Elevating Our Game: Harnessing the Power of Communication To Create Impact

Agenda

Module 1: Unlocking the True Power of the Professional Communication
Thursday, February 11; 3–4:30 p.m. ET

This first module begins the certificate program by redefining or reframing the true value of the communication professional as about something more than stringing words and sentences together. Rather, our superpower and distinct value proposition is in our ability to answer the two questions that keep senior leaders up at night.

In this module, participants will learn:

• Why PR people and the PR function are often marginalized.
• Strategies for preventing or overcoming marginalization.
• The art of giving advice to non-communicators.
• The Three-Minute Drill..(The Three-Minute Drill by James E. Lukaszewski, Fellow, PRSA. Used with permission.)

Module 2: Communication Is the Continuation of Business by Other Means
Thursday, February 18; 3–4:30 p.m. ET

This second module will focus on the first principle of strategic communication. Specifically, participants will learn how to apply the discipline of strategy to communication to achieve the meaningful impact within their organizations. Strategy, as we will explore, is a system of ordered thinking that helps an individual or organization mobilize resources to accomplish clearly defined goals.

In this module, participants will learn:

• The meaning of “strategy.”
• A framework for how to develop a strategic mindset overall.
• How to apply strategy to communication.
• How to become habitually strategic in their role. 

Module 3: To Move People, We Need To Meet People Where They Are
Thursday, February 25; 3–4:30 p.m. ET

The third module will dive deeper into the application of strategy to communication through the second principle of strategic communication. In particular, we will focus on how to effectively and predictably persuade people in ways that achieve business outcomes. The key, as we will learn, is to be ruthlessly focused on meeting our audiences where they are.

In this module, participants will learn:

• How to provoke a specific change within stakeholders.
• How to analyze audiences to learn how to best provoke a particular change within them.
• A five-step method for how to plan communication with impact.
  

Module 4: Facts Alone Are Not Persuasive
Thursday, March 4; 3–4:30 p.m. ET

In the fourth module, we will explore the third principle of strategic communication and how to craft impactful messages. We will explore the neurolinguistic concept of framing, and how the sequence of content ultimately determines the meaning audiences derive from our message.

In this module, participants will learn:

• The neuroscience of framing.
• How to craft impactful messages and the management of meaning.
• The importance of sequence and structure in persuasion.
  

Module 5: Words Aren’t Enough
Thursday, March 11; 3–4:30 p.m. ET

In this fifth module, we will explore the fourth principle of strategic communication, and in particular the need to align our words with our actions. In this module, we will focus on how communication sets and manages expectations, and how expectation management becomes essential for building, maintaining and restoring trust.

In this module, participants will learn:

• The dynamics of trust, particularly in a crisis.
• The importance of expectation management in maintaining trust.
• How to build trust and how to restore trust when lost.
  

Module 6: The Science Behind Effective Communication
Thursday, March 18; 3–4:30 p.m. ET

In the final module of the certificate program, we will explore the ninth principle of strategic communication, and in particular explore the neuroscience of leadership and communication.

In this module, participants will learn:

• The neuroscience of attention and distraction.
• The neuroscience of fear and the importance of mitigating fear.
• The neuroscience of connection.