PRSA News

PRSA Board Dives In

 

The 17 public relations industry leaders who comprise PRSA’s Board of Directors have always been important conduits between PRSA national and our Chapter, Section, and District leaders and rank-and-file members.

 

Given the important strategic initiatives currently underway—including the Bylaws Rewrite, Chapter Survey, and Web site redesign—we’ll be relying even more heavily on our Board Members in the months ahead to engage our members in a two-way exchange of information and ideas.

 

The Board of Directors will be reaching out to PRSA leaders and members on this blog, on our Leaderserve, Chapter/District Council, Section Council, and Delegates eGroups, as well as through Social media such as Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.  More importantly, the Board will be conducting a series of regularly scheduled teleconferences and in-person meetings with every individual Chapter, Section, and District leader across the country.

 

Historically, this type of direct outreach has been well received by PRSA leaders. It keeps our leaders informed of important changes taking place, while also reminding them of available PRSA resources, such as the Chapter and District Leader Resource Web page, which contains Chapter Best Practices, Chapter Handbooks, a Chapter Resources Quick Guide, Membership Promotions Calendar, and other useful information; a Chapter Alert eNewsletter, and a Speakers Bureau. It also provides an opportunity to hear—firsthand—what our leaders want and need to make their Chapters, Districts, and Sections more relevant and helpful to our members.

 

In my many years of Board service, I’ve had the privilege of meeting thousands of members at Chapter, District, and Section meetings and events, and I look forward to meeting thousands more as part of our 2009 outreach efforts. Planning for these visits is already well underway, and I will work closely with local PRSA leaders to promote my visits to members and other interested industry professionals in their areas.

 

If you haven’t yet requested that a Board Member visit one of your meetings, please contact Candice Bellittera for details.

 

I’m also looking forward to June 5 and 6, when PRSA leaders from across the Society will gather in New York for our annual Leadership Rally. Sponsored by PRSA national, this event is open to Chapter, Section, and District President-Elects and/or their designees. It’s always been a highlight of the year for me: a time to meet new people, visit with old friends, and collectively think about the future of our organization.

 

I feel confident in saying that the current Board of Directors is more connected than ever to PRSA members. Still, we’ll continue to look for new ways to enhance the dialogue, and encourage you to do the same. Communication, as well all know, goes both ways.

 

Michael Cherenson is PRSA’s 2009 Chair and CEO.

About the author

Michael Cherenson, APR, Fellow PRSA

7 Comments

  • Hi Michael: I would like to know your speaking schedule at chapter membership meetings and also when any particular proposed bylaw change will be put on this blog for discussion. Do you have any intention of addressing the New York chapter membership? Thank you for consideration of these requests.

  • If you haven’t yet had a national board member visit your chapter — do it this year. It is great! I benefit from having two national board members — Jeff Julin and Don Kirchoffner — live in Denver. Incredible value to our members and our chapter. I’m having lunch with Don tomorrow and can’t wait!

  • The Chapter outreach plan is in full force. My schedule is still not set, but looking forward to working with local chapters to promote. I hope to be blogging from the road. Stay tuned.

    ~ Mike Cherenson
    PRSA Chair and CEO

  • Where are the minutes of the January Board Meeting? They don’t seem to be posted on the PRSA site.

    Richard Newman, APR, Fellow PRSA

    • Hi Richard –

      Thanks for writing. The minutes are drafted after our meetings, circulated for comment to a number of participants, and then submitted to the board for approval. If they are approved, they are ready for posting; if not, edits are made, and the minutes are resubmitted for approval. The process is underway for the January meeting, and the minutes should be posted by March 1.

      Bill Murray
      PRSA President & COO

  • Hi Bill –

    Here it is March 4 and those minutes aren’t up. Nor is the by-laws e-group that was promised for last week.

    By the way, what happened to the minutes of the Board’s fourth quarterly meeting in 2008. Those aren’t in the member area with the minutes of the other three quarters.

    Thanks,

    Richard Newman, APR, Fellow PRSA, with more than 20 years experience with increasing responsiblities

    • Hi Richard –

      Always good to hear from you, thanks for writing. The bylaws e-group was set up last week, and is labeled “Governance,” as we advised members in Issues and Trends, on our Leaderserve Group, to Delegates from last year’s Assembly. You should be able to find the eGroup on Membernet, but if you can’t our Help Desk staff are always available to assist you. We’ve also set up a direct e-mail for members to submit questions, which is governance@prsa.org. Minutes from the January board meeting, as well as the minutes of the Fall meeting of the board, will be posted shortly; several other administrative matters have taken precedence, including some of the work on the bylaw process, but these items are on the “to do” list and we won’t forget to get them up.

      Kind regards,

      Bill

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