FIR Podcast Network

For Immediate Release: Podcasts for Communicators

EPISODE #71: KRISTI MUNNO ON REACHING FRONTLINE BY REINVENTING OZINGA TOWN HALLS

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The best communicators are versatile; they proactively seek out opportunities to meet audiences and develop creative ways to deliver messages. Some of our greatest successes come when we recognize that one-size may not fit-all, leading us to develop new methods to reach unique sets of stakeholders.

Few understand these challenges more than Kristi Munno, who leads a full slate of communications initiatives for Ozinga, a fifth-generation family-owned company in the construction materials industry. Here’s how Kristi and team transformed their Town Hall meetings to be sure that each of Ozinga’s employees had the chance to participate — and how her team helped showcase frontline operations.

The challenge: More than half of Ozinga’s nearly 2,000 employees are considered frontline workers and do not have access to a company email addresses, creating obstacles when it comes to distributing internal communications.
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EPISODE #70: WHAT’S OLD IS NEW AGAIN WITH BARBARA ROZGONYI

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So much of our time as communicators is spent navigating uncharted territory – handling crises, adapting to emerging technology, etc. – that it’s easy to forget to take time to reflect.

We recently received a great reminder to do just that from our friend and former Sears colleague, Barbara Rozgonyi. A pioneer of digital communications and the leader of CoryWest Media, Barbara joined us to discuss the current popularity of retro culture and how lessons from the past can help shape how we work moving forward.

“It’s just really gives you a feeling that what was cool is still cool,” Barbara said. “I was looking at some of the projects we worked on together – and the groundwork that we laid back then may seem nostalgic, but it’s super relevant for today.”
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EPISODE #69: JASON ANTHOINE ON BECOMING A COMMS TRUSTED ADVISOR

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As communicators, we are often at our best while functioning as trusted advisors to executives, colleagues and other key business stakeholders. But trust isn’t gained overnight. How do you build trust for the long-term?

Enter Jason Anthoine, the managing founder and “head honcho” of Audacity, a communications consultancy that helps companies inform, involve and inspire their employees by immersing themselves in businesses and absorbing as much as possible, from balance sheets and organizational goals to day-to-day operations.

“We will never be able to understand what their world is like unless we insert ourselves into it,” Jason told us. “We’re here to understand you better so we can give you more of what you want and, more importantly, less of what you don’t want.”
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EPISODE #68: SHEL HOLTZ – EMBRACING CHATGPT FOR INTERNAL COMMS

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Artificial intelligence (AI) is here, and no one is less surprised than Shel Holtz.

So many of us know Shel from his 40-plus years as a consultant, speaker, blogger, author, and co-founder of the FIR Podcast Network, but it is his fascination with emerging technologies that make him the ideal person to discuss AI models like ChatGPT.

“Mark my words,” Shel wrote in 2016, “Bots are coming to the workplace, to media relations, to public relations. They are coming just as surely as the web was going to completely disrupt the way communications was done a quarter century ago.”

Now, with his prediction a reality, Shel joins our podcast to urge communicators to embrace AI tools, rather than fear being replaced by them. To Shel, learning how to properly – and ethically – use AI is becoming an essential skill and can help us generate ideas, overcome writers block, teach writing, and save time.
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EPISODE #67: DAVID MURRAY – WHAT’S AHEAD FOR EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATION

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In our first episode of the year, we look to unpack what’s going on and what lies ahead for communicators in 2023. To us, there’s no one better suited to discuss the present and future of executive communication than David Murray.

In addition to being an expert communicator and accomplished author, David is the Executive Director of the Executive Communication Council, the head of the Professional Speechwriters Association, and he also pens the popular communications blog, “Writing Boots.” We’re thrilled to have him back on EE Voice.

