Beyond the Hype



	Best Practices in Public Relations November 4, 2011 - Royal Roads University

	Speaker Profiles
	Open Data
		Herb Lainchbury President, Dynamic Solutions Inc. Herb Lainchbury is a strategist in open data, technology, information management and privacy. He is president of Dynamic Solutions Inc., a firm providing web consulting, design and delivery services to private and public sector clients. Herb is the founder of OpenDataBC, a grassroots community dedicated to promoting the understanding and use of open data in British Columbia. He was a part of the team that organized the first conference on open government in B.C., held in Victoria in November 2010. Over the course of his 25+ year career, he has served the province of British Columbia both as a government employee and as an engaged citizen and public service advocate. He dedicates a large portion of his time to community building, learning and studying the latest trends in computing technology and solutions. Herb holds a degree in computer science from the University of Victoria.
		Sean Holman Syndicated Columnist, Victoria Sean Holman is a syndicated political columnist appearing in Business in Vancouver, The Squamish Chief and The Whistler Question. A former legislative reporter for 24 hours and The Vancouver Sun, he is founder (2003) and editor of Publiceyeonline.com and host of Public Eye Radio on CFAX 1070, Victoria's most listened to radio station. In 2004, Mr. Holman won the Jack Webster Award for a five month investigation into what became known as the Doug Walls affair. He teaches basic and advanced journalism at the University of Victoria's writing department and is also the director of its professional writing program.
	Marketing Compassion
		Maggie Kerr-Southin Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness Maggie brings over 20 years of experience to her role at the Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness. Using her solid background as an Accredited Public Relations (APR) professional, she reminds us that while non-profits differ from the corporate world in many ways, the basics of ethics, transparency and accountability are cornerstones of good communications planning for any audience. Maggie will use examples from her work at the Coalition to End Homelessness to illustrate how good PR skills apply to the Coalition’s social mission. Following a career in journalism and freelance writing, Maggie co-founded Artemis PR & Design which she ran with her business partner for 15 years. At Artemis, Maggie worked with many non-profits, including the Victoria Steering Committee on Homelessness, Our Place Society, Victoria Cool Aid Society, Mary Manning Centre, several trades training organizations and more.
		Cst. Mike Russell Media Spokesperson, External Communications Victoria Police Department Mike Russell is a husband and father of two and a fervent supporter of community engagement and community building. He is a proud member of the Victoria Police Department and has served the cities of Edmonton, Victoria and Township of Esquimalt as a Police Officer in many community roles. He is the Public Affairs Media Spokesperson and Social Media Officer. Mike has pushed to be more open and engage fully using a broad base of social media. His goal has been to use this to get our community connected and excited about what we do.
		Alan Rycroft Victoria Cool Aid Society Alan was born in Ottawa and grew up in Ontario. After graduating from high school, he attended the University of Waterloo and studied computer science, philosophy and religion. He moved to BC in 1988, and founded the community paper Kootenay Weekly Express – which continues to publish today. Alan Rycroft has worked widely within government, non-profit agencies and the private sector for over twenty years, and in 2007 earned a Master of Arts in Professional Communications from Royal Roads University. His major research paper for the MA was entitled: “Young Adults and Virtual Public Spheres: Building A New Political Culture”. (He has a special interest in the Internet and social media.) Since 2006, Alan Rycroft has managed Community Relations for the Victoria Cool Aid Society, a large non-profit that provides supported housing, emergency shelter and health care services for the homeless and marginalized.
	Career Talk
		Patsy Worrall VP Marketing & Communications BC Cancer Foundation Patsy brings over 25 years of experience and expertise to her role as Vice President, Marketing and Communications, for the BC Cancer Foundation. As a partner in one of Vancouver’s top-ranked communications companies for 15 years preceding her move to BC Cancer Foundation in 2010, Patsy provided strategic counsel to a diverse range of private and public sector organizations, including many health and life sciences groups. In her first year with the Foundation, Patsy created and introduced the organization’s new brand Partners in Discovery. She is responsible for the development of marketing and communications programs that will elevate the importance of the Foundation and its sole purpose of raising funds for its partner, the BC Cancer Agency.
		Kellie Garrett, MA, MC, ICD.D Senior VP Strategy, Knowledge & Reputation Farm Credit Canada (FCC) Kellie leads business strategy, ERM, strategic intelligence, research, communications and social responsibility at the Farm Credit Canada (FCC) in Regina. She has an MA in Leadership, graduated from Harvard's Advanced Management Program, and is certified as a corporate director and executive coach. Passionate about voluntarism, Kellie is Vice-Chair of Canadian Business for Social Responsibility, Director with Regina's Globe Theatre and Past-Chair of IABC's Research Foundation. She also counsels parents regarding autism and is a professional speaker. In 2010, she was awarded the Master Communicator designation by IABC, the CPRS President's Award for Outstanding PR and Communications Management, and was named one of Canada's 100 Most Powerful Women in 2007. Kellie is a gardening and travel addict, has two sons aged 19 and 20, and is married to a very zen husband.
	Keynote Address
		Cyrus Mavalwala, ABC Co-founder, Advantis Communications Cyrus Mavalwala, ABC is an accredited and award-winning PR practitioner, speaker and trainer who has been helping organizations achieve their business objectives for 18 years. In 2002, Cyrus founded Advantis Communications Inc., a Toronto-based public relations and marketing agency that delivers measureable value by integrating traditional, digital and social communications for companies across Canada and the U.S. In 2009, Cyrus co-founded Act Like An Agency with his Australian counterpart. The program trains corporate communicators on how to become trusted advisers within their organization by developing key consulting skills and transforming their role from tactician to communications strategist. Cyrus is a three-time Toronto board member of the International Association of Business Communicators. He is a frequent judge of local, national and international awards and has received awards related to public relations, video production, business and internal communications. Cyrus contributes to the CaptainComm blog. View his profile on LinkedIn and follow him on Twitter at @CyrusMavalwala.

Speaker Profiles