In all the noise and commotion of the recent Susan G. Komen debacle, it was not difficult to point out what Komen did wrong.
Within the scandal, something was done so very, very right, that it went almost unnoticed. What Planned Parenthood did, and did not do, in communicating with media and followers of the [...]

Until recently I was one of those rare individuals who have spent my entire career in the nonprofit realm. A few weeks ago I made the foray into the for-profit world by joining a communications agency.
It’s a transition I have been enjoying because I am learning new things and realizing that nonprofits and companies have [...]

I work with a number of wonderful non-profit and association clients with strong national presence and media-trained spokespeople whom we can tap for coveted interviews. The leaders of these organizations are impressive for a number of reasons: first, they can answer challenging media questions with aplomb thanks (I’d like to believe) to our media preparation [...]

One of my favourite things about one year ending and another one starting are all the lists that come with it. It’s a natural human tendency – or so it seems – to want to organize and categorize people, places, and things into subject areas. Best albums of the year, top advertising ideas of the [...]

Last week’s excellent blog on the importance of storytelling by our colleague Lorna Freeman crystallized a thought I’ve been mulling around. Recently, I attended a golf tournament to raise funds for a great organization called motionball. motionball’s aim is to introduce the next generation of donors, volunteers, and sponsors to the Special Olympics, a global [...]

Last night, at the awards gala of the Toronto Chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), Environics Communications was named Large Agency of the Year for 2010.
It was also gratifying to win The Bobbie Resnick Philanthropy Award for our charitable work at the same time.
Last month, the Great Place to Work Institute named [...]

I recently attended a forum on Leadership, Innovation and Sustainability hosted by Canada’s Finance Minister, Jim Flaherty, and Evergreen. The room was an invitation-only audience of company presidents and other executives who share a desire to create a more sustainable economy.
Many in the room were sustainability veterans blazing a trail for others – from Ray [...]

Green to Gold
by Daniel C. Esty & Andrew S. Winton
Yale University Press
Anyone interested in the relationship between environmental sustainability and business – and virtually everyone who dispenses advice on corporate reputation – would be wise to read Green to Gold by Daniel Esty and Andrew Winston. First published in 2006, and revised in 2009, Green [...]

This month the men of Environics Communications braved the streets to raise awareness – and funds – for the White Ribbon Campaign: the world’s largest effort of men working to end violence against women. On October 1st they participated in Walk a Mile in her Shoes (WAMIHS); an event during which they walked one full [...]

Associations employ more than one-million people in the United States (including one-in-10 in the nation’s capital), generate more than $30-billion in payroll, bring in some $33-billion in revenue, and hold an estimated $50.6-billion in assets.
There’s no denying that associations are powerful. And as more associations are becoming globally focused, they are becoming increasingly important around [...]