My Professional Development Journey

I’m a firm believer in the idea of life-long learning.  Your education shouldn’t end with graduation. 

This is where the concept of professional development comes into play.  Broadly, as Wikipedia explains it, professional development encompasses anything you do to gain skills and knowledge for both personal development and career advancement.

It’s the best of both worlds – the employee is bettering him or herself while the employer reaps the benefits as well.  For job seekers, it’s an all-important part of standing out from the competition in the current market.

There are all types of professional development opportunities out there.  These range from the formal – semester-long courses, advanced degree programs, conferences, etc. – to the informal – mentoring, coaching relationships, Webinars, staying current on industry reading, etc. 

Don’t be intimidated by all the opportunities.  Start small…Keep in mind that you can learn a lot from those around you on a daily basis, and it doesn’t have to be hard or time-consuming.  Just yesterday, my colleague Julie gave a great presentation to the team with tips on online researching.  It took maybe 30 minutes out of everyone’s work day, but we all left with some extremely useful tools that we may have never come across on our own.

I recently decided to take a big step and launch a search to find an organization of some kind in which to become involved.  Since I’m a quiet person, I decided to start with Toastmasters International.  This was a very supportive and dedicated group.  After visiting a couple of meetings, and picking up a few public speaking tips, I decided it wasn’t what I had in mind.

I haven’t given up on my search, though.  Sometimes I find that knowing what I don’t want can help me figure out what I do.  I’m shifting my focus to an organization where I can do some of the same things, but for a cause I’m passionate about, instead of just public speaking.

So, my professional development journey continues.  And, in meantime, I’ve found an American Marketing Association seminar that I’m excited about attending next week.

I hope some of you will take the leap with me, and help yourself while helping a cause close to your heart.  And, if you’re already doing this, please feel free to share your suggestions and experiences.  🙂

Here are a few places I’ve found helpful along the way:

• Public Relation Society of America’s Houston Chapter
• American Marketing Association’s Houston Chapter
• Toastmasters International – Just because it wasn’t for me doesn’t mean it won’t be the right fit for you.

Finally, I’ll leave you with an inspirational quote from Henry Ford:

“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.”

 Good luck!

 Jaime Napoli, Account Executive

Twilight and the Blending of Generations

I admit it. Not only have I read all the Twilight books – I’ve read them twice and paid to see the midnight showing of both Twilight and New Moon. As a grown woman sprinting toward 40, I can still find a great deal of pleasure by diving imagination first into a fantasy world of true love, adventure and heartbreak.

But what has surprised me and the rest of the world, is that I am not alone in my Twi-Hard fandom. There were just as many old ladies like myself standing in line anticipating the start of New Moon as there were eager pre-teens and giddy college students. It was a sea of humanity at the AMC 30 at 11:45 that night.

I realized that as much as we like to create labels for generations – Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennial and such, the lines between categories are blurring. Young people are more media savvy than ever before, and adults in their 30s, 40s and 50s are holding on to youthful ideals longer than ever. The arrival of technology and social media is busting down the barriers between generations or at the very least creating peep holes for clearer observation and understanding.

What does this mean for communication professionals? It means we no longer have clear-cut target audiences. Young adults catch the news on MSN and the Daily Show; 39-year-olds are winding down their day watching Adult Swim on the Cartoon Network while updating their Facebook account.

This change is most evident when creating campaigns for our education industry clients. On average – our client’s audience ranges in age from 16 – 36. In previous eras, this might mean developing separate copy and art to appeal to a youth market and an adult market. With this shift in generational separation, we can create unified campaigns that speak to a broader range of prospective students.

Brighter colors, dynamic graphics and contemporary copy are appreciated by Gen X and Gen Y alike, as well as progressive Baby Boomers. And as we all know, with all the messaging “noise” in the world, marketing activities need to be bolder than ever before to make a dent in awareness.

 

Finding the balance between too young and too stodgy is the guideline for developing creative that influences this new amalgam of generations.

It also means that we have to explore new delivery modes for sharing information. Recruitment activities need to go virtual in support of traditional outreach methods. Online open houses, Facebook posts, YouTube videos, email blasts, Google ad words – all these activities help enhance traditional recruitment activities.

 

These are exciting times. We can be bold. We can dare to be different. We have to, or we become ignored, or worse, irrelevant.

Platinum publicity for Griffin Communications Group

When it comes to award-winning publicity campaigns, forget gold.  Griffin Communications Group dons platinum.  The Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals granted its prestigious 2009 Platinum MarCom Award to the full-service communications firm for its work in educating the public on the value and benefits of human space exploration.

Griffin’s client, the Coalition for Space Exploration (Coalition), wanted to garner national media coverage of NASA’s 50^th anniversary, which took place in October 2008.  Such coverage was critical to the Coalition’s mission of educating audiences of all ages on the continued importance and value of human space exploration. 

The agency conceptualized and implemented a satellite media tour themed “Passing the Torch:  NASA’s 50^th Anniversary” to highlight the administration’s accomplishments over the past five decades and to paint a vision for its future.  The tour featured former Apollo astronaut Capt. Eugene Cernan, the last man to set foot on the Moon, and a young female aerospace engineer currently vying for a seat in the astronaut corps.  Over a six-hour period, the duo appeared together in numerous satellite media interviews.  The effort far surpassed expectations, resulting in 84 placements on radio and television stations throughout the nation that reached 5.7 million people.

