The trick to the twelfth hole is to avoid the water on the left, avoid the out-of-bounds roadway on the right, land your tee shot on the right because the fairway slopes left big-time, and try not to lose your ball to the right of the green on your approach or you’ll be fighting chickens and roosters to get it back.
So much to keep in mind…how does one learn the skills to properly manage their way through a golf hole with so much to think about? One needs to master course management.
The twelfth hole needs to be approached strategically…you have to have a sound strategy before you tee off, and then execute that strategy as you start to play the hole.
A Public Relations campaign can be like the 12th hole. There is so much to keep in mind at one time, and one has to consider so many elements and keep so many things in balance all at one time.
A strategic approach to public relations helps practitioners manage public relations effectively from the start of a project to the end.
Where do we go to for help? Golfers can take golf lessons, but where can we, in PR, go for help?
One of the most important tools of education we have at CPRS is the Accreditation program. November is the last month to prepare your application for the 2013 Accreditation year. If you’re a member of CPRS and have five years experience in the profession, you may be eligible to go for your APR designation in 2013. Applications are due December 3rd. I hope you will visit www.cprs.ca to get more information or contact our Co-chair of Accreditation, Kathleen Garrett at kathleen.m.garrett@gmail.com.
I found the Accreditation program to be a great learning experience in approaching PR from a strategic point of view. It drove home, for me, the difference between tactics and execution (very necessary work) and planning strategy (the well-researched plan to determine what tactics and execution are needed).
As I look back, I see how fortunate I was to be a member of CPRS Toronto while I was obtaining my APR because I was able to participate in a Study Group. With our substantial member base, Toronto normally has a handful of people looking to get their Accreditation in any given year, so, as candidates, we are not normally going through the APR process on our own. Those numbers provide us the opportunity to form Study Groups with candidates like us. The Study Group meant I could share the workload with my colleagues, get clarification, talk about the exam material and learn about experiences I would not have otherwise been exposed to.
I encourage you to complete the application process if getting your APR designation is something you’ve been considering. I wrestled with whether the year I finally committed to Accreditation (Class of 2006) was right from a timing point of view with the pressures of my job at the time. It was a busy year, and I considered putting it off again. Now, as I look back, I realize subsequent years were even busier, so glad I did it when I did.
Just like golf where one can continue with their current game and be overwhelmed by that tricky 12th hole, or take lessons in course management and learn to master it, Accreditation is there for us to pursue, and we just need the determination to say Yes…this is my year!
There’s still time to get in on the 2013 program if you are interested. Become an APR and take your career to a new level.