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Seth GodinSeth Godin, author of 18 business books, is keynote speaker at the IABC conference in Montreal June 3-6.
The most recent titles of Godin are The Icarus Deception: How High Will You Fly? and What to do When It's Your Turn and It's Always Your Turn. His books have been translated into 35 languages.
Theme of the conference is "The Communications Crossroads."
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"The communications profession is uniquely positioned at the crossroads of business, culture, functions and audience," said 2017-18 chair Sharon Hunter of Montreal.
--Attendees will learn how communications drives business performance and innovation.
--Explore the rise of transformative communication.
--Discover their role at the center of culure and ethics.
--Strengthen their knowledge and confidence as strategic advisers.
A link to registration is here.
IABC Fields Top Leadership
Previous chair Diane Chase said, “I am thrilled with the caliber of outstanding leaders selected for the 2017–2018 executive board slate. It has been gratifying to see the growth in the number of outstanding professionals from around the world interested in serving to move IABC forward as we launch into our new three-year strategic plan.
“The IABC board exemplifies communication leaders who want to make a positive impact for our members and our profession,” she added. “IABC is well positioned to make even greater strides as the global association for professional communicators with this team of accomplished individuals at the helm.”
Returning directors are Shannon Frederick, ABC; Zora Artis, GAICD; Michael Nord and Daniel Munslow, CPRP. Board members Sherry Kennedy and Jill Vitiello have been nominated to a consecutive term for ratification.
IBM’s Iwata Addressed 2017 Meeting
Jon Iwata, who retired as IBM chief communications officer at the end of 2017 after 34 years, keynoted the 2017 conference in Washington, D.C., that drew more than 1,000.
He urged attendees to embrace rather than fear the development and spread of artificial intelligence.
As an example of the “friendship” that can exist between humans and AI, he cited the robot RD2D that played a big role in the “Star Wars” film series.
He described “victories” of AI over humans including its defeat of a pair of “Jeopardy” winners several years ago. IBM’s “Watson” was also able to defeat chess champions.
Iwata told how IBM’s supercomputer was programmed to handle the questions on Jeopardy, showing a video of company scientists at work on the programming for the show.
He will continue as a consultant for the first part of 2018. Succeeding him is Ray Day of Ford.
PRSA Meets in Austin Oct. 7-9
Public Relations Society of America will hold its international conference in Austin Oct. 7-9. Speakers will include more than 150 industry experts from all career levels, sectors, work environments and industries, supplying three days of practical insights and networking.
There are six different tracks: Reputation Management, Special Interests, Integrated Marketing Communications, Leadership & Management, Tools & Techniques, and Big Data & Measurement. Groundbreaking approaches from Silver Anvil Award winning programs will be featured.
Sherrie Mazur will join the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation as managing director, of communications on Feb. 14. 
Independent Diplomat, the nonprofit that promotes democracy by organizing opposition movements and activists, has trained its sights on Venezuela.
Robert Tappan has joined the International BioMetrics + Identity Assoc., the trade group for the identity technology industry.
Tiffany Haverly, who was at Finsbury Glover Hering, has joined the Internet Association as director of communications.
BGR Government Affairs represents the American Chamber of Commerce in South China as economic and political tensions between the two countries escalate.
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