A new skill for the modern communicator: when and how to engage in societal issues
From race relations to climate change, corporate communications leaders are being asked by the C-suite the best way to engage with societal issues. Should the company respond or stay silent? For organizations that don't have an established history of taking a stand on societal issues, it can be hard to know where to start.
This session will explore how Ferguson's Communication Team created an Issues Management program. The program includes the creation of guiding principles and a societal issues playbook that includes clear decision framework that helps a cross-functional committee make informed decisions on which issues to engage with and how.
Christine Dwyer
Senior Director of Communications and PR
Ferguson
As the Senior Director of Communications and Public Relations, Christine is responsible for the planning, implementation and measurement of external communications and media relations initiatives for Ferguson and its 1,400 locations nationwide. She is also responsible for overseeing a team of internal communication professionals. Ferguson is a $23B value-added distributor providing expertise, solutions, and products from infrastructure, plumbing and appliances to HVAC, fire, fabrication and more.
Previously, Christine was the marketing director for a regional accounting firm and an account executive at a local advertising agency. Her work has earned a PRSA Bronze Anvil Award, a Pinnacle award from PRSA Hampton Roads and an honorable mention for Platinum PR Award by PRNews. She is an experienced speaker and presenter on PR and communications-related topics.
Christine is currently a Board Member for the Portsmouth Museums Foundation and a recent graduate of the CIVIC Leadership Institute, a program designed to connect executive leaders through service to improve life in Hampton Roads where she lives and works. In 2011, she won the Inside Business Top 40 under 40 award for her professional achievements and community involvement. In 2008, she was awarded the Rising Star award from the Hampton Roads chapter of the Public Relations Society of America for her leadership and contributions to the chapter. Christine is also a 2009 graduate of the Van Lefcoe Leadership Program.
A graduate of Old Dominion University, she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications with an emphasis in public relations and a minor in marketing.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinedwyer/
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This session will explore how Ferguson's Communication Team created an Issues Management program. The program includes the creation of guiding principles and a societal issues playbook that includes clear decision framework that helps a cross-functional committee make informed decisions on which issues to engage with and how.
Christine Dwyer
Senior Director of Communications and PR
Ferguson
As the Senior Director of Communications and Public Relations, Christine is responsible for the planning, implementation and measurement of external communications and media relations initiatives for Ferguson and its 1,400 locations nationwide. She is also responsible for overseeing a team of internal communication professionals. Ferguson is a $23B value-added distributor providing expertise, solutions, and products from infrastructure, plumbing and appliances to HVAC, fire, fabrication and more.
Previously, Christine was the marketing director for a regional accounting firm and an account executive at a local advertising agency. Her work has earned a PRSA Bronze Anvil Award, a Pinnacle award from PRSA Hampton Roads and an honorable mention for Platinum PR Award by PRNews. She is an experienced speaker and presenter on PR and communications-related topics.
Christine is currently a Board Member for the Portsmouth Museums Foundation and a recent graduate of the CIVIC Leadership Institute, a program designed to connect executive leaders through service to improve life in Hampton Roads where she lives and works. In 2011, she won the Inside Business Top 40 under 40 award for her professional achievements and community involvement. In 2008, she was awarded the Rising Star award from the Hampton Roads chapter of the Public Relations Society of America for her leadership and contributions to the chapter. Christine is also a 2009 graduate of the Van Lefcoe Leadership Program.
A graduate of Old Dominion University, she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications with an emphasis in public relations and a minor in marketing.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinedwyer/
Return to Conference Agenda