Chances are you already know Pardis Nkoy. She has been in the DHC family for a year already—first as an intern we couldn’t let go, then as part time accounts support that we couldn’t let go, and now (lucky us!) she has joined our team full-time as an account coordinator. We are excited to introduce her to you!

DHC: Tell us about yourself, Pardis.

Pardis: I recently graduated from Gonzaga University with a major in Broadcast Studies and a double minor in Business Administration and Public Relations. I was a part of the dance team at Gonzaga for four and a half years and have been dancing since I was eight. I was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah, where my immediate family still lives. My favorite color is purple, and I love all performing arts.

DHC: What made you choose communications and public relations?

Pardis: I’ve always known that I’ve wanted to work in a collaborative environment with creative people, and I gravitated towards public relations after taking an intro class with Dr. Prindle at Gonzaga. I really like the combination of creative strategy, writing, and situational awareness that are frequently used in the public relations world. I’ve also always wanted to help people achieve their goals, and through public relations I am given the chance to help businesses and people thrive within their communities.  

DHC: What made you decide to intern and then work at DHC?

Pardis: I received an email from Gonzaga about the open intern position, and after visiting the DHC website and reading about their work and philosophy, I was very interested in their integrated communications model and the wide range of clients with whom they work. I wanted to be a part of the team because of the dedication there is here to helping the community and giving back. (Funny story: I actually applied for the same internship the summer before and didn’t get it ... I guess persistence pays off!) 

DHC: What has been your favorite project?

Pardis: The Healing Lodge of the Seven Nations. I think the work they are doing to help the youth in our community is amazing. They have a truly innovative model of care that has gained recognition from institutions like Harvard and the GRAMMYs. I am proud to represent them and help them in achieving their communications goals.

DHC: You know us well enough to know that as intense as we are about work, we are that intense about living life. What do you like to do when you leave the office?

Pardis: It depends on the day! I take a dance class once a week, and when it’s nice out I usually try to run or go on a walk. I am a movie fanatic, so I go to the movie theatre quite often. I follow three or four shows pretty closely, so I’m always excited to get home and watch the latest episodes. I spend a lot of time volunteering because I feel that if everyone gave some of his or her time to help others, we could make such great improvements to others’ lives and our communities. I have done a lot of work with April’s Angels and Rebuilding, and I hope to volunteer at the Women and Children’s Free Restaurant and Community Kitchen in the near future. Other than that, I spend a lot of time with friends, and lately I’ve been spending a lot of time getting settled after moving to a new apartment.

DHC: Now, we’re going to ask you some fun questions. Ready?

Pardis: Yes!

DHC: What was your nickname growing up (or your nickname now)?

Pardis: “Dis” (pronounced “DEECE”).

DHC: If you could have had the starring role in one film that’s already been made, which movie would you pick?

Pardis: Dreamgirls!

DHC: What article of clothing most closely describes your personality? Why?

Pardis: A zip-up hooded sweatshirt. There’s something about having my hood up that makes me feel comfortable and safe, and I tend to be the protector in my group of friends. And with a zip-up sweater you don’t have to worry about ruining your hair!

DHC: When you were in grade school, what did you want to be when you grew up (besides an employee of DHC, obviously)?

Pardis: (smiles) Famous.

DHC: What would you leave in your will for the person you care about most?

Pardis: My movie collection.

DHC: If you could be cereal box cartoon character for just 24 hours, what one would you be?

Pardis: Tony the Tiger! Because he’s gr-r-reat! (And super strong.)

Judy Heggem-Davis joined our ranks at the first of the year. We are excited for you to meet her (if you haven’t already), so we sat down and asked her a few questions.

DHC: Tell us about yourself, Judy.

Judy: I was born and raised here—even though, on occasion, it may sound like I’m from Minnesota. Most recently, I had my own design firm for three years working on museum exhibits, wine labels and marketing campaigns among other kinds of projects. I love to discover cool new fonts and love working with color. I enjoy creating in Photoshop and seeing things from different perspectives (sometimes I get carried away and into trouble for exploring too many perspectives).  

DHC: What drew you to graphic design and art direction?

Judy: At one point, I was considering landscape architecture. One project in the pre-architecture course was to draw structures in perspective, freehand. Everyone else was complaining and unhappy, while I felt suddenly free—sort of an obvious clue that I was in the wrong department!

DHC: What persuaded you to join our team?

Judy: I had been doing freelance work for DHC. They were great to work with, and the opportunity to be a part of developing a new service in the firm was exciting, as well as the chance to work with the wide variety of clients. The deal was sealed when they said “Yes” to Whippet Wednesday! So far it’s been all that and more.  