During our conversation, David jests that this is “the only interesting time” in executive communication and, while we’ll happily grant our friend some room for hyperbole, the reality is that we have absolutely reached an inflection point. Tune in as David discusses the unprecedented spotlight on – and access to – executives, an increasingly influential workforce, emerging AI technology, and how communicators can plan accordingly. (Tune in for the terrific storytelling; stay for the great advice.)
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EPISODE #66: OUR BEST IC EXPERT ADVICE FROM 2022

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As we prepare to take a brief pause for the holidays – and hope you do, too! – we’ll first take a moment to reflect on the challenges we faced this year: increasingly passionate employee bases; global, domestic, and online uncertainty; developing data and communication methods; and the many other factors that contributed to the year that was for internal communicators in 2022.

In looking back, we’re happy to continue our holiday tradition of a year-end roundup episode: one podcast with highlights from our 2022 conversations, in just a few minutes. Here are some of the top insights from this year’s slate of IC experts.
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EPISODE #65: AUTHOR CALEB GARDNER – ALL LEADERSHIP IS CHANGE LEADERSHIP

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What is it they say about “the best laid plans?”

In this episode of the EE Voice podcast, we are joined by Caleb Gardner to discuss his new book – No Point B – and how leaders must embrace change and use effective communication in the face of developing technology, social activism, and other key elements in today’s tranformational world.

“All leadership has to be change leadership,” Caleb told us. “Because we just have so much inbound, so much new data, so much going on in the world that we’re going to have to be constantly asking our people to think differently — and we’re not prepared to ask them to have that level of mental flexibility.”
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EPISODE #64: NOT IF, BUT WHEN – CRISIS EXPERT ANDY GILMAN ON PREPARING FOR A CYBERATTACK

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Sometimes it pays to be a little paranoid. Crisis management expert and friend of the EE Voice podcast, Andy Gilman, returns to discuss the importance of preparedness and heightened awareness when it comes to cyber-attacks, the top potential crisis for almost any organization.

In our conversation, Andy illustrates the key role of communications in company-wide cybersecurity initiatives, which he calls “the ultimate cross-functional teamwork.”

“Figure out what resources are out there, then get smart yourself and get your employees smarter,” he says. “You want them to be aware and spot something. Again, we don’t know we’re doing a good job until something bad happens, so every day we’re doing it is another day where the organization can function as normal.”

For helpful resources for communicators, visit the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency.

For more on Andy and CommCore Consulting Group, head to https://www.commcoreconsulting.com/.
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#63 – Roe v Wade: Communicators on alert for legal implications

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On June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v Wade ruling that had legalized abortion nationwide.

Immediately following the announcement, several companies – including Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Lyft, Dick’s Sporting Goods and JPMorgan Chase – announced that they were offering to cover travel costs for employees who must travel out of state for abortions. This clearly has implications for communicators who are facing the need to respond to their internal and external audiences.

We reached out to Robin Fretwell Wilson, a law professor at the University of Illinois and an expert on healthcare law. (You can read Robin’s full impressive bio here.)

“There’s a bramble of issues in [any] direction that you move,” says Robin.

Among the questions we discussed on this episode:

  • Possible legal implications for companies who are reimbursing travel costs for employees who must leave their home states for abortions
  • How the ruling could set up a type of “arms race” between the red and blue states
  • What key messages communicators should keep in mind when advising their executives
  • Several legal issues that may arise down the road – and companies and communicators may not have even yet considered

Send this episode over to your legal partner – and begin that scenario planning. More is clearly to come on this issue.

Other resources:

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Episode #62: Mike Klein: Challenging Our Traditional Approach to Employee Engagement

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We’re back after a brief hiatus and are ecstatic to be joined by author, internal communications leader, and our “welcome rebel” Mike Klein.

Principal of Changing the Terms and Senior Strategic Advisor for Sparrow Connected, Mike has made it his personal mission to challenge the status quo and advance the effectiveness of internal communications. His recently published e-book, “Employee Engagement or BUSINESS IMPACT? It’s Time To Choose,” takes on the current state of employee engagement and identifies six levers to engage better performance.
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