We are PR - hear us ROAR!

I am a positive person, however, when I read an article like this, I begin to worry just a tad. OK, actually I begin to worry a bit more than a tad.

Although the article gives me anxiety about finding a job within the first eight months, I am hopeful the economy will turn around. Also, even if it's not turned around in the most dramatic way we need, another internship (paid or unpaid) wouldn't be so bad. I really enjoyed the experience I gained from mine at the Museum of Aviation. The possibility of working there again would only add to my growing portfolio.

I also recently received a job offer with the Houston County School System. I have given it a lot of thought and I think I will take it, at least until a more exciting job comes along. I really could use the benefits, and it would be great experience for me. The job title is a graduation coach, and I would work closely with students who have special needs. This is a great job for someone in PR, too, because it involves a lot of communication with both students and parents. I would act as an encourager and motivator for these students to stay in school, and reinforce the power of education. Sounds like a maven and connector, huh?

It's time to get that portfolio together and show off how awesomely skilled we are. I plan to highlight my skills in communication, organization of events, creative thought, and of course, my writing. Which brings me to my next point...

Even though the fundamentals of our economy aren't as strong as we'd like, there are jobs out there. It's our job as strongly prepared PR graduates to stand out from the crowded field of applicants. The days of blending in with the crowd are over. We're better than this. We have skills and it's time to show them to the world. Get off your butt and stand up! Join me! Let's wave our hands and shout it and shout it loudly -- We are PR, hear us ROAR!!!

Case Study Recap/Analysis

This past week, Bailey Abercrombie and I tackled the case study, “Big Brother is Watching: Browsing on Company Time.” This case can be found in the Employee Relations chapter in the “Cases in Public Relations Management” textbook.

ComXSoft, a computer products company, founded only a few years ago, prides itself on strong sales, fun and relaxed atmospheres at the workplace and frequently gives bonuses and salary rises because of their successes. Nelson Perry, the public relations director works closely with his employees to maintain the atmosphere in a positive manner.

That was until his assistant, Larry Meyers complained about Perry’s secretary’s Web site traffic. Meyers told Perry that his secretary spends all her time on eBay. Upon talking to his secretary, she reacted very defensively and maintained she only used eBay during non-office hours and during her lunch breaks. For the next few weeks, Perry kept a close eye on her and noticed she did in fact spend more time on eBay then she stated.

Perry then enlisted the help of the human resources director, Paul Johnson. Johnson instructed Perry to explain the differences between nonwork related material and work appropriate material.

Several months later, Johnson returned to inform Perry that his employees’ computers could be monitored through use of a surveillance technology. The study found that Perry’s secretary was not the only one guilty of looking at nonwork related Web pages. In all, 20 employees were found guilty of this dilemma.

According to Johnson, the matter was completely legal due to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Perry then decided to form a plan of action to prevent this from happening in the near future.

The case outlined many issues in employee relations. If one doesn’t have employee relations done in a positive way, there is the risk of losing morale and respect within your business. There may be the ethical question of using nonwork related material on company time, but no one can be expected to adhere to this for eight straight hours. In my personal opinion, the use of nonwork related material does not infringe upon someone’s ability to do an effective job, within a limit. There must be some boundaries, but not so much that someone is completely limited from personal use of a computer. This can jeopardize both the success of the individual and the company as a whole. Basically, just cut your employees some slack.

Showing my skills

For this week's blog, I decided to make a re-post. This is a blog post I made during my internship at the Museum of Aviation in Warner Robins, Ga. The information contained in this article demonstrates my skills in writing, research, and a hint of creativity (within my writing). This article was recently published in the museum's quarterly newsletter. The newsletter has a distribution of almost 5,000 readers! I chose to make this post because this article best showcases just a few of my skills as a future PR professional. Enjoy the read!

The F-105G Thunderchief:

The Wild Weasel

The newly restored F-105G Thunderchief will soon have a new home in Hangar One at the Museum of Aviation. Members of the Restoration staff are busily working together along with Middle Georgia Technical College students to restore the aircraft back to its original camouflage coloring. According to Chief Restoration Supervisor, Dennis Oliver, the restoration process is entering the final stages now. “We’re putting the last of the markings on now,” said Oliver. “We’re dotting all the i’s and crossing all the t’s.” The decision to repaint the aircraft was due to its inappropriate color scheme for the setting because the Georgia ANG flew the F-105 from 1980-1983. The Museum is restoring the aircraft to its original glory it hasn’t seen since it flew in Southeast Asia, nearly 40 years ago.

The F-105G Thunderchief was originally designed as a supersonic strike fighter capable of delivering a tactical nuclear weapon within enemy territory. The prototype YF-105A first flew in 1955 and the first production, the F-105B entered service in 1958 with the 45th Tactical Fighter Wing. Thunderchiefs were sent into combat inSoutheast Asia where F-105 crews flew over 20,000 combat missions and accounted for nearly 75% of the bombing missions flown by the USAF during the conflict. The aircraft housed at the Museum is known as the F-105G, or the “Wild Weasel.” This model was equipped with additional avionics and radar-seeking missiles to detect and destroy enemy radar and missile sites.