DHC: What has been your favorite project so far?

Judy: The Yard. It’s fun to find your work inspires enthusiasm both internally and in the real world. The client came up with a great name, and the look came together well. I think we could really make an impact for the region and change the image into something hopeful, hip and happening.

DHC: One of our favorite sayings is, “Work is important. Life is more important.” What keeps you busy when you’re not in the office?

Judy: Currently, a lot centers around the four-legged family member, Sunshine. She is a two-year-old whippet. We participate in agility, lure coursing, canine behavioral seminars, and coming up with new tricks. I also enjoy hiking, bicycling, dance, playing music—West African traditional rhythms, Afro-Cuban rhythms and sometimes piano. I also love to spend time on the Pend Oreille River and hunting for funky vintage stuff.  And I enjoy collaborating creatively (OK, maybe sometimes art directing) with my husband, who is a commercial photographer.

DHC: Now we’re going to ask you some artsy questions.

Judy: Ready.

DHC: What’s integral to the work of an artist?

Judy: That sounds like a math question! I guess curiosity is a good place to start. It inspires experiments, discovers new ideas, and is contagious!

DHC: What art do you most identify with?

Judy: Playful, colorful, impressionistic. I also am really drawn to “flat” mediums like wood block prints, seriography. And I like vintage advertising illustrations.

DHC: What’s your favorite art work?

Judy: Well that’s like picking your favorite chocolate! There is the one I regret that got away … we had a chance to buy a John Buck wood block rubbing of Phoenix Rising and didn’t get it. 

DHC: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?

Judy: Don’t noodle it to death.

DHC: Name one or two factors that enable your creativity to really flourish.

Judy: A walk in the park at lunch. Being exposed to lots of art forms and lots of other disciplines.

DHC: What is your primary area of fear as an artist/designer?

Judy: Settling for OK.

DHC: And last but not least: What is a Vector?

Judy: Vector graphics use mathematical formulas to define the outline graphic. Vector graphics can be infinitely scaled to any size without degrading the image quality and are considered "resolution-independent” which is why I love them so much! And if you ever hear, “Make the logo bigger,” it better be vector-based!

One of the common questions I get, from both prospective employees and clients (and my mother), is some version of, “what’s it like to work at an agency and how is it different?”

I find this a hard question to answer on many levels. Of course it’s busy, but lots of places are busy. Our corporate and government clients all work exceptionally hard. Yes, especially the government ones. Seriously.

Agencies have many clients. But if you’re working at a large corporation, chances are you have a bunch of masters to serve.

At an agency there are waves of work, often with insane deadlines attached, that need to be serviced without letting up on quality. But the people in the great companies I’ve worked with, especially at the top of the organization, don’t let too many details slip.

I recently read Brand Thinking¸ by Debbie Millman. If you don’t know of her, Millman runs the Professional Studies in Branding program at the School of Visual Arts in New York (where coincidentally and in a second reference to her, my mother ran the library). Millman is also the president of Sterling Brands, and hosts a podcast I love, Design Matters. 

Anyway, in the book there’s a fantastic interview with Wally Owins, one of the godfathers of brand strategy. And in the interview there’s a question about why he dissuades many young people that want to get into agency work.

I loved one part of Olin’s answer in particular because it elegantly describes my view about the biggest difference between corporate and agency. It’s a stream of thinking that I think I’ll co-opt. Here it is:

“…It is also a very cyclical business. It’s a hunting business—not a farming business. You can never ever stop. You can never relax. You can never say, ‘Okay, I got this, I am going to keep this, I am going to be doing this same work for ten years.’ It’s not like that. And that means it’s very tough. A lot of people like this, and a lot of people don’t.”

Hunting vs. farming. Never stop. Not for everyone.

Perfect.

Many of you saw the curse-ridden, horribly distasteful tirade that went viral yesterday allegedly penned by a Delta Gamma at the University of Maryland.

As a proud Delta Gamma (University of Washington) alumna, it made me mad. That’s not me and that’s not any of the sisters that I know. As a communications professional, it made me proud of our organization and the way the situation was handled.

Regardless of whether the letter is legitimate, that letter doesn’t represent the thousands of women that I’ve met over the years who are classy, intelligent “do-gooders” who would never talk to their sisters with that level of disrespect and disdain.

