Introducing Strategies & Tactics Live+

Strategies & Tactics Live debuted in February 2022. The 30-minute livestream takes readers behind the scenes of a story, offering further actionable insights and takeaways through interviews with contributors and other special guests.

Our monthly LinkedIn episodes have spotlighted a diverse lineup of thought leaders and tackled pressing topics like AI, crisis management and storytelling. Among our guests: Linda Rutherford, chief administration and communications officer for Southwest Airlines; Jen Hartmann, global director of strategic public relations and enterprise social media, John Deere; Mary Osaka, vice chancellor for strategic comms, UCLA; Jim Joseph, U.S. CEO and global CMO, Ketchum; and Chris Perry, chair, Weber Shandwick Futures.

Following each live session since March 2023, guests have continued to share exclusive insights in videos available only to PRSA members via the online version of Strategies & Tactics.

I’m now excited to announce the launch of Strategies & Tactics Live+. This content hub brings together all the bonus videos, offering exclusive insights, resources and more. You can access the clips under the Publications & News banner at prsa.org. I hope you find value in this exclusive content as PRSA continues to support your PR and comms journey.

Corey duBrowa’s C-suite views 

I want to share some leadership perspectives from our July bonus session from my interview with Corey duBrowa, Burson’s global CEO. 

Corey’s impressive résumé includes serving as vice president of global communications and public affairs at Google and parent company Alphabet and senior vice president of global communications at Starbucks.

He said he took many lessons from working with Starbucks founder Howard Schultz. 

Schultz “had a ‘we, not me’ orientation to his leadership style that was hugely formative for me,” duBrowa said. “To the extent that I’ve been able to carry that mentality forward and pay it forward at the scale at which Burson operates, it’s Howard’s humility and his team approach that became imprinted on the way that I’ve tried to lead. I haven’t always gotten it right, but it’s been my intent and the spirit of all the learning I did during the time that we were together.”

Over the years that he has worked with C-suite leaders, duBrowa has found that “they don’t need ‘yes’ people. Every company has plenty of people who will tell the executives what they want to hear.”

For communicators, “you have to be able to step up and have the hard conversations and give the very best counsel,” he said. “That’s why we’re there; it’s the whole point of why we’re being paid to do these jobs, so we can give the best advice that moves past the situation in question and creates opportunity for future success.”

Communicators have had a seat at the business table for years, but “it’s what you do with that seat that matters,” he said. “If I look at the red thread that goes through all those companies and all those conversations I had with leaders over the years, it’s telling the truth. And that’s not always the easiest to hear or deliver. But ultimately, it’s the most valuable thing that you can do with the seat. It’s what creates trust and the opportunity to help that leader do even more in the future.”