Robins AFB shared close ties with the F-105G during much of its operation. The Warner Robins ALC was the primary management and repair center for the avionics, fire control and communication systems, guns and air launched missiles used on all F-105s. The Warner Robins ALC was also involved with developing and maintaining the electronic warfare system used on the F-105G.

The F-105G Thunderchief on display at the Museum of Aviation was originally built by the Republic Aviation inFarmingdale, NY. It was first assigned to the 4520th Combat Crew Training Wing, located at Nellis AFB, NV. The aircraft was retired in April 1983 and is now on permanent exhibit at the Museum of Aviation.

Five easy ways to be eco-friendly

Blog Action Day 2009: Climate Change

It's no secret that I don't shy away from my political beliefs. I am an unabashed conservative, who leans libertarian. I hate government-run programs, and believe the government should only exist to fund a strong national defense and protect human life. This is it. Everything else the government handles poorly.

That's why it's up to us, as individuals to do what is necessary to keep our world as wonderful as it can and should be. While I am a global warming skeptic, I do feel it is necessary to do certain things to protect the earth and be eco-friendly.

As a young, soon-to-be public relations professional, I believe in the power of monkey see - monkey do. As an individual it's easy to have great power of persuasion by just doing what you tell others is right. If we're united in a small group, we can help create our own tipping point. This is very similar to the Law of the Few I read about in Malcom Gladwell's "The Tipping Point." It only takes a few great people, or a few great PR professionals to pave the way to a greener, more eco-friendly earth. I'm happy to be along for the ride!

Here are five areas I think are easy enough to make our world just a little bit better.

One of the most important habits we can all practice is make sure our faucets are tight and not dripping unnecessary amounts of water. While this may seem silly it's a big tactic that can save both money on our water bills, but also eliminate wasteful use of water.

Second, it's a good idea to turn off your lights when going to bed. This includes night lights and TV's giving off an unnecessary glow in the dark room. Do you really need that bathroom light on to find it? News flash: It's in the same place it was LAST night.

Third, during the day, open your blinds. Open the drapes. Open a window. "Let the sunshine in!" What I mean is, if it's daylight, there's no need for light in the home. Sure, we occasionally need an artificial light or two, but there's no need to have all your lights on in your home when it's the sunniest day.

Fourth, consider soaking your dishes instead of using your dishwasher. This one may be hard for the OCD folks, like myself, but it really does help in saving water. If you soak your dishes at night and clean them the next morning they will not only be easier to clean, but you've saved tons and tons of water you might've wasted on a dishwasher that only SOMETIMES gets your dishes clean enough.

Fifth, another option for all of us to keep the world eco-friendly is to unplug appliances we don't use on a regular basis. Maybe even unplug your computer, too when it's not being used. The fact is, even when an appliance is not plugged in you're still wasting energy.

Again, I can't say enough how it all goes back to the individual. We cannot expect the world to be changed by our government. We can, however, all take the time to help protect our world by practicing more eco-friendly habits. Join me and help make this world just a little bit better by blogging about your thoughts on climate change. Register your blog at Blog Action Day 2009.

"What's your Scandal?"

A few sleuths figuring out the mystery!

Recently, my PR team: Bailey Abercrombie, Yasmiene Davis and Claire Dykes worked on a campaign with the CW network to help increase viewership for two of their prime time shows, Melrose Place and 90210.

Our group decided to tie the two shows together and figure out a way to make our party keep these shows on their minds at all times. We finally realized that all soap opera characters have one thing in common -- scandal. We thought it would be fun to have a murder mystery dinner party. The decision to tie in the characters from the two shows was an added treat, and kept our guests wondering how they portrayed an actual character. With that the murder mystery party, appropriately titled "What's your Scandal?" was born.

To help promote our event we created a Facebook group, great flyers, and submitted press releases. We also held a tie-dye event on the campus with different dyes representing different scandals. I think this event greatly enhanced our guest turnout, and it was fun for all.

As the guests arrived they were handed a confidential envelope containing the information about the evening, their character they were to portray, and a sleuth's notebook and pen. After each course was served, a new set of suspects and clues were given. The event took place in an intimate location with low lighting and candles and Frank Sinatra playing in the background. Our ambience was very well created. By the end of the evening I was amazed at just how invested our guests were in finding out "Who dun it?"

We asked our guests at the end of the evening to write down who they thought committed the murder and why. The winner was awarded a gift card and several other prizes were awarded to people we thought really stood out. About 45 people showed up to our event. I was very pleased with the turnout.

If a survey isn't a measure of success, a sure sign of one is your guests coming out of their way to tell you how much fun they had. A week after our event, people I didn't know prior to the event were still telling me how much fun they had. Several people were even asking when the next one was. Our surveys hinted people were actually interested in finding out how they portrayed their character versus the actual television counterpart.

I am very pleased with my PR team. I think we did very well both in working together cohesively, and in our execution.