By Shannon Frederick, IABC/Tulsa President

The little chapter that could.

Rumor has it that’s the phrase often used at IABC International to describe our Tulsa organization.

Now tell me you didn’t just smile after reading those first two sentences. 

The honest truth is that it’s hard not to smile when you realize one of the world’s premier strategic communication groups is right here in little ole Tulsa, Okla. It’s no secret that just over two years ago, our chapter wasn’t doing so well. A distressed economy had taken its toll. Membership was down. Attendance at the monthly meetings was dismal. Not as many professionals were entering Bronze Quill.

My how far we’ve come.

IABC just released its latest growth and retention report which contains statistics ranking regions and chapters by their overall growth from June 2010 to June 2011. IABC/Tulsa was again recognized as one of the top 10 fastest growing chapters in the world.

Consider these numbers: IABC memberships have increased 4.25 percent over the past year. During this same time period, memberships to the local Tulsa chapter have increased 33 percent.

It’s pretty amazing, isn’t it?

Even more amazing is we are in good company on this top 10 list with chapters in Auckland, Russia, France, Barbados and other international locations.

Behind the scenes at our chapter, there’s a lot of hard work that has gone into helping us achieve this growth surge. Rest assured, the new executive board, which has just started its term, plans to keep the course – ensuring all of our members are certain about the value in belonging to IABC/Tulsa. If you have any ideas about how we can continue to improve in this area, we want to hear them. Shoot us an e-mail at iabctulsa@gmail.com.  

I hope this report makes you feel proud to be connected to IABC/Tulsa. And if you haven’t yet decided to become a member, please take the time to think about this great opportunity to be a part of an organization in Tulsa that is at the top of an important list.

After all, there’s more to the great state of Oklahoma than just AP polls and football.

Never Let the Creative Process Die

Are your communications lacking creativity lately?

If so, get ready to put your right brain in high gear and rediscover your creative mojo. Bill Hinkle, professor of advertising at the University of Tulsa, and longtime advertising executive, will share tried and true ways to ensure you never let the creative process die.

Bill’s career spans more than four decades in advertising – from retail stores and advertising agencies, to agency owner, restaurateur and now professor. Bill Hinkle has proven ways to help ensure creativity is part of your daily communications processes.

Be sure to reserve your seat today. We look forward to seeing you there!

Join us for happy hour at the Tulsa Press Club on Thursday, September 15, at 5:30 p.m. Network with other professionals and enjoy the relaxed atmosphere. Bring your friends and spread the word!

RSVP now. Networking is free and drinks may be purchased at the bar. This is a great time to come to an IABC Happy Hour if you have never been. It is also another opportunity to support the Tulsa Press Club!

Join your fellow IABC Southern Region members in New Orleans for the 2011 Southern Region Conference October 12-14. Information about the conference, including the Silver Quill Awards, is available on the Southern Region website. Reasonable rates, excellent food, culture and shopping, plus the opportunity to hear some of the world’s most premiere communications professionals speak about a variety of engaging topics. What more could you want from a conference? Did we mention it is in NEW ORLEANS?!

Don’t forget…September 2011 is a Worldwide Membership Month! This means that for new or lapsed members who join or re-join IABC, the application fee is waived. Please remember: applications must be *received* at the San Francisco Headquarters office during the month of September to qualify. This promotion does not apply to current members, transitional members or students, who never pay the application fee anyway.

International is also hosting an open house of the members-only IABC website in September. For the month of September, the public will have free access to:

• Discovery, IABC’s new enhanced-search content archives. Discovery contains archives of Communication World magazine, CW Bulletin, and select Research Foundation reports, along with searchable Knowledge Centre manuals.
• MyComm, IABC’s online communication planning tool (although the public won’t be able to share plans)
• Read access to MemberSpeak and the IABC Buzz, IABC’s online areas where members ask questions and share personal and professional info
• The Job Centre, IABC’s job listing site (Members still have priority access to listings, however.)

To try it out, sign up at:
http://www.iabc.com/login/trial.cfm (This login will not be available before or after the month of September.)

Each month, IABC Tulsa features one of its members in this section of the newsletter. This month, we learn more about Hayley Westwood, who is a communications consultant with ONEOK. She is a 2009 OSU graduate (go Pokes) and a newlywed! Hayley has been a member of IABC for almost a year and was kind enough to share some things about herself and her up and coming career.