There’s no denying it. It is a PR nightmare. There are three things that many organizations would have done in this circumstance that Delta Gamma Executive Offices did not do and here’s why I’m glad they didn’t:

1. Deny: If an organization doesn’t know whether it or a representative of the organization is at fault, don’t deny it! Should the truth be revealed at a later date that you or a representative of your organization is at fault, then you’re dealing with a disingenuous reputation. I can think of more than a few examples of companies jumping straight to denial only to show up later with their hat in their hand begging for the public’s trust again. A certain oil company comes to mind.
2. Wait until all the facts are available: No telling how quickly damaging information can spread on the internet and to how many readers. It is very important to disseminate what you do know immediately through the channels that you have available. Bureaucratic layers can have lawyers, board members, and leadership moving at glacier speed to determine what’s approved. Face it—you may never have all the facts! Waiting does not help. In fact, oftentimes, it appears suspicious and as if the leadership is unaware, removed, or simply doesn’t care. Sometimes saying nothing in hopes of having all the answers first seems like a good idea but in a viral environment, the conversation is already occurring and the faster the organization gets involved, the more you can control the message.
3. Offer no response: This is by far the worst of the three scenarios. Put it out there. Deal with it. Engage with your stakeholders and inform them what you’re doing about it. Upon reading the post on Delta Gamma’s Facebook page, I knew action was being taken and that they were taking steps to repair our collective reputation.

In any organization, especially the larger ones, there’s always the possibility that one individual will misrepresent the group. When you’re talking about 170,000 collegian and alumnae members—you’re going to have a few bad apples.

You could liken it to a disgruntled employee dragging his or her employer or previous employer’s name through the mud. Regardless of whether or not it’s true, the public is all ears because it’s too dramatic and dysfunctional not to pay attention.

Take heart though, Delta Gamma—and others that are faced with this all-too-common scenario. The truth and the integrity of an organization almost always comes to light.

Sometimes a PR challenge can turn into an opportunity to educate the public about your brand. Delta Gamma does have a rich heritage based on principles of personal integrity, personal responsibility and intellectual honesty.  I’ve lived it and I appreciate the leadership of the organization (with which I fondly associate myself) dealing with it in a sophisticated, timely and honest manner.

Head into any art director’s office or graphic design department, and you’ll find dog-eared copies of Communications Arts and bookmarked web browers of sites that offer some kind of inspiration or different perspectives and thinking. Judy, Christine and I spent an hour or so flipping through different ideas while creating the invitation for Christine Varela’s partner announcement a couple of months ago. The process was helpful to our thinking and we came up with something unique that our clients and friends loved.

Finding inspiration (among other things) is why I subscribe to the New York Times. It’s why I’m a member of the Museum of Arts and Culture . And it’s why I look forward to hearing new ideas when I travel to IPREX  meetings.

There are great campaigns and designs centered around extending an idea or a visual look--but in new ways. We just finished a series of testimonial-based campaigns for one of our clients (more to come on this soon). While the idea of a testimonial-driven campaign isn't new, it's a departure for our client and ties to a series of themes that are genuine, that tell unique stories and are key to their market position. As an aside, this followed a conceptual campaign that was entirely different from anything I’ve seen.

Anyway, plagiarism is as old as cave paintings, but recently I’ve noticed some pointed examples of big agencies or companies with healthy budgets sorely lacking in the new ideas department. Here are a few that stand out.

1.       Dunn&Co “get inspired” by Adam and Company. You can read more about this on their website (also where I grabbed these images), but that line between inspiration and plagiarism? Yeah, you passed it about 10 miles ago.

2.       Ogilvy and UPS co-opt the work of artist Ryan Johnson. What’s really sad, in my opinion, is it would have been way cooler for UPS to strike a deal with Mr. Johnson to create installations in a bunch of cities. I originally saw this here. 

 UPS ad on the left, original artwork on the right.

3.       Urban Outfitters hearts Etsy. This one is Grade-A idea stealing. And again, in my opinion UO had the opportunity to bring some great attention to how it supports burgeoning artists/crafters, had it chosen to strike up an agreement with this Etsy shop (think Target and Michael Graves).  Original article and images via Huffington Post.

Our newest team member, Todd Zeidler, joined DHC in February. We couldn’t be happier to have him on the team, and we wanted to share our enthusiasm with you. Everyone, meet Todd!

DHC: Quick, tell us everything we need to know about Todd Zeidler.

Todd: I’m a well-oiled sports statistics machine with a beautiful fiancé, an overly protective beagle and a work-in-progress golf swing. I’m from Plentywood, Montana. I went to undergrad at Bemidji State University where I studied mass communications, and I completed my Master’s in sport management at Wichita State University.

