Be Heard – Apply for Fall 2012 Positions

Hi Coogs!

We are looking for the next IABC UH leaders. Are you ready to make your résumé stand out from the crowd? Are you wanting to start networking in the field before you graduate? Are you looking for career and college guidance?

Then you’re in the right place!

Get involved with IABC UH while learning great skills to enhance your résumé and improve your networking skills IABC UH has several openings for board member positions for the fall 2012 semester. These positions are open to all new and current members of IABC UH.

The following positions are available:

1. Secretary - This position is the official record-keeper of the student chapter.
2. Membership - This position is responsible for the recruitment and retention of members.
3. Development - This position is responsible for developing, planning and executing programs and events to meet members’ professional needs.
4. Communications - This position is responsible for updating all social media and sending out a monthly newsletter.

This is a great opportunity to get involved and help create plans that lay the frame work for future IABC students and leaders.

Not a member but interested?

Please email uhiabc@gmail.com for more information on becoming a member or officer.

Students Can Look to Better Wi-Fi Soon

By Thao Pham, recent UH grad and UH IABC member

AT&T recently launched a microsite offering students a glimpse of AT&T’s wireless network enhancements, giving current and potential wireless customers a chance to see how their service will be improved through the activation of new and improved cell sites.

AT&T is becoming more transparent with its upgrades, such as the activation of a new cell site in our community. The extra capacity means reduced dropped calls and improve service quality during busy times.

For all you smartphone users out there (and we know there’s lots of you), nothing is more frustrating than having your call signals drop out or your wifi stop pulling up that test review that you sent to yourself via email. Even for a brief moment of inconvenience, don’t you just have an inexplicable desire to hurl the device across the classroom?

Well, help is on the way. The recently launched microsite allows “consumers a unique peek behind the curtain of AT&T’s wireless network enhancements,” according to a recent AT&T press release. That means with the AT&T and T-Mobile merger making headlines and many of you wondering how that effects your wireless service, you can see it all here at Focus.ATT.com/Houston, whether you live in Downtown, Cypress or Sugar Land.

Basically, the microsite features a map of the greater Houston area, with the capability of zooming in on the specific area the user is most interested in. The map displays network enhancements – such as new cell sites, broadband speed upgrades, capacity upgrades and network connection upgrades – that AT&T has made this past year. It also allows users to find the nearest stores and free Wi-Fi Hotspots – particularly helpful for us students needing quick, cheap access to the internet.

The site will be updated every Thursday and also displays tweets from the @ATT_Houston. The transparency of the AT&T microsite will hopefully lead to better service for the University of Houston campus and its students. And that’s good news for all of us.

IABC Young Communicators’ Conference Recap

This year’s IABC Young Communicator’s Conference was both inspiring and informative. The group met with top communication professionals from all over the world.  They engaged in interactive sessions and were exposed to information on crisis communication, networking tips, using social media to build their professional network, doubling their writing speed and much more!

Here are the top things your UH IABC president learned and would like to share:

• In a crisis, your head and heart must be engaged. Meaning, in order for your message to be believed, it has to come from the heart, too.
• Seventy percent of all crises are smoldering issues. Crises have legs, issues do not.
• Four barriers in change communication: Managing the process, employee resistance, developing executive support and effective use of teams to implement change.
• To increase your writing speed use mindmapping.
• The golden rule of networking: Work for your network. Do not look at networking with the idea of “what can it do for me?” See yourself as the resource for every one of your contacts. Be a matchmaker. Send business and job leads to your contacts.
• After meeting contacts, jot down reminders on the back of their business cards about where you met them, what you discussed and things you have in common.
• A statement should always go out in the first golden hour after a crisis has emerged.
• Follow companies and people on LinkedIn and Twitter that are employed with companies you are interested in working for.

If you would like a PDF copy on mindmapping please email uhiabc@gmail.com.

IABC Young Communicators Conference

Next week your chapter president, Maegan Clemens, will be representing UH IABC at the Young Communicators Conference!  Stayed tuned to the blog as she shares information learned on topics about business writing, crisis management, change communication and more!

She plans to network with many IABC student members from other colleges and bring home great ideas to the UH IABC chapter.  You can also follow her on Twitter at MClemensUH_PR. 

Stay tuned!