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The ABC List for February 2008
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onu-@iabc.com
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Feb 29, 2008 13:54 PST
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The ABC List for February 2008
Welcome to the newest monthly edition of the ABC List. The ABC List
serves 714 professional communicators.
This newsletter is a forum for accredited communicators, but more
importantly, those communicators interested in learning more about
becoming accredited, the value of accreditation and the process to
attain accreditation. If you have a question, a topic for discussion or
something you’d like to see in the ABC List, e-mail onu-@iabc.com.
If your chapter is holding a workshop, fun shop, exam prep session, exam
date, pinning ceremony or the like, let me know and I’ll publicize your
event here in the ABC List.
IABC Accreditation: The Global Standard. A Personal Statement.
In this issue:
*** Congratulations to the New ABCs in February
*** Upcoming Portfolio Teleseminar: “Developing your Accreditation
Portfolio”
*** Value of Accreditation Revealed In Latest Global Study
*** ABC Article: Michael Sponhour, ABC
*** Congratulations to the New ABCs in February
- Angelique Rewers, ABC, from IABC Washington
- Eileen Tuttle, ABC, from IABC Columbus
- Jeff Hobbs, ABC, from IABC Los Angeles
- Tracey Wood, ABC, from IABC Washington
- Mary McMinn, ABC, from IABC Dallas
*** Upcoming Portfolio Teleseminar: “Developing your Accreditation
Portfolio”
Join Nick Durutta, ABC, on 20 March 2008 for an informational session on
“Developing your Accreditation Portfolio.” This telesimar will provide a
short overview of the accreditation process and will include an in-depth
review of what makes a good portfolio, followed by a Q & A portion.
Details:
When: Thursday, 20 March 2008.
Time: 8 a.m. – 9 p.m. (PDT) or 4 p.m. – 5 p.m. (PDT)
(You may select the 8 a.m. or 4 p.m. session when you register.)
Fees:
Members: $55.00
Non-members: $85.00
To register, please visit:
http://guest.cvent.com/EVENTS/Info/Summary.aspx?e=eb3aa4d3-d0ac-44d2-a638-548bb96be7db
*** Value of Accreditation Revealed In Latest Global Study
What do supervisors and clients say is the difference between accredited
individuals and those who are not accredited? What do accredited
members say are the top three benefits from accreditation? Could
accreditation help jump-start your career?
The findings from the Value of Accreditation global survey of ABCs and
their employers/clients were released:
http://news.iabc.com/index.php?s=press_releases&item=136 on 27 February
and provide insight into what the value of accreditation is to
individuals, employers/clients and the profession. One key finding was
that accredited business communicators (ABCs) clearly recognize the
value of strategic communication practices to organizations and to the
enhancement of the communication profession. Study findings also
indicate the high value accredited members, their supervisors and
clients place on IABC’s credential program.
Preliminary findings on the value of accreditation to communication
practitioners are the subject of an upcoming article in Communication
World and Cafe2Go blog. To find out more now about the findings, read
the Executive Summary: http://www.iabc.com/abc/value.htm. Pass it along
to friends and colleagues.
*** ABC Article: Michael Sponhour, ABC
I already knew that IABC was a great organization. The process of
earning my ABC gave me new insight into the wonderful folks that make
IABC the premiere professional association for communicators.
Like most people, I spent a lot of time contemplating the idea of
pursuing accreditation. Nobody wants to embark upon a major undertaking
without knowing exactly what is involved and that it will be worth the
time investment.
Several factors led me to take the plunge. As a former newspaper
reporter with an undergraduate degree in print journalism, I was
interested in formal study of several areas that had not been part of my
prior training, such as investor relations. And as a communicator with a
government agency, the idea of being accredited as a “business
communicator” held special appeal because it would demonstrate that I
was knowledgeable in areas beyond the public sector.
Still, starting down this road was not without some concerns. Could I
find two suitable projects for my portfolio, especially as a government
communicator who often handles projects that do not naturally fit the
tightly-focused campaigns that are often produced by corporate
communications departments? Would I have time to study while serving as
my chapter's president, working full time and raising two young
children?
The answer turned out to be yes. The key was building a network of
advisors and consistent, steady study over time.
I labored for months to craft my portfolio entries. For a while, I let
them sit as other things in life intervened. Both of my submissions were
based upon previous entries from our local IABC communications
competition. Reworking and expanding them into the portfolio format was
a real challenge – I had to go back and consider them in great detail.
