An important theme that has been prevalent throughout CoSIDA this year has been the importance of the communications professional “having a seat at the table” in the world of intercollegiate athletics.
That theme was best demonstrated by the convention's keynote speaker Kevin Sullivan, former White House Director of Communications, this past June in San Antonio.
Perhaps the most significant stride our organization has made this year towards that end is teaming with the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics to, as the press release announcing the partnership states, allow "members to interact at one common site and discuss issues and share ideas that may not have previously been discussed by both sides on a national level."
At the time, then-CoSIDA President Nick Joos said “This partnership will afford all CoSIDA members tremendous professional development opportunities while at the same time enhancing CoSIDA’s visibility and brand within the intercollegiate athletics community."
I completely agree and think that all CoSIDA members should applaud and take advantage of this partnership. I will discuss how I think CoSIDA members can and should expand their networks and skill sets through this partnership in a later post.
But, I think there are two main "tables" that athletics communications professionals need a seat at in order to best benefit our organizations and our own professional development.
Certainly the emphasis on public relations as a management function within athletics departments is of extreme importance. However, we also need to have a seat, a voice and influence within the main organization of all communications professionals - the Public Relations Society of America.
Very few SIDs are members of PRSA - a self-defined "community of more than 21,000 public relations and communications professionals across the United States, from recent college graduates to the leaders of the world’s largest multinational firms." But, SIDs themselves are adhering to the principles of PRSA on a daily basis. In fact, most of the principles in the new CoSIDA Strategic Plan, developed by Executive Director John Humenik and others, have been based on PRSA's own principles.
How do we as SIDs shed the misinformed image that we are just stat guys, just sports fans or just press-release writers? I think joining and participating in the activities of PRSA would go a long way in achieving this goal. What I'm saying is, let's not just focus on ourselves as communicators in the athletics world, but as strategic communicators in general.
Not only can you join the national PRSA organization, but also (and maybe more important), I encourage SIDs to get involved with their local PRSA chapters for regular meetings, opportunities to network, professional development and the ability to participate in the APR process.
Perhaps there is no greater professional development accomplishment for a communications professional than the Accredited in Public Relations credential. According to the description on PRSA.org, "Accredited professionals contribute to greater understanding of public relations as a vital management function, and undermine those who would refer to our craft as spin, our professionals as flacks, and our currency as misrepresentation and disinformation." Isn't that what we want as SIDs, too?
I would also argue that CoSIDA should develop a process for accreditation of SIDs. We have Registered Nurses, certified court reporters, certified computer programmers, but no distinction for SIDs that we are trained and have the skill set to excel in our craft.
That is another post for another day.
For now, I strongly suggest that sports communicators involve themselves in their local PRSA chapter, join the PRSA national organization, participate in the free on-demand Webinars and, if you have the experience and are willing to put in the time, invest in APR certification. There is a lot of carry-over from corporate/agency PR to collegiate athletics and I think, if we all work together, the experience can be mutually beneficial.
From the perspective of a SID department head, I would encourage your employees to participate in PRSA. The sharper the skill set and the better "globally" informed your employees are, the more they will be able to bring to your organization, which in turn will benefit as a whole.
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