organisations — including global banks, professional services firms and world-leading universities — on intranet strategy, digital employee experience and communications design. Sharon is co-author of Digital Communications at Work: Designing Channels for Employee Engagement and Experience (Kogan Page, 2026), written with Jonathan Phillips. A regular writer and speaker, Sharon is a recognised voice on the future of work, communications technology and digital culture. Before founding her consultancy, Sharon held senior leadership roles in internal communications, including Head of Digital Communications at Standard Chartered. Read more