This was the toughest part of the process.
The projects were akin to preparing substantial college term papers and
I turned them in with a sense of relief and a bit of exhaustion. As it
turned out, the readers wanted to know a little more information about a
couple of aspects of the portfolio. Submitting additional answers to
questions via email satisfied this requirement. I was ready for the
exam.
I started by reading every chapter of The IABC Handbook of
Organizational Communication and then several dozen articles about areas
where I had less background. But the only way to really gauge your
readiness for the test is to take the detailed practice exam on the ABC
website. The practice test gives you a real feel for the form and style
of the test – especially if you sit down and complete it under the
actual time constraints.
For me, the biggest challenge in answering the questions is to
articulate the things that you know so well you leave them unstated or
assumed. The ABC exam forces you to explicitly outline the actions you
would take in a given situation and the reasons for them – things we
often don't consider directly when responding in real time.
Looking back, it is clear that going it alone on an exam like this would
not really have worked. A big challenge for me was that there were no
ABC members in our chapter, so there was no local mentor to give me
real-world advice. But IABC made it easy to deal with this problem.
Carter Langston, ABC, of the nearby Charlotte chapter is a regional
ambassador for the accreditation program and graciously helped me
through the process. He read my draft portfolio submissions and gave me
pointers that I could have never figured out on my own. I truly
appreciate his assistance.
One of the best things I did was participate in a series of conference
calls sponsored by IABC Chicago. Their team of ABC pros gave me
outstanding insight into the realities of the exam, how it is scored,
and excellent points about how to prepare. It was truly wonderful of
them to let someone from hundreds of miles away participate in their
process. I took detailed notes from each session and really poured over
those tips during the final preparation for the written test.
I found the test to be perhaps the fairest exam I have ever taken – no
trick questions or curveballs. Some exams you encounter are designed to
"weed out" students or produce a bell-curve of grades. Not the ABC exam.
It comes straight at you with direct questions that call for
straightforward answers. The standards are high, but fair and
consistent. Within minutes of reading through the exam packet, I felt
calm and confident that the test was what everyone told me it would be.
My test proctor Susie McMichael, ABC, was a friendly and helpful guide.
The oral exam? No need to get short of breath. Think of it as a
conversation with friendly peers about a communications situation. I
enjoyed it. I suspect that too many people worry about this part of the
process.
I took the exam at the Southern Regional Conference in Tampa last
October. The four hours flew by and I was ready to put the whole process
out of mind after that – figuring it would be a long time before I knew
the results. So it was with surprise and delight that I received an
email before Christmas letting me know that I had passed.
While the sense of accomplishment is real, I have found that the skills
learned during my study for the exam have had a strong impact on my
daily work. My communications projects are more grounded in research and
focused on tangible, measurable outcomes than ever before. No, we don't
have a big research budget, but there are many ways to measure and
benchmark your initiatives even if you are a "one man band" like me.
So what is the bottom line for people sitting on the fence thinking
about pursuing accreditation? Jump on over and go for it!
*** About the ABC List:
This list is a forum for accredited communicators, but more importantly
those professional communicators who seek to be accredited and wish to
learn more about the process and the value of accreditation.
I invite candidates, prospective candidates and ABCs to send questions,
comments and observations to onu-@iabc.com.
You can read the back issues on the Web.
Visit http://www.topica.com/lists/ABCList/read. If you are new to this
list, I encourage you to do so.
*** Do you know someone who would be interested in the ABC List? Pass it
on.
To subscribe, send a blank e-mail to ABCList-s-@topica.com.
*** You can change your address by sending a blank e-mail from your old
address to ABCLis-@topica.com. Then send a blank e-mail from your
new address to ABCLi-@topica.com.
*** Professional communicators are invited to subscribe to the
award-winning free Job of the Week e-mail networking newsletter. Send a
blank e-mail to JOTW-su-@topica.com. There are more than 10,000
professional communicators in the JOTW network.
The ABC List was created by Ned Lundquist, ABC. It is currently edited
and published by:
Olivia Nucum
International Association of Business Communicators (IABC)
One Hallidie Plaza Suite 600
San Francisco, CA 94102
USA
t + 1.415.544.4721
f + 1.415.544.4747
onu-@iabc.com
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