Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Junior Student Reflections of Pittsburgh Professional Development Conference

Starting this fall semester, our student PR team became an official PRSSA chapter, giving us access to networking, career services, and invitations to PRSA professional development conferences. To me, if you’re a college student looking to break into the industry, those are some pretty good benefits.

This month was the first time that we were eligible to attend a conference as official PRSSA members, so I decided to go and see what one of these conferences was like. On September 15, we traveled to PRSA Pittsburgh's Professional Development Conference. I particularly enjoyed these two speakers.:

Pat McMahon, director of public relations for PNC Bank, talked about his company’s acquisition of National City Bank, and the process of converting those branches not located in Pittsburgh over time. The goal wasn’t to change everything overnight; that would’ve caused panic and confusion for PNC’s new customers. PNC’s major action in the plan was to use the local television media in the new market areas to deal with concerned customers directly. In this case, they held a live internet town-hall style discussion, where anyone could ask questions about how their banking would be affected.

Tim McIntyre, vice president of communications for Domino’s Pizza, told us about his “worst week on the job” when a Youtube video appeared that threatened the reputation and integrity of the entire Domino’s company. He told his story about how he worked with the president to make sure that this video (commonly known by those who have seen it as “Disgusting Domino’s Workers”) and the potential crisis was stopped immediately. To accomplish this, Domino’s needed to find the workers responsible, make sure no one was injured (the video turned out to be a hoax), and create an apology video with the president himself to be viewed before the other video gained too much notoriety. Even though this case study has been met with mixed opinions in the PR field, it is a solid example of crisis relations and crisis management. The incident also proved to be the turning point for Domino’s and social media.

So, the main point that I learned from the speakers here:
Good PR involves analyzing a situation, careful planning, and efficient execution. If you can stay aware of what the public is saying about your organization, and/or project what they will say in the future, then having strong plans ready for situations will keep your company in a good position. And that’s all great stuff to learn from professionals in the industry.

Kevin Conley (@Kevco542)
Junior Public Relations Major
PRSSA Member


Saturday, September 18, 2010

Conference in Pittsburgh impresses upon first semester public relations major

Coming into college, I expected my first semester to lull along with very little involvement in my major. This was simply not the case. On Wednesday, September 15, 2010, just four weeks into my collegiate career, I found myself traveling to a Public Relations Conference in Pittsburgh. This conference, hosted by the PRSA, had many speakers that enlightened me on my chosen major. These speakers ranged from professionals in the public relations field to psychologists, and it was this diversity that seemed to keep me deeply interested.


Tim Mclntyre, Vice President of Communications for Domino's, gave a lecture and the keynote to end the conference. He spoke of when Domino's had a crisis and what steps were taken to reconcile their losses. This was very exciting for a freshman such as me. I was in the same room with a man that is living my dream, and telling me how to achieve it. I listened with great intensity as Mr. Mclntyre shared that Domino's is now thriving because of the aggressive steps taken by himself and his team.

My experience at this event was nothing short of excellent. I got to listen to men and women that are making a difference for their employers by using their skills with media. I also learned that these people are real, and they are normal human beings, not superheroes. This motivates me to become one of them. I feel driven to reach the level of expertise I witnessed at this conference, and because of their sharing of their experiences, I am one step closer to achieving that goal. 

Marlin Cowsert
Freshman Public Relations Major

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Changes to the WU public relations program to lead to future opportunities for students

What an exciting start to the school year! Thanks to over two years of diligence from Waynesburg alumni and current students it’s official: the PR Team is now the Waynesburg University PRSSA Chapter. PRSSA National recently granted Waynesburg University its charter, and now the Waynesburg University PRSSA Chapter is an official campus organization. This is overwhelmingly good news to current public relations students and future students of the program. The executive board is extremely excited to lay the foundational blocks on which future generations can build.


The public relations program at Waynesburg has made leaps and bounds in the past few years. Up until 2009, students graduated with a degree in communication and an emphasis in public relations. Now graduates of the program will graduate with a degree in public relations. How awesome is that?

Our advisor, Richard Krause, assistant professor of communication and chair of the Department of Communication at Waynesburg University, said in a university press release that “this chapter is one of the most significant developments in the Department of Communication since its inception in 1996.” He added that the program has been developed to where it is extremely competitive with programs found at much larger universities.

Becoming a PRSSA Chapter is an additional opportunity for public relations students to gain great insight into the field. Our goals for our first year include a having strong web presence (Follow us on Twitter (@wuprssa) and fan us on Facebook soon!), being a visible organization on campus, creating strong fundraisers to offset member/event costs and to set the bar high for future members and students in the program.

I’m not going to spill everything in one blog post though. If you’re a member, I encourage you to attend our second meeting next Monday, Sept. 20 at 6 p.m. in Buhl 416. Members who attended the Professional Development Day in Pittsburgh on September 15 have exciting information to share. If you aren’t a member or are from out of state please feel free to contact us with any questions, thoughts or requests for information at wuprssa@student.waynesburg.edu.

-Vikki Kamicker (@vkamicker)
  Waynesburg University PRSSA Chapter, President