DHC: What drew you to communications and public relations?

Todd: I knew I wanted to help people and businesses achieve their goals.

DHC: What turned you on to DHC?

Todd: Its reputation. It seemed like everyone I talked to in town just had a great opinion of the firm. Anyone who had ever worked with DHC was very happy with the work they’d done.

DHC: What has been your favorite project so far?

Todd: Apple Health for Kids. It’s got legs going every direction. It encompasses the whole communications spectrum including PR, marketing, media relations, and advertising.

DHC: Our founder, Jim, has a saying we live by: “Work is important. Life is more important.” What keeps you busy when you’re not in the office?

Todd: Right now, planning for tying the knot in July. I do manage to hunt, fish and sneak in a few rounds of golf, too.

DHC: Now we’re going to ask you some random questions. Just rattle off answers. Don’t think. Go!

Todd: OK.

DHC: What cheers you up?

Todd: My beagle being crazy-happy every time I get home.

DHC: Is there something you constantly lose at your house or anywhere?

Todd: Keys. Where I grew up, we just left them in the car and never worried about it.

DHC: What was the best birthday present you ever got?

Todd: World Series tickets.

DHC: Which do you use more often, the dictionary or the thesaurus?

Todd: Thesaurus.

DHC: Have you ever tipped a cow?

Todd: Not possible … I’ve seen people try but never succeed.

DHC: If you could spend the day with any celebrity, who would it be?

Todd: Caddying for any golfer in the final round of the Masters.

DHC: What is your favorite thing to spend money on?

Todd: Food.

DHC: What is the strangest thing you have ever eaten?

Todd: Rattlesnake, tasted like chicken.

DHC: What was your first thought when you woke up this morning?

Todd: Glad my fiancé has the day off so I don’t have to walk to the dog!

We’ve been pushing—and pushing hard—for the past couple of weeks and wanted the chance to unwind. Generally by the time Friday rolls around, people are ready to scoot at the end of the day, get home, hit the gym, or meet friends.
 
But Friday was a pleasant reminder about the importance of a bit of social time with the team. It was a chance to hear about what’s planned for the weekend. A chance to compare war stories from the week. And a chance to celebrate that we’re working on some insanely cool projects.
 
Cher and Jim, fresh off the plane from vacation, made the time to join us. So did the newest crewmember, Todd, who hasn’t even officially started yet. Sara J and Sara D came a few minutes behind everyone else, joining from a late conference call and parenting duties, respectively. Pardis shared a funny story or two about her parents who immigrated to the U.S. from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Iran. And Jessica talked about having fun volunteering on weekends for Interplayers, a local theater group.
 
So what’s the point, beyond the obvious that time at a bar can be fun regardless of whether you’re drinking?
 
I guess what I took from the evening is the reminder that it’s important to slow down. We all have stress-inducing inboxes, daunting schedules and craziness to manage. But after popping back to the office to grab my keys, I headed towards the weekend feeling more relaxed and energized after a long week than I had in ages.
 
This was due to a great group of people and a healthy dose of camaraderie.
 
So, thanks everyone.

Our newest team member, Jessica Wade, has been part of the DHC family for over two months now—high time for you to meet her if you haven’t already!

DHC: Let’s start with a curveball—how would you rate your first few months at DHC on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being “love” and 5 being “greatest experience of all time”?

Jessica: Let’s just say I know this place well enough to know DHC would never build a leading question into an interview.

DHC: Flying colors on display already! So tell folks about yourself, Jessica.

Jessica:  I’m a transplant from Montana. I moved to Spokane four years ago. I’ve worked in a variety of fields, most recently in the position of client services at a financial firm. I am an English nerd and taught college composition for two semesters at my alma mater Montana State University-Billings. Last summer I had the opportunity to be managing editor at Spokane Metro. I was hired as an Account Coordinator at DHC in October 2012.

DHC: What drew you to DHC?

Jessica: Well it’s not exactly a secret that DHC does excellent work with a variety of great clients. The work we do here makes a difference in the lives of individuals and our community. Plus, this firm has a team-based approach that is nurturing and collaborative. You really get the sense here that the maxim “two minds are better than one” is a deeply held value.

DHC: Where does the passion for marketing and communications stem from?

Jessica: I love building relationships. And I enjoy managing projects. This role allows me to balance my creative side with my (sometimes overly) organized side. But mostly, I love anything to do with writing and communication. There are few things more satisfying than 1) figuring out what needs to be communicated and 2) communicating it—that feeling when you’ve said exactly what you meant to say. I love that.

