BRAND: Building Meaningful Partnerships

Ben and Melody have years of experience supporting Indigenous and non-Indigenous organizations in their relationship building work. In this session, you’ll hear about experiences of two professional communicators on the road – one Indigenous and one settler. This session takes the all familiar word of “BRAND” and reframes it as an acronym for the five considerations for organizations when engaging with Indigenous communities. This session aims to inspire conversation about approaches to responding to the TRC calls to action in respect to building respectful, nation-to-nation relationships.

Truth & Reconciliation: why and now what?

The Truth & Reconciliation Commission Report was released in a hotel conference room in Downtown Ottawa in 2015. Ben was lucky enough to be in the room at that time – but he had no idea how the release of this report would create cultural shifts in Canada for years to come. “TRC: Why and now what?” will explore the legacy of the Treaties, Indian Act, Residential Schools, the 60s scoop, and impact of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report. This session will also look at who Indigenous people are today and the realities faced by Indigenous communities as a result of historical harms. Finally, participants will be invited to consider what the implications are for inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility in their personal lives and the workplace.

‘Above the Fold’ Media Training

Lights, camera, action! This half-day media training session will inform and equip you with the knowledge, best practices, and tools you’ll need to present your company’s best self and tell your best stories in the media — and prepare you to appear credible and confident during any media interview. We’ll start with unpacking the culture of the news media in the current climate, their needs, and expectations and then hone in on four factors that will help you build credible messages and establish trust with your audiences, along with a handful of interview techniques to highlight the story you want to convey. We’ll end the session with in-depth on-camera time, where you can practise interview techniques, such as bridging and flagging, and will receive real-time feedback on key message delivery, technique, verbal communication, and body language, tone, and eye contact.

EA: Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility informed Communication

The IDEA-Informed communicator looks at the theories, concepts, and practices that support infusing inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility into workplace communications. We’ll facilitate open discussions around bias with a particular focus on the head, heart, and hand: gaining insights, understanding the truth, and moving toward action! We’ll conclude the training on developing actionable items for your team to carry forward that will help to incorporate IDEA into your day-to-day.

Imagination Days – Team Building & Strategic Planning

Put down the day-to-day work and put on your thinking caps! Our Imagination Days are designed to facilitate team building and discussion around where to take your organization for the next one to three years. We’ll tailor this session to your specific organization’s strategic / business planning processes. We’ll use what you’re familiar with – or perhaps we can help you build a balanced scorecard.

After the day is concluded, you’ll leave with a SWOT analysis, fresh insights, new initiatives, and a stronger team. We can tag on additional support to build out your strategic plan if needed!