Barbara Rocha Williams’ Post

Welcoming new members into the Strategic Communicators Collective has been so rewarding! While I am keeping the Collective small, we do still have membership spots available. When you join, you’ll get immediate access to the platform so you can start engaging with our founding members before the big launch on September 17. Here are a few highlights of what you can expect: 🧡 Brain Trust Advisory: Dive deep and “workshop” your unique challenges with mid-to-senior-level pros like you. 🧡 Vocal Empowerment: Engage in role-play and improv sessions so you’re more empowered to move people to take action on your ideas. 🧡 Strategic Communications Planning Training: Sharpen your communications planning skills so you can be the trusted advisor leaders always need. 🧡 Curated Monthly Topics: Stay ahead of industry trends and innovations through thoughtful discussions. The founding members in the Strategic Communicators Collective have experienced the incredible value of connecting with one another. I want this for you, too! Don’t miss out on your chance to be a part of an experience that will elevate your career forever. Drop a 🧡 in the comments and I’ll DM you with more details!

Welcoming new members into the Strategic Communicators Collective has been so rewarding! While I am keeping the Collective small, we do still have membership spots available. When you join, you’ll get immediate access to the platform so you can start engaging with our founding members before the big launch on September 17. Here are a few highlights of what you can expect: 🧡 Brain Trust Advisory: Dive deep and “workshop” your unique challenges with mid-to-senior-level pros like you. 🧡 Vocal Empowerment: Engage in role-play and improv sessions so you’re more empowered to move people to take action on your ideas. 🧡 Strategic Communications Planning Training: Sharpen your communications planning skills so you can be the trusted advisor leaders always need. 🧡 Curated Monthly Topics: Stay ahead of industry trends and innovations through thoughtful discussions. The founding members in the Strategic Communicators Collective have experienced the incredible value of connecting with one another. I want this for you, too! Don’t miss out on your chance to be a part of an experience that will elevate your career forever. Drop a 🧡 in the comments and I’ll DM you with more details!

The Art of Executive Storytelling | Part 3/3 In this final installment of our executive communications series, let's talk about the most overlooked aspect: strategic preparation. After years of coaching C-suite executives, I've learned that the difference between good and great communications often comes down to what happens before anyone steps up to the microphone. Here's my tried-and-tested framework: 1. Know Your Audience Not just who they are - but what keeps them up at night. Speak to their concerns, not just your agenda. I always tell executives: "If you're not solving their problem, you're just adding to their to-do list." 2. Anticipate Questions The best executives aren't just ready for tough questions - they welcome them as opportunities to deepen understanding. One technique I use: create a "heat map" of potential questions, ranking them by likelihood and impact. 3. Practice, But Don't Over-Rehearse Find the sweet spot between preparation and spontaneity. You want to sound prepared, not programmed. My rule of thumb? When you can explain your key messages to a friend over coffee, you're ready. The goal isn't perfection - it's authentic connection. The most impactful executive communications happen when thorough preparation meets genuine presence. What's your experience with executive communications preparation? What strategies have you found most effective? #ExecutiveCommunications #Leadership #CorporateCommunications #PR #ExecutivePresence #PublicSpeaking

If you’re a Public Relations or Communications Manager, I highly recommend giving Principles a read! Ray Dalio’s insights are incredibly valuable, especially for those of us working in strategic communication roles. Here are three reasons why I think this book is a great fit for our field: 📚Radical Transparency: Dalio emphasizes creating a culture of openness and honesty. In PR, transparency is key to building trust with both internal teams and external stakeholders. It’s a reminder to communicate clearly and authentically, which is at the heart of what we do. 📚Learning from Mistakes: One of my favorite takeaways from the book is Dalio’s idea that “pain plus reflection equals progress.” In fast-paced industries like ours, mistakes happen. But it’s how we learn from them and improve that matters. This mindset is crucial for continuous growth in managing campaigns and strategies. 📚Principled Decision-Making: Dalio encourages having well-defined principles to guide decisions—something essential when dealing with high-pressure situations, like crisis management. It helps ensure that our actions stay consistent and aligned with the company’s values. ✨ Pain + Reflection = Progress This quote really resonates with me, as I believe every challenge we face is an opportunity to learn and improve. If you’re in communications, this book will give you a framework for thinking clearly, acting decisively, and staying true to your values. I’d love to hear how others in PR or Communications are applying these concepts in their work—share your thoughts! #BookRecommendation #PublicRelations #Communications #CareerGrowth #ContinuousImprovement #Leadership #LearningMindset

