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A Preview: Learn the Business Case for Good CSR
Guest blog by my colleague, Jason Spenger, previewing an extraordinary panel of CAPRSA members at this year's spring conference.
By: Jason Sprenger, APR President- Game Changer Communications
More and more organizations are making a concerted effort to incorporate social responsibility into their corporate culture, and these good deeds are being richly rewarded. Studies have shown that consumers have very high expectations that the companies they do business with will be a good corporate citizen. And 42% of professionals surveyed recently reported that an organization’s participation in charitable activities is at least somewhat of a factor in their decision to work there. Remarkably enough, good CSR isn’t just a coincidence!
In Key West, we’ll have a panel to talk about the business case for accepting the mantle of social responsibility with grace and enthusiasm. Abbie Fink, vice president and general manager of HMA Public Relations, will moderate a panel of PR and CSR heavyweights:
· Aaron Blank, president and CEO at The Fearey Group in Seattle
· Nancy Page, executive vice president at Buchanan Public Relations in Ardmore, PA
· Esther Buchsbaum, chef de la direction and managing partner at Energi PR in Toronto and Montreal
By the end of the session, among other things, you’ll be able to:
· Formulate a CSR program that directly reflects your firm’s culture
· Describe your agency’s commitment to CSR
· Explain to clients and prospects that CSR is about doing what's right simply because it is the right thing to do, and not just because it’s good for business
· Devise strategies for taking the high road in difficult and divisive situations
This session will be Monday, May 5 at 3:30 p.m. Join us there!
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Jason J. Sprenger, APR
President
Game Changer Communications, LLC
Email: jsprenger@gamechangercommunications.com
Mobile: 612-327-1886
Website: www.gamechangercommunications.com
The Truth About Mergers and Acquisitions - with Chuck Tanowitz
In a world full of inauthentic networking, overly practiced elevator speeches, and colleagues rattling off talking points, the candidness with which members of PRSA's Counselors Academy speak about business ownership/management is quite refreshing.
Chuck Tanowitz, Vice President HB Agency, took an hour out of his day last week to candidly discuss his upcoming CAPRSA Spring Conference presentation "Taking the Leap: Growth Through M&A. The Why's, When's, How's, and What's". Any interview that starts with a friendly "on the record/off the record" clarification generally provides some wonderfully juicy tidbits of information, and this one did not disappoint.
In short: If you have ever thought about growth and/or exit strategies for your small to mid-sized agency, then you do not want miss this. (If you haven't, then stop reading right here and register for the conference immediately.)
In more detail: Every agency owner faces the question: do we grow on our own or join with another group? The decision is different for everyone, but this is the story of how two Boston agencies (Fresh Ground and HB Agency) became one. How they met, the pitfalls they faced and how they're growing. The opportunity had major positives and negatives for both.
Great press releases and videos were created during there merger, but there is definitely more to the story. On Monday, May 5th you can hear what Chuck has learned in the months before and after the merger.
- Moving from idea to reality- the benchmarks for when the time is right
- Starting the right conversations and establishing trust
- Opening your books with another agency
- The weight of responsibility to employees
- The delicate task of merging office cultures
- Getting existing clients on-board with changes
- Impacts of transitioning from owner to employee- personal, professional, & emotional
- Having time to refocus on public relations and let go of business operations
Chuck credits his CAPRSA colleagues for motivating him to honestly present what he's learned throughout this process, and for giving him important #KEYS for leading a thriving, healthy organization over the past few years.
Mr. Chuck Tanowitz
Vice President, HB Agency
Newton, MA
ctanowitz@hbagency.com
(617) 575-9643
Twitter Handle: ctanowitz
Chuck Tanowitz is vice president of PR and editorial services with HB Agency, an integrated marketing agency based in Newton, Mass. He co-founded Fresh Ground, Inc., a PR and social media shop that was acquired by HB in September 2013.
A Preview of "True Confessions" in Key West
I am so excited to be hosting all these guest bloggers from #CAPRSA this month!
Jason J. Sprenger, APR, President of Game Changer Communications, LLC gives us a little preview of Debra Bethard-Caplick's "True Confessions" panel at the upcoming CAPRSA conference in Key West, Florida.
Reading this preview is making me mark this down as a "MUST ATTEND" on my itinerary. As an independent contractor, I struggle with some of these same issues on a regular basis.
For more information on the May conference or to register, visit our website. And join us on Twitter @CAPRSA #CAPRSA #theKEYS. Hope to see you there!
by Jason Sprenger, APR
It should come as no surprise to us that more and more public relations professionals and journalists are making the switch, whether voluntary or not, to the world of the PR consultant entrepreneur. This trend mirrors a bigger one; the number of part-time “involuntary” self-employed Americans has risen from 33% to 41% between 2007 and 2009, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that virtually all of that increase was from people who couldn’t find regular employment. But are these people prepared?
According to Debra Bethard-Caplick, who will moderate a discussion called “True Confessions” at the upcoming Counselors Academy Conference, many independent PR consultants are thrust into their roles without all the skills or prior agency experience they need to be effective. They want to appear professional, and instill confidence in their clients that they know what they’re doing, but they have good questions that need good answers. Where can these professionals learn what they need to know? Counselors Academy, of course!
Caplick’s breakfast roundtable session on Monday will enable like-minded practitioners to ask the questions they wouldn’t dare ask anywhere else. For example, how much information is too much to put into a new business pitch? How do you fire a client? How do you find and land new clients? How do you create a 1099 for a contractor? What’s the one question you should be asking that you haven’t yet? With these and more discussion topics up for lively discussion, it promises to be a popular session for the entrepreneurial PR professional.
Debra Bethard-Caplick, MBA, APR, is a founding partner in Quicksilver Edge Communications, a virtual PR agency specializing in healthcare, nonprofit, and social media strategic communications. QSE provides clients with senior-level expertise at all stages of the agency-client relationship. She teaches PR writing at DePaul University and is the voice of APRwriter.com, a blog on writing and the foibles of the public relations profession, and an advocate for the unemployed older professional.
Jason J. Sprenger, APR, President Game Changer Communications, LLC
Email: jsprenger@gamechangercommunications.com
Website: www.gamechangercommunications.com