“Besides generating these powerful results, we caught NASA’s attention, the Coalition’s most important customer,” said Gwen Griffin, managing director of Griffin Communications Group. “We received several appreciative calls and e-mails from NASA personnel expressing gratitude to the Coalition for hosting such a tremendous media event for the 50^th anniversary.  You can’t put a price tag on that type of acknowledgement.”

In addition to the platinum award, Griffin also took home an honorable mention MarCom Award in the video/film/non-profit category for its “Keep America in Space” public service announcement on behalf of the Coalition.  The inspirational, viral video campaign, which was produced by Space City Films, stressed the true need for continued human space exploration and called upon viewers to spread the word.  Griffin managed the production process and coordinated distribution.

Presenting…Griffin Communications Group

As they say in the media, there’s “breaking news” at Griffin Integrated Marketing!  Starting today, we are changing our name to Griffin Communications Group (Griffin).  This is an exciting time of growth for our agency.

So, what is Griffin Communications Group?  It’s an evolution.  We remain a full-service communications firm that specializes in branding, strategic planning, public affairs, advertising, design, public relations, crisis communications, social media and more.  But, our focus will be different.  We will shift from a generalist agency into a niche firm that concentrates on select global industries, beginning with aerospace.

Our aerospace division will operate as Griffin Aerospace Communications.  We have more than a decade of experience developing strategic communications platforms for government entities, private sector companies and non-profit organizations within the aerospace industry – from civil to commercial to military space.  Plus, our Managing Director Gwen Griffin has a rich career history in the industry that began in 1985.

Just take a look at our current aerospace client roster:  NASA’s Constellation Spacesuit Systems Contract (Oceaneering), the Coalition for Space Exploration, United Space Alliance, Blue Origin, Astrotech/Astrogenetix, Space Florida, The Conrad Foundation and MEI Technologies, Inc.

Our past clients are just as prominent:  NASA Johnson Space Center Technology Transfer Office, Space Alliance Technology Outreach Program, Florida’s Technological Research and Development Authority, World Space Congress 2002, Cimarron, Inc., Space Center Houston and The Challenger Learning Center for Space Science Education.

But, we won’t stop with aerospace.  Under our new strategic plan, Griffin will add two more specialized niche practices in the next 12-24 months.

As we begin this evolution, we remain committed to all of our clients.  Our emphasis on exemplary customer service will not change.  Making sure we provide fresh ideas that generate powerful results remains our top priority.

Any questions, post a comment below, send us an email at info@griffincommgroup.com or give us a call at
(281) 335-0200.  Piqued your interest? Then, make sure to check out our site, become our friend on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Here’s to the future!

Griffin Integrated Marketing honored for Hurricane Ike crisis work with an AMA 2009 Crystal Award

Nearly nine months after Hurricane Ike battered the Texas Gulf Coast, we were awarded 2009 Crystal Award from The American Marketing Association’s (AMA) Houston Chapter for our crisis/situation management work surrounding the storm.  Winners were announced Saturday, May 29 at the Intercontinental Houston Hotel.

From left to right: Deanna Wilke, Account Manager and Mandy Pierson, Office Manager, accept the 2009 AMA Crystal Award on behalf of the agency.

Other finalists in the PR/crisis/situation management-single event category included CenterPoint Energy and VT2 Studios.

“This award is a great reminder of the Griffin team’s ‘can-do’ spirit, even during tough personal times.” said Gwen Griffin, managing director of the agency.  “Not only was our office damaged during Hurricane Ike, many of our employees faced personal property losses.  Still, we were able to come together remotely, roll up our sleeves and quickly provide an extremely valuable service to the entire Bay Area Houston region.”

In September 2008, we helped raise awareness of the devastation caused by Hurricane Ike in the coastal Bay Area Houston (BAH) region, which had been nearly shut out of predominant, post-storm editorial coverage.  In one day’s time, we coordinated a full-scale press conference for the region that featured 11 out of the 13 regional mayors and numerous other key business leaders.  The press conference helped these elected officials and business leaders update their residents on recovery efforts, as well as inform other cities and governmental entities outside of BAH on the state of the region.

The one-hour press conference resulted in extensive television and print coverage, including two television stations which aired the press conference live in its entirety.  The editorial coverage spawned two critical meetings with the Federal Emergency Management Agency that help speed much-needed assistance to the area.

We are very proud and honored to receive this award!

Griffin’s crisis work a finalist for AMA Crystal Award

We just posted about the importance of crisis planning. Well, Griffin’s crisis work is actually a finalist for a 2009 Crystal Award from The American Marketing Association’s (AMA) Houston Chapter.

 

We submitted an entry that chronicled our work dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Ike, which hit the Texas Gulf Coast in September 2008. Our task – raising awareness of the devastation to the coastal Bay Area Houston (BAH) region, which had been nearly shut out of predominant, post-storm editorial coverage. Within 24 hours, we coordinated a full-scale press conference for the region that featured the 11 out of the 13 regional mayors, and numerous other key business leaders, to update residents on recovery efforts and inform other cities outside of BAH on the state of the region.

 

The one-hour press conference generated extensive television and print coverage. Two TV stations even aired the press conference live in its entirety. The editorial coverage spawned two critical meetings with the Federal Emergency Management Agency that help speed much-needed assistance to the area. A true win!

 

The 2009 Crystal Award winners will be announced on May 29. We’ll keep you posted.

 

Meanwhile, in the coming weeks, Griffin plans to evolve its Hurricane Ike crisis strategy into an e-book for free download. Stay tuned.

Facebook vs Twitter?

With social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter growing at an unprecedented pace, Griffin Marketing wants to know…