CEO communications are essential for a successful business, but many CEOs make costly blunders when it comes to their communication strategies. According to Forbes, avoiding these gaffes is possible with the advice of three pro tips: be authentic and credible, speak in the language of stakeholders, and invest time in preparation. Learn how you can avoid CEO communications gaffes below. #CEO #Careers  

The CEOs serve as an organizational catalyst. As the organization’s face and often its primary voice, these CEOs develop a proprietary narrative as well as a strong communications strategy

Finally reached my own set goal! 💥 Like any other human being, it also takes me a while to start 😑 We plan, prepare to kick off and then we just don't... 😣 Either afraid it won't be successful or it's not what we need, or simply not understanding what to grasp on first. 🚼 That's why we need to break it down to smaller steps! This will help us tick the boxes easier and faster, a true satisfaction for the brain! 🧠 🤷♀️ We can't know what we truly need, until we try it. And it's absolutely ok to understand it half way. 💪 As for failing, keep in mind - there is no failure, only success or experience! In this communications course, I was so excited to see, that from all 16 MBTI personalities, mine is the perfect match for comms 😇 Never doubt yourself! Now that I've started, I am unstoppable 🌪 #communication #internalcommunications

Those who know me and have worked with me know my passion for external communications runs deep. It's been my professional calling, whether B2C or B2B, for more than 20 years. That's why I'm so proud to have led the public relations efforts the last 4 years for a SaaS company whose founders are driven by their passion for modernizing workplace communications. Congratulations to Staffbase's Cofounder and Chief Strategy Officer Frank Wolf on the release of his new book, 'The Narrative Age'. Written for business leaders and professional communicators alike, Frank demystifies in his book how to harness the power of narratives to align and engage an organization. This new book also provides insights into how to think about the role of communications in shaping organizational vision and direction, and offers a roadmap to navigate the complexities of modern communication and stakeholder engagement with confidence and clarity. #internalcomms #narratives

Executive comms should focus on the most important piece of information first The most important piece of information that most stakeholders want to know before anything else is: "should I pay attention to this?" If I'm communicating with a leader, then it's because I believe that they should pay attention. So, often presentations start with "why this matters?" and try to make the value extremely clear. However, often this can overstate how much attention the leader should pay to the area. I think a stronger choice is to reframe "does this matter?" to "how much does this matter to <the leader>?". E.g., "this is a quick check-in since we're largely on track and need a steer on X" is different energy from "X is a major one-way door and if we get it wrong we may waste years going down the wrong path." Being thoughtful like this builds credibility and ensures that you're taken seriously when you (sparingly) say "X is on fire and I need you to pay attention."

"Do you want fries with that press release?" That's the question on my slide in this photo from last month's PRSA NE Conference, and judging by the reactions in the room, it struck a chord. At some point in their career, almost every communicator on this planet has probably been treated like a communications short-order cook. Quick-turn a blog post. Gin up an Op-Ed. Get some press coverage, stat. And, let's be honest.... it's easy to say yes. But here's the deal. By saying "Yes", and just churning out a press release with a side of fries, Communicators are doing a disservice to their clients/the organizations they support. Step 1 (and 2-17, if we're being honest), is to understand the business strategy – and the broader business dynamics -- driving the request. Because the key to success as a Strategic Communicator isn't being a rockstar Comms tactician (those are table stakes). The key is Business acumen – being a brilliant Business leader who is also amazing at Communications. Thank you to PRSA Northeast District for the opportunity to share this message at the PRSA NE Conference, and to all the amazing communicators who engaged in such a great discussion about moving from tactical execution to strategic partnership.