By Natasha Qereshniku, IABC/Calgary President
This year, I have the pleasure of leading IABC/Calgary, a vibrant chapter with passionate volunteers and members all facing the same challenge – a slowly recovering economy. For many, the price of a membership is a lot and the value of that membership must be tangible and substantial if they are going to prioritize that purchase.
Which is why my focus, and the chapter’s focus for this year, is on ensuring IABC/Calgary continues to deliver great resources and tools to help communicators and future communicators, be successful. And if we have lots of fun doing so, all the better!
For me, joining IABC was a turning point in who I was as a communicator, and as a leader. As my IABC recruiter/friend once told me, “IABC is what you put into it,” and she was right. That was the value my membership gave me – an organization with the bandwidth to allow me to grow as much as I wanted, even if my current situation couldn’t enable that.
This year, I’m looking forward to hopefully providing that same opportunity to others. It’s important now more than ever, to support each other, our profession and this resilient community of extraordinary communicators we have here in Calgary.
So, you may now ask, what exactly can you get for an IABC membership?
- Connections internationally and globally via professional development events, regional and world conferences and access to “The Hub,” an online playground connecting communicators from around the world.
- Resources to further yourself and the profession including access to job postings, IABC Awards including Gold Quill, a certification program, free webinars, and the IABC Academy.
- An online network active on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and Instagram. And that’s just the Calgary chapter!
- An opportunity to give back through volunteering while networking and connecting.
- Fun, fun and more fun! Whether at an event or conference, on social, or day-to-day, you can always count on your fellow IABCers to celebrate each other and the work we do as communicators.
I hope to see you at one of our events, or if you prefer, I encourage you to reach out. I always love a coffee and a good chat. #weleadiabc