From Sharing Content to Creating Connections

Lise Michaud

In his blog post “IABC reaches a turning point” on Changing The Terms, Mike Klein attributes IABC’s recent performance to four factors, one of those being how IABC is now focused on delivering global value, benefitting not only members of IABC but also the entire profession.

One thing Mike mentions specifically is how IABC members are taking advantage of the connectivity that emerges when a group of connected members create their own initiatives, which other IABC members then accelerate. Says Mike:

“One potent example is IC Kollectif, an initiative of IABC members in Montreal to create a global internal communication resource connecting practitioners and thought leaders.”

Mike Klein is right in the sense that IC Kollectif would not exist as a global resource and benefit from the wonderful visibility it earned since it was launched without the initial support from IABC/Montréal. Our partnership has given the project a high profile and established credibility from the very start.

The initial goal of IC Kollectif is to create a space that brings together the numerous ‘sources’ dealing with IC around the world. We aim to become a must-visit resource for communication professionals eager to keep abreast of issues and the constant evolution of the practice from a strategic and holistic point of view. The appetite for this kind of resource is reflected in how we reached the symbolic 1,000 followers mark on Twitter in less than 100 days.

A spirit of collectivity

We soon realized after its launch that the IC “Kollectif” brand resonates with many communication practitioners and IC opinion leaders. We got the chance to meet with some of them recently while they were in Montreal: Chuck Gose in February, Priya Bates in March, Stephen Welch in April and Rocky Walls is next on our list in a few days.

The unexpected result – and pleasant surprise - of IC Kollectif is the spirit of collectivity that is emerging, and to which Klein makes reference. Many communication professionals - behind and in front of the scenes - are very supportive of the initiative. One of our followers wrote : “IC Kollectif is an immensely valuable resource and what it is doing has a huge amount of potential, not only on its own but as a model of ‪#createconnection innovation."

As IABCers, we are very proud of this. And as communication professionals, we take pride in building virtual professional relationships with communication practitioners around the world, whether they are IABC members or not. Our Top IC thought leaders list, created by IC Kollectif followers, is a tangible example of this. In this respect, IC Kollectif brings together resources and information and it puts forward the people who produce this relevant information, and hence, creates connections among communication practitioners and leaders.

And this, so far, is perhaps the greatest achievement of all for this new initiative.

This post was first published on LinkedIn Pulse.