In pursuit of its vision to build the capacity of communications professionals across the world, The Comms Avenue gathered leading professionals in the industry operating across Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States for the July edition of the TCA Webinar Series.
The focus of the Webinar Series was Global Communications, and it provided an excellent platform for communications professionals to share ideas on how to be positioned to access global opportunities. Speaking on the Webinars organized in partnership with BusinessDay, Adedoyin Jaiyesimi, the Chief Communications Consultant at The Comms Avenue, highlighted the need for communications professionals to adopt a global approach as they execute their briefs and projects.
The Webinar Series started off with Nicky James, Co-Founder, and Director, Tribeca PR as the first guest. Her insightful session themed ‘Building a successful Public Relations Agency’, set the tone for the rest of the series. One major takeaway from Nicky is the need for communications professionals to understand the strategic role they play in their organizations, in order to make an impact.
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Soaring on the wings of the first webinar, the second Webinar was with Lee-Roy Chetty, Head of Communications for Africa, UK Department for International Trade. Sharing valuable tips for communications professionals who work in the public sector, he encouraged participants to always add value consistently and show senior leaders that communications is fundamental to the decision-making process.
Ghada Hammouda, Chief Sustainability and Marketing Officer at Qalaa Holdings, shared openly on Mastering the Art of Globalizing Brands. In her session, Ghada nudged participants to pay attention to their personal brand. ‘Your purpose as a communications professional cannot be about profitability alone. How you see yourself, your brand, and your role is equally important,’ she said.
This thought-provoking session made way for Gina London, a Global Expert in Leadership Communications, who shared on Communicating for Impact. According to her, self-awareness is key, and communications professionals must project the right image, dress appropriately, choose the right words to use, and be mindful of the cultural nuances of their global audience.
Yaa Boateng, an award-winning Creative and Brand Strategist, was the next guest and she talked on the theme, Honing Your Creativity as a Communications Professional. She emphasized that ‘creatives sell magic through execution. Therefore, research is very important to feed their creativity.’
The Webinars ended in an educative session with Thoko Moyo, Associate Dean for Communications and Public Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School. In her talk on Crisis Communications, Thoko highlighted the need for communications professionals to differentiate ‘issues’ from ‘crisis’. According to her, when issues are not properly managed, they become a crisis.
Reaching over 250 professionals across Africa and beyond, the July edition of the TCA Webinar Series achieved its goal of equipping professionals with practical information to allow them have global impact.
About The Comms Avenue
The Comms Avenue is a capacity building platform for leading and innovative communications professionals across the world. With a thriving community of over 300 communications professionals across the world, our mission is to equip a new class of global communications professionals. This is achieved through knowledge sharing, capacity building and networking events and learning sessions. For details of how to join, use this link http://bit.ly/TCASignUp.
