Get online professional development from IABC On Demand

There is no time like the present to focus on your career. This education package gives you the tools to drive forward and make the next step, whatever that may be for you. Learn about the role certification plays in your personal brand, the balance of listening and speaking as a leader, communicating with vulnerability, and taking your communication skills to the next level.  Session Inclusions: Shift: From communicator to communication professional Certification is more than a piece of paper Transformation is changing how leaders communicate. Are you ready to help? Listening: a dynamic shift in the communicator’s role Three High-Level Communication Hats Leaders Must Wear for Effective Internal Communications Communicating powerful vulnerability: Why, how when and where Sessions appear in the order listed above but learners are encouraged to view sessions in their preferred sequence.    Read more

Communication lives at the intersection of culture and brand. What you say and how you say it matter just as much as who you say it to and how they perceive it. Finding a synergy between communicating facts, aligning your brand with your messaging, and giving a voice to everyone in your audience is difficult. This package will arm you with the tools you need to take action including case studies that will empower you to powerfully and purposefully champion your brand and culture.  Session Inclusions: Shh…The values economy is here How to Bring the Power of Agility to your Brand Positioning How an editorial heart and an entrepreneurial soul can drive reach, relevance and revenue for your brand Shifting Towards Together: Creating Innovative & Inclusive Company Cultures People, Purpose, and PR.: Building Brands from the Inside Out Futureproofing Your Organization in an Evolving World Sessions appear in the order listed above but learners are encouraged to view sessions in their preferred sequence.    Read more

One thing that 2020 has taught us is that change is always possible and it happens. As communicators, we need to be prepared for anything, including crisis. This package is filled with education to help you view any crisis as an opportunity, embrace disruption, bring clarity to your work, learn from the early shifts of COVID-19 and to create an inclusive culture within your organization.  Session Inclusions: Turning Crisis into an Opportunity Continuous disruption as the new normal What Do You Expect Me To Do? How to bring clarity to communications when everything around you is changing Covid-19: An Asian perspective - communication lessons learned and applying them for future success Woke Culture at Work: Tackling Solutions to Racial Inequity in Organizations Serious about Inclusion Communicating layoffs: How to show compassion, build credibility and maintain employee engagement Sessions appear in the order listed above but learners are encouraged to view sessions in their preferred sequence.    Read more

Presented by: Susannah Raffe, Climate Communicator, Facilitator & Coach It's about time... for change. The planet has put us on notice. We need to simultaneously recover from Covid, address growing inequality, division, racism and all forms of discrimination, AND avert a climate catastrophe. How do communications professionals, with their skills and expertise, fit in to this bigger picture of transforming our world? In this rapid taster session, Susannah will bring her insights from her work on how to talk more effectively about the climate crisis and the big, often divisive challenges of our time. We’ll explore emerging thinking on how we use communications, in it's various forms, to: bring more people (more voices) into the climate and social change conversation build trust and heal divisions in our society that hold us back from creating a better world empower audiences to be part of the transformation and more Transforming our shared story starts with communication!   Read more

Presented by: Sally Susman, Executive Vice President and Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Pfizer Inc. When the high-stakes race to find an effective COVID-19 vaccine took hold in 2020, the biopharmaceutical industry quickly became the world’s greatest hope for beating a global pandemic. Sally Susman, Pfizer’s Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, and her team worked to rally colleagues, the industry and the world alike. As the pandemic turned everyone’s lives upside down, it also changed the pharmaceutical industry forever. The need for a compelling and smart communications strategy had never been more urgent.  Sally will share her insider’s perspective on Pfizer’s response to the pandemic, and how she and her team decided to throw out conventional tactics and industry standards, and embrace bold ideas. She will reflect on how more than 30 years in the communications industry prepared her for one of the most inspiring moments in her career. From Pfizer’s “Science Will Win” campaign to the decision to eschew mainstream media and publish an open letter from Pfizer’s CEO on LinkedIn – hear how Pfizer’s communications team rose to the unprecedented challenge. Read more

Title: Game-Changers: How Junior Communicators are Ready to Change the World Presented By: Mubashira Farooqi, Communications Fellow, FleishmanHillard Highroad Description: Young people are changing the world and junior communicators are leading the charge. As a woman of colour and a visible minority, I have spent my educational and professional career bringing awareness to the value of diverse perspectives. It's about time our industry started taking people like me seriously. In this short presentation, I would aim to share examples of exceptional junior communicators who are changing the world, one city at a time. I would amplify the key tools and strategies that they are using to share their messages in the hopes of inspiring other junior communicators to do the same. As the future of our industry, these communicators hold a deep understanding of the direction we need to create positive and meaningful change - internally within our organizations and across client work. This presentation aims to inspire young communicators while informing senior communicators of the value of our perspectives. Title: From Communication, to Interaction Presented By: Vip Sitaraman, Digital Consultant / Founder Description: 2020 marked a dramatic shift in how organizations & brands communicate: Once upon a time, PR / Business Communications was a one-way street: from HQ, to your audience — not the case in today's online & social world: This past year opened unprecedented conversations between brands & their audiences — and nearly 100% were online, due to Covid-19. Just one example: breakout apps of last year like Community and Clubhouse by enabling celebrities & local influencers to connect directly with their online audiences. The key to staying ahead is not AI, IoT, or AR/VR—though that may help. Future-proof strategy starts with principles, not technology: authentic brands, human connection, interactive content; in short, the shift from publishing content to building experiences. This talk will discuss trends & insights re: interactive digital experiences derived from my own companies' data (ie. from millions of readers at Explica) and that of many household name-brands. Title: Identifying Burnout Among Communicators | Lessons Learnt & Steps To Overcome Presented by: Shaniek Parks, Business Communications Consultant, Cable & Wireless Communications Description: IT'S ABOUT TIME we had a conversation about taking care of ourselves as communication professionals. The PR industry has been labeled as one of the most stressful careers. According to the 2020 Gould + Partners Industry Turnover Report, the average PR agency turnover is 24.5%. Our heavy workloads coupled with the need to be the voice of calm in a crisis have left many stressed to the point of burnout. This reality has become more prevalent during the pandemic because as we support teams internally and lead external company responses, at times we may deprioritize our own wellness. This session will mimic a workshop experience where attendees can reflect on times when they have deprioritized their needs, become present to those actions, and gain actionable strategies to improve their ways of work. Title: A New Kind of Social Capital Ecosystem is the Antidote to a COVID World Presented by: Kylie Taylor, Group Managing Director, Baldwin Boyle Group Description: The complexities of the world exceed our ability to maintain balance and order and ensure safety and security for all. It's about time we came up with a better way. We are beyond sponsorships, corporate giving, social responsibility. Too often they become mere lip service. Just not good enough anymore. Organsiations are called upon to re-evaluate their role in society and to deliver benefits for all. How do organisations get to grips with what they need to do? How do they stay ahead of all stakeholder expectations and stay relevant? It is time for communications leaders to stand up, speak up and be listened to as the people in the room making sense. The session will give alarmingly simple and practical steps on how to build a communications ecosystem for our times. It's the basics done well. Understanding social context. A clear purpose. Smart leadership. Strategic clarity. Authentic engagement. Read more