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On June 25, CPRS Toronto’s Student Steering Committee ran its first ever Passport to PR summer session. Passport to PR introduces future communications professionals to potential workplaces and brings students closer to companies and organizations that align with their career goals. 

In groups of five to ten, students visited three different organizations to learn about the unique challenges and opportunities their communications teams face. In total, 15 organizations participated, giving students the chance to explore the three most relevant to their interests.

We welcomed the Ministry of Indigenous Affairs and the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities as first-time Passport to PR hosts. If the feedback is any indication – this won’t be the last.

Passport to PR participants at the Ministry of Indigenous Affairs

Students bank on top PR tips from the RBC team

“I think the grouping of agencies/departments that we visited was perfect because we got to see a small agency, large agency and government department on the same day. Overall, it was great,” said Kaitlin Reichenbach, student, Guelph-Humber Bachelor of Media Studies in Public Relations.

Students look to ace their conversation with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, and the Ministry of Education

“The opportunity to meet PR professionals from diverse backgrounds helped put my career goals into perspective,” said Ruby Boamah,  student, Humber’s postgraduate certificate in Public Relations. “I enjoyed having the opportunity to hear from individuals who work in different types of companies, businesses and organizations.”

Students learned what a typical day looks like for a communications professional – mostly that there aren’t any – and about the industry’s rapidly changing state. 

Throughout the course of the day, students learned about the importance of: 

• Networking and attending informational interviews
• Continuing to develop skills 
• Understanding the challenges of digital media 
• Building strong relationships with colleagues

Learning about agency life at Weber Shandwick

Priyanka Gupta, of Seneca’s postgraduate certificate in Public Relations, spoke to the in-depth knowledge she gained, “It was a highly insightful day. We got a better understanding of how PR works differently in government and agency organizations and we learned about the significance of social media in monitoring and evaluating success.”

A huge thank you goes out to the following organizations for participating in the event:

• Apex Public Relations
• Argyle Public Relationships
• FleishmanHillard HighRoad 
• Hill+Knowlton Strategies Canada
• Ketchum
• Maverick
• Ministry of Indigenous Affairs
• Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities
• Narrative Public Relations
• National Public Relations
• Paradigm Public Relations
• Proof
• RBC
• Strategic Objectives
• Weber Shandwick Canada 

If you missed out on the summer session of Passport to PR, or can’t wait to go again…we’ve got you. Stay tuned for our next Passport to PR Session, coming fall 2019. 

Written by: Daanish Ahamed, President, Student Steering Committee

The constant evolution of the public relations industry outlined the professional development event at Prohibition Gastro House on May 8, 2019. The discussion focused on cultivating and inspiring the future stars of the industry.

Heath Applebaum (ABC, MCM) moderated the event involving the thoughts of four insightful and distinguished panelists:

• Dr. Terry Flynn – Associate professor of the Department of Communication Studies and Multimedia, Architect and program director of McMaster University’s innovative Master of Communications Management (MCM) program. He’s also recognized worldwide as one of Canada’s leading PR researchers.

• Sarah Leone – Account Director at Strategic Objectives who prides herself on developing and executing holistic communications programs that surprise, impact and engage consumers, top-tier media and key influencers. She is also a self-proclaimed industry chameleon.

• Donna Lindell – Professor and Program Coordinator of the Post Graduate PR program at Centennial College. Once named as Canada’s Top 40 Under 40.

• Victoria Baker – Account Executive at NKPR, a leading North American PR, Artist Management and Digital Agency. A recent star graduate of the PR program at the University of Guelph-Humber.

“They say that in school you are taught a lesson and then given a test, but in life, you are given a test that teaches you a lesson” – Tom Bodett.

The fast progression of our industry, technology and stakeholder expectations means that PR teaching methods must also advance.

Q1: How do you feel PR programs can keep up with the rapid pace of the industry?

The panel agreed on the importance of the 4C’s: Communication, Collaboration, Critical Thinking and Creativity. They also discussed the significance of being a respectful challenger and using superior diplomacy as a tactic to challenge employers and peers. Curiosity is not included in the 4C’s but panelists agreed it’s also an important quality. 

Terry Flynn believes bringing guest speakers into the classroom keeps the connection to the industry.  Donna Lindell said it’s all about C.H.A.R.M: Confidence, Humor, Appeal, Resilience and Motivation. She highlighted the importance of these soft skills including adaptability in the industry’s constantly changing landscape.

Sarah Leone emphasized the importance of attention to detail and teaching time management skills.

Q2: What is the most important PR megatrend?

“Content shock is a huge trend and challenge,” claimed Victoria Baker. It’s necessary to think about how to grasp your audience’s attention and ensure your message resonates. Donna Lindell agreed stating, “As practitioners, we owe it to our clients to produce quality content that goes beyond just taking up space.”

The panelists also touched on the current ethical issues in the industry and raised the importance of developing trust with clients and consumers.