Why do you love your job?
I get to work with so many great people every day!

What is the best IABC event that you have ever attended and why?
I really enjoyed Dr. Raj Basu’s presentation on influence and conflict resolution.

How has IABC played a part in your professional development?
I’ve met some great people and learned many helpful tips at meetings and conferences.

What is your favorite thing to do outside of work?
Bake, read and spend time with my family and friends.

What is your favorite vacation spot?
So far, the Canadian Rockies, where I spent my honeymoon!

Who is your favorite musical artist? John Mayer

Favorite movie?  Love Actually   Favorite Restaurant? El Vaquero in Stillwater

The future of communications  . . . Is unpredictable and exciting!

What advice would you give to new communications professionals?
Never stop seeking opportunities to grow and develop your craft!

by Shannon Frederick, ABC, IABC/Tulsa President

Ever experience déjà vu?

It’s happened to me several times in the past few weeks as some of my colleagues, each individually, have sought out advice. Their question is: what would you recommend for a great professional development opportunity?

While this should be easy to answer, it’s actually not.

As the new president of IABC/Tulsa, my first tendency is to guide them to attend one of our professional development luncheons, which keep getting better and better each month.

Then I think about the upcoming OkieSMart event. It always seems to receive rave reviews from Tulsa-area communications professionals.

But IABC’s Southern Region Conference is also coming up. It’s going to be held in the tourist-drawing city of New Orleans and features a star-studded line up of well-known speakers – like Steve Crescenzo and Shel Holz.

And we can’t discount the smaller conferences hosted by IABC International. After all, I personally attended last fall’s Employee Communications Conference in Chicago and it was fabulous.

The granddaddy of them all, of course, is the annual IABC World Conference. The next one is already scheduled for June 24-27, so it’s time to start lobbying for the budget and making plans attend.

You can probably see why I’m having a hard time providing guidance on professional development.

Or maybe, I’m not. It seems I actually did just offer some good advice to all of you.

Take it and run.

Join fellow communicators at the third annual okieSMart social media conference coming to Tulsa Community College’s Center for Creativity Aug. 4. This year’s event is presented by IABC/Tulsa, PRSA Tulsa and Tulsa Press Club. Tulsa Press Club is hosting a reception for all attendees after the conference.

Here are the details:
Aug. 4, 2011
TCC Center for Creativity, 909 S. Boston, Tulsa
Seminar: 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
Reception to follow at Tulsa Press Club, 415 S. Boston

Featured speakers:

• Geno Church, Brains on Fire – All attendees receive the Brains on Fire book as part of the registration fee.
• Cathy Taylor, MediaPost’s Social Media Insider

Registration rates:
Members (IABC/Tulsa, PRSA Tulsa, Tulsa Press Club): $40
Non-members: $50
Students: $20

Social networks:
Follow: www.twitter.com/okiesmart
Friend us on Facebook

Please register by visiting https://prsatulsa.com/meet-reg1.php?id=20. (Note: IABC/Tulsa members should choose the “non member” option in the PRSA system, but will be able to receive the member fee as part of the registration process.)

IABC/Tulsa member Tracy Harlow has earned IABC’s Accredited Business Communicator (ABC) designation.

IABC’s accreditation process measures the strategic abilities and technical skills of a communicator. In order to become accredited, a candidate must demonstrate the ability to plan, direct, implement and evaluate a broad range of communication programs in practical, real-life situations. The process consists of rigorous evaluation that identifies and recognizes highly qualified, well-rounded communicators through a review of their portfolio of work, and through written and oral examinations. Candidates who meet the requirements of the process earn the ABC designation.

Tracy recently joined the Walmart Global Associate Communications team as a senior director helping to lead communications with the company’s more than two million associates around the world. She received her bachelor’s degree in journalism from Oklahoma State University and held leadership roles in communications at Williams and ConocoPhillips before joining Walmart. Tracy is a past president of the Tulsa Chapter, and received the Communications Professional of the Year award in 2004. She has more than 20 IABC quill and PRSA professional awards for her numerous contributions to the profession.

To learn more about accreditation, visit www.iabc.com/abc.