Earlier this year, CPRS Toronto held a coding event at the Proof Toronto headquarters. The coding workshop was an opportunity for CPRS members to learn the basics of coding while making their own websites. The event was sponsored by Cision, Leger and Marketwire; and hosted by Danielle Kelly and Sarah Dinn with guest speaker Dr. Alex Sévigny.
Danielle, former CPRS Toronto President, began the event by giving a short speech on the importance of code within the public relations field. She spoke on how “not speaking HTML took away from [her] career.” Danielle attributed a large portion of her success to being able to open her mind towards her weaknesses and see them as opportunities instead of barriers. This shift in mindset caused her to focus on coding, which was something she had long avoided, and helped her advance in the field.
Following Danielle, Dr. Alex Sévigny, one of the directors for the Master of Communications management program at McMaster University, shared his thoughts on the development of code in the PR world. Alex pointed out how interconnected the communications, business and technological worlds are and how they continue to merge. He believes in the importance in defining PR and its value to the world as it is very difficult to fully analyze its impact. The benefit of learning how to code as a PR practitioner, or anyone for that matter, is being able to focus on the digital metrics and quantify the influence and work put into a campaign.
Leading the workshop was Sarah Dinn, a Tech Community Engagement Associate at RBC. Sarah sees herself as a liaison for people in the tech world to those on the outside. She encourages more PR professionals to expose themselves to the world of tech as she believes there is a gap between the two industries where there shouldn’t be. Sarah reminded the group that the majority of companies who started out in tech have now branched off into many fields that require representation. That, along with Toronto racing to overtake silicon valley as the tech capital demonstrates the need now more than ever to embrace code and create a competitive advantage.
Sarah used the workshop to not only teach the CPRS members the difference between HTML, the body; and CSS, the clothes it’s wearing; but to emphasize the role tech plays in our lives. She made sure to speak on the importance of having a fully accessible website that is easy to understand and how bringing a PR perspective to tech may be exactly what the tech world needs. Sarah describes workshops like this as the “gateway drug to coding,” as it has allowed the group to look beyond what they first see on their computer screens. For those who wish to continue their coding journey, Sarah recommends Canada Learning Code, a non-profit community dedicated to providing beginner friendly lessons in code to anyone who is interested. CPRS Toronto hopes to hold similar events in the future and encourage the personal and professional growth of all its members.
Written by: Aliyah Lindo-Coy, Volunteer, CPRS Toronto