I was honored to convene the first 2010 meeting of PRSA’s Board of Directors this past Friday and Saturday. We took stock of our organization, participated in engaging discussions and planned for the coming year. I think I speak for the entire Board in saying that we left PRSA’s headquarters energized, excited and enthused about the year ahead, both for the Society and our profession.

We began the meeting by discussing the top-level trends impacting our members. To prepare for this discussion, I had asked the Board to canvass PRSA members and other public relations practitioners in their geographic areas to determine how the economy is affecting them, the biggest challenges they are facing and how they measure success in their places of employment.  The findings from this informal, “Pulse of the Profession” research, our third such study, will be the subject of a future blog post.

Continue reading " PRSA’s Priorities for 2010: Easy as “A, B, C, D, E” "

Previously in this space, we wrote about Public Relations’ Diversity Problem, a blog post which we concluded by inviting diverse practitioners to become more involved in PRSA leadership. We’re continuing to make progress on a number of fronts.

At its July meeting, the PRSA board focused on half a dozen important strategic topics, one of which was Diversity. During this session, important questions were raised: How do current tactics connect to a larger strategy and support PRSA’s strategic plan and mission? What are our goals? How do we measure progress? Are sufficient resources available to support such an effort? How do we better respond to our members’ interests in this area?

Continue reading " Multiculturalism, Diversity and PRSA: Trying Something New "

The PRSA Board of Directors met in New York on July 24 and 25 to launch a third quarter buoyed by significant progress on major initiatives in governance and member service.

The board heard about significant strides to enhance professional value through organizational and member initiatives, along with careful stewardship of the Society’s long-term stability. Focused on governance and infrastructure, second quarter activities aimed at boosting PRSA’s capabilities to exceed member expectations through targeted research and nimble decision-making and delivery.

Continue reading " PRSA Board Eyes Third Quarter Driving Governance and Member Initiatives "

Earlier this week in Chicago, PRSA’s Nominating Committee selected a group of candidates to put before the National Assembly, for consideration and election as PRSA Officers, Directors and Assembly Delegates.

Twenty PRSA members from across the country and a certified professional parliamentarian comprised the Nominating Committee. They had a fantastic group of candidates this year from which to choose. One of the most challenging aspects of the nominating process is, in fact, that we have an abundance of well-qualified volunteers who come forward to serve PRSA and the public relations industry.

Continue reading " For 60 Years, Democratic Principles Guide Selection of PRSA Leaders "

When we began our “Pulse of the Profession” project in early 2009 — PRSA Board members interviewing public relations practitioners about the impact of the recession on their careers and their thoughts on the state of our industry — we were sobered by the candid responses. Many of our colleagues had been hit hard, losing clients, suffering reduced budgets and, in some cases, struggling just to stay in business.

As one of the team leaders for this project, I recently revisited a few of the practitioners I had spoken with in January. While hoping for good news, I was careful to insist on realistic answers: We want honest replies to inform our survey findings, while recognizing that our purpose is to gather anecdotes rather than perform a scientific analysis.

Continue reading " Rechecking the PR Industry’s Pulse "