The idea for the Small Town P.R. Playbook was simple: create a how-to handbook for local government administrators who don’t have full-time communications staff but still need to communicate to their stakeholders. Actually creating the book, however, was anything but easy – from steering committees and detailed content plans, to project funding, mission creep, custom bindings and design issues, what was supposed to be a six-month off-the-side-of-your-desk project became an 18-month journey to showcase excellence in small town P.R. in British Columbia.

This Lunch and Learn will focus on the Playbook – what it is, why it matters and the process that ultimately led to the book receiving the Don Rennie Award for Excellence in Government Communications from the Canadian Public Relations Society. Joel McKay, CEO of Northern Development Initiative Trust and project lead and editor for the Small Town P.R. Playbook, will lead the session and share his insights on collaborative project management and the seemingly arcane process of submitting work for awards and recognition (and why it matters).

Joel McKay is the Chief Executive Officer of Northern Development Initiative Trust, a quarter billion dollar regional development corporation focused on building a stronger economy across Northern British Columbia. Joel joined Northern Development in June 2012 as Director of Communications where he led a successful communications services program for small communities across the region, and handled the Trust’s communications and marketing and economic research and analysis. Joel was previously Assignment Editor at Business in Vancouver Newspaper where he led a team of journalists and focused on in-depth coverage of the resource sector. Joel is editor of the Don Rennie award-winning Small Town P.R. Playbook, a Jack Webster award winning journalist, was named one of Prince George’s Top 40 Under 40 business leaders, an alumni of the 2015 Governor General’s Canadian Leadership Conference and in 2016 was honoured with a Distinguished Alumni Award from Kwantlen Polytechnic University.

Kim Hayhurst joined the Northern Development team in 2015 and handles the Trust’s marketing, communications, and digital assets. Kim is a graduate of the University of Northern B.C., and prior to joining Northern Development, Kim spent many years working at UNBC bringing experience in communications, brand development, event management, program development and project management to the Trust. Born, raised and educated in Northern B.C., Kim is passionate about the region and is the direct point of contact for media.

A livestreaming option is available. See the Facebook event or email cprsnl@gmail.com for details.

Please RSVP by the end of day Tuesday, January 16, 2018 and let us know if you will be there in person or on the livestreaming feed.