Get your tickets for PRFest 2017

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PRFest, a practical based CPD conference, is coming back to Edinburgh on 15 – 16 June 2017.

This event has been designed by communications practitioners for fellow practitioners. It is based on a model of workshops, discussion and implementation. The festival was set up in 2016 by CIPR communicator colleague Laura Sutherland to encourage people to ‘learn, share and collaborate’.

What is waiting for you at PRFest 2017

A two day conference in Scotland which will feature sessions on:

communicators and the board room
PR measurement and evaluation, led by Jerry Ward, Press Data
why diversity and inclusion are so important in PR
workflow for planning, managing and measuring an influencer campaign led by PRstack editor and a previous CIPR President, Stephen Waddington
using data and analytics to inform strategy, led by Andrew Smith, Escherman
mental health in PR
educating the wider business community and employers about PR as a management discipline and its strategic value, led by Sarah Hall. There will be takeaways from the #FuturePRoof body of work. #FuturePRoof 2 was launched at the end of summer 2016
cyber security

Public sector speakers

Senior communications practitioners Sarah Pinch and Bridget Aherne will talk about the skill of professional influence, arguing that the communications function is a necessary part of all corporate decision making, not just something to be wheeled out in times of crisis. They will illustrate their presentations with real life examples from the board room.

Bridget Aherne is Head of Communications & Engagement at Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service and was previously Head of Communications and Administration at Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service. Her previous local public service roles were in fire service and local authority roles in Greater Manchester.

Sarah Pinch, MD of Pinch Point Communications, is a former CIPR President. She was previously Head of Communications at the University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust.

Both Bridget and Sarah are past winners of the CIPR and IoD Public Relations Director of the Year Award. Bridget has written a blog about what the award meant for her and the challenges of being a sole PR practitioner in an organisation.

As part of the CIPR LPS project ‘Influence for Impact’ in 2015-2016, we interviewed senior practitioners from across the UK, including Bridget and Sarah. They gave insights into the skills and professional development needed to support public services. Read the ‘Influence for Impact’ report and discover more about its findings. Hear the comments from some of the practitioners in the short video below produced by Tim Borrett and Abha Thakor at one of the research presentations.

Book tickets for PRFest 2017

Workflow planning

I often hear practitioners and social media managers ask ‘do I really need to have a plan?’ and ‘why do I need workflow tools, don’t IT staff deal with that kind of stuff?’. In modern communications, an understanding of the relevant IT-tools is an integral part of the work and will also help you and your teams with productivity.

If you are not able to get to Stephen Waddington’s session at PRFest 2017, check out a range of resources designed to help you in your day today work. The PRstack books explore a selection of useful and usable communications tools, what they do and how to use them in practice. The chapter authors share practical advice on the communications workflow including planning, content, engagement, monitoring and measurement.