2014 Building Blocks: Register now!

Posted on April 22, 2014 by cprsnorthernlights

We now have our full agenda for this year’s Building Blocks session all lined up! We’re pleased to announce that in addition to Jeremy Berry, APR, we will also have Ivan Giesbrecht from Northern Gateway Pipelines coming to talk to us about the project’s community and community outreach efforts (see more about this below).

Date: Monday, April 28, 2014
Time: 10:30am – 3:30pm (networking event to follow)
Where: Regional District of Fraser Fort George Boardroom (155 George St., Prince George)
Lunch: Included, as is coffee/tea during the day
Cost: $60 for members; $80 for non-members
RSVP: by Wednesday, April 23, 2014 to cprsnl@gmail.com or on our Facebook event page.

Note: If you’re outside of Prince George, but still want to participate, please let us know! Teleconferencing is available.

Agenda

10:15am – 10:30am Arrive and welcome
10:30am – 12:00pm Jeremy Berry – Managing the media mix
12:00pm – 12:45pm Lunch
12:45pm – 1:45pm Ivan Giesbrecht – The effects of marketing changes on public opinion
1:45pm – 2:00pm Stretch and networking break
2:00pm – 3:30pm Jeremy Berry – Generation Y in your office
3:30pm – onwards Networking (pub to be announced)

The Speakers

Jeremy BerryJeremy Berry, APR, Associate Professor in the Public Relations Program within the Faculty of Communication Studies from Mount Royal University in Calgary
Twitter: @prwithjb
For Jeremy’s bio and info on his two talks, please see our previous post.

 

Ivan GiesbrechtIvan Giesbrecht, Communications Manager for Northern Gateway Pipelines
Twitter: @ivangiesbrecht

Ivan will give a brief overview of Northern Gateway’s communication and community outreach efforts – including both earned and paid media. He will also discuss the creative concept behind Northern Gateway’s current province-wide advertising campaign.*

Bio: Ivan Giesbrecht is the Communications Manager for Northern Gateway Pipelines. Based in Vancouver, Ivan provides strategic communications and media relations support to community and Aboriginal outreach efforts on behalf of Northern Gateway. Ivan has done both in-house and agency work in Canada, the United States, and the Middle East during his 15-year public relations career.

(*Please note that CPRS Northern Lights is neither in favour nor against the Northern Gateway Pipeline project. This is an opportunity to hear from an experienced public relations professional about an organization’s marketing tactics and challenges.)

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Save the date: 2014 Building Blocks

Posted on April 4, 2014 by cprsnorthernlights

Your CPRS Northern Lights executive team has been busy setting the schedule for a full day of learning at our annual Building Blocks event.

Save the date! This year’s Building Blocks will take place on April 28, starting at 10:30am and running the duration of the day.

Jeremy BerryWe are happy to announce one of our presenters for the day, Jeremy Berry, APR, DComm, an Associate Professor in the Public Relations Program within the Faculty of Communication Studies from Mount Royal University in Calgary.

Jeremy will talk to us on two intriguing topics: “Generation Y in your Office” and “Managing the Media Mix” (see more below).

About Jeremy Berry
Prior to joining Mount Royal University in 2008, Jeremy had a successful career in political and government communications and as a news reporter. He is an accredited member of the Canadian Public Relations Society (has done APR maintenance thru 2018) and an active volunteer in the community.

Jeremy’s research interests include media relations, crisis communications, social media and Generation Y. He also serves as an editor for the Public Relations Journal. Jeremy completed his Doctor of Communication in November of 2013. You can follow him on Twitter @prwithjb.

Generation Y in your Office
My workshop will highlight a series of studies I did specific to Generation Y in the public sector and will show that in order to attract Generation Y graduates organizations need to market themselves as innovative and creative. In this session, attendees will be involved in an engaging and thought provoking discussion about the future communications office and the future communicator. Each attendee can expect to walk away with useful information to assist them in their own intergenerational workplace.

Managing the Media Mix
Is it time to bury the press release and retire your traditional media rolodex? In this session I will outline trends in new media and traditional media and help you identify ways to find your right media relations mix.

To register for this event now, visit our event page on Facebook!

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Lunch & Learn: Future-proof your web presence

Posted on March 16, 2014 by cprsnorthernlights

Rosemary DolmanJoin us on March 26 when Rosemary Dolman, the lead for web development at Northern Health, will talk about why creating an accessible and standards-compliant website is good for business.

Date: March 26, 2014
Time: 12pm-1pm
Where: Regional District of Fraser Fort George Boardroom (144 George St.) (Teleconference can be arranged; please request by emailing us.)
Cost: $20 for members; $25 for non-members
Lunch: Provided
RSVP: by 12pm, Monday, March 24 by emailing cprsnl@gmail.com or on our Facebook event page.

About Rosemary’s presentation:

Future-proof your web presence: Why creating an accessible and standards-compliant website is good for business

  • Web accessibility allows all your content to be available anytime, anywhere by all your visitors on any device. Itis the inclusive practice of making websites usable by people of all abilities and disabilities.
  • Studies show that accessible websites have lower maintenance costs, better search results, and increased audience reach, among other benefits. Creating an accessible website also demonstrates corporate responsibility.
  • In the United States, Australia and other countries there are laws which require websites to meet certain accessibility standards.  These laws are gradually being introduced in Canada.  Let’s make sure we are ready!