DHC: What’s been your favorite project so far?

Jessica: We actually just finished writing the annual publication for the Downtown Spokane Partnership. I interviewed individuals from a range of organizations and partnerships around town, and I loved hearing about all the projects and improvements being implemented. It was eye-opening, and I’ve lived and worked downtown for years. I didn’t think it was possible, but the project made me even more excited about Spokane than I was before.

DHC: We’re sure you know by now one of our favorite Jim-isms: “Work is important. Life is more important.” What keeps you busy when you’re not in the office helping clients?

Jessica: I just love writing in general—even in my spare time. I love to paint (watercolors: expressionist, colorful, animal subject matter). I like to take long walks along the river. I like to go to plays at Interplayers. I love good conversation and spending time with friends. I have a great community of people in Spokane that keep my life rich and vibrant. Oh, and I love movies. I even completed the AFI Top 100 list a couple years ago. So I pretty much rock at movie trivia.

DHC: Yep, you and Tyler would make for an unstoppable Scene-It team. So how about a few famous last questions courtesy Monty Python and the Holy Grail?

Jessica: (laughs) Ready!

DHC: What is your name?

Jessica: Jessica Wade of Reed Point.

DHC: What is your quest?

Jessica: To live an awesome life.

DHC: What is the capital of Assyria?

Jessica: What do you mean? The capital under Sargon II or Sennacherib?

DHC: Huh? I … I don’t know that … AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!!!

The City of Spokane is working to improve its communication with city residents. This should be applauded, not criticized. One of the most important functions any government has is to provide information. The way people consume information is constantly changing.  Cities, just like all organizations, need to keep up with this.

The City issued an RFQ for this project publicly and hired our firm through an open competitive process. This is how cities hire all types of consultants, ranging from attorneys to engineers. And they should. Hiring a consultant for a specific project is a cost-effective and timely way to access specific expertise without creating full time staff positions that aren’t needed. It’s also a way to get objective feedback from outside experts. It’s difficult to ask any department to review itself.

So why the criticism? Certainly it’s a sexy angle during budget discussions. But we think the real story is about leadership. We applaud the Mayor’s effort to examine the city’s performance in a number of areas and ask the question, can it be done better? This administration is not afraid to make changes. This is true leadership and the benefits to citizens will far outlast one mayor.

Just as all types of businesses have come through the recession by figuring out how to increase productivity and results on tight budgets, we should expect our governments to do this as well. We’re pleased that that is exactly what is happening at the City of Spokane.

It’s true that social media has changed how organizations handle crisis communications.  Instead of just seeking information from credible, reliable sources, there is more of a “crowd informs the crowd” method of learning and information sharing.  On Monday alone, there were over 4 million tweets, most of which came from east coast residents, not necessarily from subject matter experts.

Still, companies have an opportunity to use twitter to improve communication with the public. What it really comes down to is being prepared.

First, creating a crisis communications plan before a crisis event is certainly ideal.  This plan should include a number of communications strategies across many mediums, but should without doubt include social media. And why is that?  Because social media is the fastest way to spread any message in today’s world. With nearly 8 million east coast residents without power, ConEd and BG&E need to get information to their customers – and fast.

Looking at ConEd and BG&E, both utilities spent time considering possible crises. They each developed a core set of key messages that were consistently communicated via twitter.  Looking at a snippet of their twitter feeds you can see this consistency within their tweets.

Now what if there isn’t time to plan ahead – what if something happens more instantaneously?  If a situation occurs and no prior planning has happened, keep in mind these 3 tips:

1. Be aware. To understand the real concerns of your customers during a crisis situation, you need to be in-tune to the conversations taking place on Twitter. Try setting up a desktop monitoring solution such as TweetDeck to streamline the monitoring process by allowing you to monitor multiple channels of conversation.   
2. Listen and respond. Being aware is a great first step, but alone does not provide information to your customers.  It’s important to have someone reading and responding to tweets on a constant basis during a crisis.  Your customers want to feel like they’re heard, like they matter, and like someone hears them and will do something.  You never want to make a customer feel dismissed.  Both ConEd and BG&E should be commended for their efforts in monitoring conversations and responding to a large volume of tweets throughout Hurricane Sandy.
3. Be transparent. When crafting updates to your customers, be sure to be transparent and realistic. It would do ConEd and BG&E no good to promise customers restored power to their homes within an hour, when it’s clear that debris blocking the roadways will not allow that to happen.  People want a real, straight answer, and will appreciate it.

Be sure to follow these tips during a crisis to keep your organization from being the next big #FAIL.