Lastly, panelists offered words of wisdom to upcoming PR stars:

Believe in yourself and change the status quo.

The future is bright. Keep putting yourself out there and keep learning.

This is the time to invest in your career, it will be whatever you make it.

The evening ended with an awards ceremony. The Doris Whiteside award was presented to seven top PR students from Toronto’s undergraduate and certificate programs for their academic performance, leadership skills and industry knowledge.

Written by Sakina Adnan, CPRS Toronto Volunteer

Welcome to the first update about the monthly CPRS Toronto Board of Directors meetings. I am delighted to be returning as Board Secretary for 2015-16!  At this past summer’s strategic planning retreat I committed to enhancing transparency processes so that CPRS Toronto members would have insight about Board business and discussion and increased ownership of how their society is governed.  Each month I will share with you high-level points of what was discussed during the meeting.

Danielle Kelly, APR

Secretary, 2015-16 CPRS Toronto Board of Directors

Snapshot: October 26, 2015 Meeting

• The Board confirmed portfolio appointments for the 2015-16 term and conferred about high-level objectives for each portfolio;
• The Board discussed portfolio budget requirements/forecasts;
• CPRS National shared a Global Alliance conference planning status update with the Board;
• Next meeting: Monday, November 16, 2015, 6:00 p.m.

Snapshot: November 16, 2015 Meeting

• Erica Silver and Jenny Shin be elected to the Board for the year 2015/2016;
• The Board received an update from CPRS National about the Global Alliance  WPRF 2016 Conference;
• Next meeting: Monday, January 18, 2016

*NO MEETING DECEMBER 2015*

Snapshot: January 18, 2016 Meeting 

• Erica Silver, APR has assumed the Volunteer Portfolio and Jenny Shin has assumed the PD Portfolio;
• 2015-2016 budget to be accepted as revised;
• Board members to convene a sub-committee to explore hosting a post-conference reception/event during the Global Alliance WPF 2016 Conference.
  • Sub-committee members are Maryjane Martin, APR, FCPRS, LM, Danielle Kelly, APR and Erica Silver, APR
• Next meeting: Monday, February 8, 2016

Snapshot: February 8, 2016 Meeting

• Final budget was circulated to the Board for reference
• Board members voted to admit 2 members for lifetime members in CPRS
• WPRF sub-committee delivered a report to the board with a recommendation for venues and a budget breakdown for the CPRS Toronto hosted event.
• Next meeting: March 21, 2016

Snapshot: March 21, 2016 Meeting

• The Toronto Society Board of Directors voted to join the National Society and other member societies in a group insurance plan for D&O and Business Liability Insurance. This move will result in significant cost savings.
• Board members voted YES to a motion to add HST to revenue generating items
• Next meeting: April 18, 2016

I am seven days away from my first shift at the Toronto 2015 Pan American Games. I will be working in Press Operations at the Ontario Place West Channel in CIBC Pan Am Park.  I am doubly blessed to be participating in this event. Not only was I selected from a pool of 70,000 applicants to participate in these games, my role will allow me to use my PR and Communication skills and expertise to ensure that these games are a positive experience for the 1700 journalists who will be covering the event.  I am part of an 800 person “crew” of Press Operations volunteers.

It has been a lot of fun training and communicating with fellow crew members, some close to home and others further away. I am looking forward to meeting our guest crew members (who are coming from around the globe) over the next couple of weeks. We have a very active Facebook forum and recently someone shared a video that I would also like to share with you, my CPRS colleagues.  This brief International Olympic Committee (IOC) video describing their Press Operations processes really resonated with me and has me all fired up to start working next week (even with a 6:30 a.m. venue call time next Saturday!). Did you know that IOC spends three years before each Olympic event preparing their operational strategies?

I would love to know your thoughts on the video or on the games as well. What aspect of the games are you most excited about? How will you be participating?

I am going to try and stay as active as I can on social media during the games and you are welcome to follow my posts on LinkedIn,  Twitter (@prdrln) and Instagram (@daniellekellyapr).

I am happy to announce that the CPRS Toronto By-law review process has reach another important milestone!

I wrote a post  this past march March  about the work that is underway to ensure that our Bylaws were compliant with the forthcoming Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporation Act (ONCA).

After discussing the proposed changes with CPRS National office and your Toronto Board of Directors, the document is ready for membership comment.

You have two ways you can review the proposed changes:

1) By-law document (Full) – this document is in track changes mode so members can see the proposed amendments in context.

2) The By-law quick comparison chart – this document is a high level summary of all of the proposed changes

Constitution ByLaws Approved May 28 2013 – Amended Nov 11 2014 Draft 4 Amended June 7 2015

CPRS By Law Comparison Sheet v4

Next steps:

• Give us your feedback!
  • Comment on this blog post;
  • Email your feedback to Danielle at danim.kelly@gmail.com;
  • Attend an upcoming By-law webinar (stay tuned for details)
• Come to the AGM in September and vote to ratify these proposed changes