About Rosemary:
Rosemary is the Lead, Web Development at Northern Health in Prince George.  Her start with all things web began in 2001 after leaving the College of New Caledonia to pursue a more creative and challenging career in Website Design. After completing her Associate Certificate in Web Technologies at BCIT she operated allegRo Design from 2003 until August of 2011 when she moved down the street to Northern Health. Rosemary is also an instructor in the BCIT School of Business Web Technologies Distance Education Program.

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Lunch & Learn: RCMP media experiences

Posted on February 13, 2014 by cprsnorthernlights

On Wednesday, February 26, join us as Superintendent Eric Stubbs and Corporal Craig Douglass of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police share their respective experiences working with the media as RCMP Officers.

Date: February 26, 2014
Time: 12pm-1pm
Where: Northern Development Initiative Trust – Board Room (301 – 1268 fifth avenue, Prince George) (Teleconference can be arranged; please request by contact Joel MacKay at joel@northerndevelopment.bc.ca)
Cost: $20 for members; $25 for non-members
Lunch: Provided
RSVP: by 12pm, Monday, February 24 by emailing cprsnl@gmail.com or on our Facebook event page.

RTK_7495 STUBBS 140128 cropAbout Superintendent Eric Stubbs
Superintendent Stubbs joined the RCMP from Alberta in 1993. After two postings in southern British Columbia, he transferred to the North District to the community of Mackenzie in 2000. Following Mackenzie, he was the Detachment Commander in Queen Charlotte City and Terrace before assuming the role at the Prince George Municipal Detachment in June 2011, where he remains.

Even before attending the Media Liaison Officer Training in 2005, Supt. Stubbs had extensive dealings with the media during his career.  As a Detachment commander he makes numerous public appearances and often speaks to the media on high profile investigations. He is a very engaging and capable public speaker and is continuously building relationships in the community to improve public safety and the reputation of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Superintendent Stubbs has extensive experience in First Nations policing and has enjoyed those communities he has helped police. He is a Critical Incident Commander for high-risk Emergency Response Team incidents in the North District. As well, Superintendent Stubbs is a fully trained VIP bodyguard, driver and site commander.

RTK_7493 Douglass 140128 cropAbout Corporal Craig Douglass
Originally from Prince Rupert and educated in Kelowna, Corporal Craig Douglass was recruited by the RCMP in 2000. He attended the Training Academy in Regina Saskatchewan before being posted to Dawson Creek. While working in the General Duty Section for three years in Dawson Creek, Cpl. Douglass became engaged in a number of community issues and soon found himself working with the media to help resolve them.

In the spring of 2004, Cpl. Douglass transferred to Prince George to work with the North District Drug Awareness Section. For the next two years and over three hundred presentations, he educated persons of all ages about drugs and their effects. He was invited to take part in the Premier’s Congress on Public Safety addressing drug issues in the Province of BC.

In 2006, Cpl. Douglass transferred to the North District General Investigation Unit where he spent four years investigating various serious offences throughout Northern BC. During his time with NDGIS, Cpl. Douglass received Media Liaison Officer training and became the spokesperson for the RCMP in Northern BC, while continuing with his regular duties.

From January 2010 to March 2010, he was one of a small group of Media Liaison Officers from throughout the country that was selected as spokespersons for the RCMP’s Integrated Security Unit (ISU) at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games.

During the summer of 2010, Craig transferred to the Prince George Municipal Detachment and shortly after was promoted to Corporal in charge of Communications, a position he holds today. Cpl. Douglass continues to work towards increasing the Detachment’s level of service in the areas of internal and external Communications.

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2014 CPRS National Awards of Excellence

Posted on February 6, 2014 by cprsnorthernlights

The 2014 CPRS National Awards of Excellence are now open!

cprsawardsofexcellence

These annual Awards are a much anticipated event for CPRS Northern Lights members.  It is an opportunity to have your work recognized not only by your colleagues within the chapter but by your peers throughout the province and right across the country.

Northern Lights member Cam McAlpine, APR of PRMedia Strategic Communications, has had his outstanding public relations programs and projects acknowledged with an Award of Excellence.

Established in 1962, the awards salute outstanding public relations campaigns, internal and external programs and tactics, and the dedication and contribution of public relations professionals like you. The awards also encourage continuous improvement in the practice of public relations. These awards are exclusive to CPRS members and are a tremendous source for profile and prestige for individuals and teams as they showcase Canada’s best public relations talent at work.

We encourage all CPRS Northern Lights members to submit their campaigns and programs for consideration — and with online submissions, entering has never been easier. There are 13 team/individual categories within the Awards of Excellence, plus student awards and major awards. The Awards of Excellence categories allow submissions to be judged against similar work and represent some of the key practice areas and tactics within public relations. The Major Awards are Canada’s most coveted public relations honours and highlight the achievements, dedication and contributions our members have made to the Society and the public relations industry.

Winners will be recognized at the Awards gala dinner on May 27, 2014 at the CPRS National Conference in Banff. Submissions must be received on or before March 21, 2014, 5 p.m. ET.  Visit www.cprs.ca/awards for more information.

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