We always start with listening. We explore your leadership team’s organizational goals, the opportunities they see and the challenges holding them back. We help identify and prioritize stakeholders—those who can impact your organization—and craft key messages that can move them to support your initiatives. We believe companies must be authentic and value driven to achieve long-term goals. Spin does not get you very far in the modern connected world.
our story
PublicAffair is the business world manifestation of Michael Davis’ passion for public dialogue, whether through politics, consultation, media or confrontation. Starting with Reputations in 2000, Michael developed an appreciation for authentic, compelling, cohesive communications. A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to participate in a transformational government drew Michael to Ottawa, and PublicAffair marks his return to consulting.
At PublicAffair, we are passionate about the conversations that take place in the public realm, where government, corporations, NGOs and the public meet. These are the conversations that shape our cities, our province, our country, our corporations. They are critical to your success and you need to get them right. There are few second chances in a public affair. We can facilitate your planning, develop your strategic communications strategy, engage critical government officials and stakeholders, implement your media relations, and do it all cohesively and compellingly so all are driving towards your organizational goals.
services
Strategic
Planning
Facilitating
Strategic is an oft-used but rarely realized concept. Strategic communications should be focused on achieving organizational goals. It should address priority stakeholders and compel them to desired behaviours or actions. It should focus tight resources for maximum effect. PublicAffair is adept at facilitating senior leadership team planning, bringing a clear process and engaging style to strategic planning meetings.
Strategic Communications Planning
Who do you need to talk to? What do they need to hear to support your vision? What channels will be most effective in reaching them and how will you measure success, adjust your actions, and achieve your goals?
With the leadership team’s overarching guidance in place, PublicAffair can work with management or independently to identify strategies, the actions that flow from them, and the measurable outcomes that are directly tied to the overarching goals. Strategic plans identify and prioritize stakeholders, the costs and human resources needed, and timelines and responsibilities to accomplish the goals on time and on budget.
Government & Stakeholder
Relations
Often strategic communication requires engaging government officials or specific stakeholder groups to accomplish organizational goals. PublicAffair Principal Michael Davis was Director of Communications for the Federal Minister of Justice; he has unique understanding of how the current federal government operates.
PublicAffair networks extend through our municipal, provincial and federal governments, with extensive connections through the business and NGO communities as well.
Having contacts gets you part way there; you need a plan that identifies overarching goals and measurable outcomes. Decision makers—and their influencers—must be weighted for potential impact and strategies developed to engage them in positive ways that will drive support for your organization’s endeavours.
Crisis & Issues
Management
At PublicAffair, we are adept at jumping into developing or full blown public crisis. When media is calling and social media is blowing up, you need to know what you are saying to whom and in what order. You also need a trusted voice from outside your bubble who will strip the industry jargon and tell you what rings true.
Better than trying to repair the plane while flying at 30,000 feet: have a crisis communications plan in place before taking off. PublicAffair will identify potential issues, rate for impact and likelihood, develop holding statements, define communication protocols and designated spokespeople.
PublicAffair can train those spokespeople. We train with a skilled communicator and an experienced journalist, providing the theory and putting it to work in front of the cameras. Spokespeople leave with the skills, experience and confidence to deliver messages under the glare of the camera with clarity, empathy and authority.
meet the team
PublicAffair is a lean virtual machine, drawing in associate expertise on a project by project basis. This keeps costs down and focused on the part that delivers value to you: the talent.
Michael Davis
Principal
Michael began managing political campaigns in the late 90s. He started working in PR doing project management with a startup called PRMadeEasy, then worked on contentious real estate development projects for Reputations. He has provided counsel to cities, NGOs, health authorities, international Olympic sponsors, airport authorities, mining companies and political parties. While working as Director of Communications for the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada he helped launch Medically Assisted Dying legislation, the Gender Identity legislation and the Marijuana task force.
Michael has won numerous awards for excellence in his field: Canadian Public Relations Society National Award of Excellence Electronic & Social Media 2011; Hermes Platinum Award 2010 Walmart Green Business Summit; Hermes Platinum Award 2010 Atos Origin Everything, All at Once, Perfectly. IABC Award of Excellence for Government Relations 2008 Insite; IABC Silver Leaf for Issues Management 2007 Insite.
Michael holds a Master of Arts in Professional Communication from Royal Roads University.
Barb Justason
Associate Principal Researcher
Barb Justason is the principal researcher at Justason Market Intelligence. and owner of Vancouver Focus®. She is a leading market research professional and advisor to corporations and governments. During her 20-plus-year career, she has provided research and consulting services to almost every sector of the economy: energy producers, natural resource companies, retailers, developers, food and beverage manufacturers, tourism and transportation operators, First Nations communities, crown corporations, municipalities and the provincial government. Her research interests include civic affairs and transportation safety. Barb holds memberships with the Marketing Research and Intelligence Association (MRIA), and the American Association of Public Opinion Researchers (AAPOR). Barb received the MRIA’s Certified Marketing Research Professional (CMRP) designation in 2004.
Matt O’Grady
Associate Media Trainer
Mattis an award-winning communications professional who has held senior leadership positions at both regional and national media companies. He has served as Editor-in-Chief of BCBusiness twice, and also worked for The Globe and Mail in both Toronto and Vancouver, mostly recently as their British Columbia Bureau Chief. Matt has deep ties within the B.C. media community, having served as an editor at Vancouver magazine and Western Living, worked as an online editor for CBC British Columbia, and taught non-fiction writing and editing courses at Langara College and Capilano University. Clients inside and outside publishing regularly call upon Matt’s communications expertise as a speechwriter, media advisor, consultant and competition judge. Matt is a graduate of the Queen’s School of Business Bachelor of Commerce program and SFU’s Master of Publishing program.
Clayton Kropp
Associate Creative Lead
Clayton has been designing and working with agencies, freelancers and creative minds for 20 years throughout BC and Alberta. He graduated in 2000 from Grant MacEwan’s Visual Communications program and has been managing his own graphic design company for the past 10 years in Vancouver. From identities, print collateral, to the multifaceted levels of online marketing, his efforts have always been the same — craft unique and fresh solutions to communication problems so it resonates with the customer.
