Building Community Engagement Series

Stakeholder Development and Engagement 101

Now more than ever, we need to build strong resilient relationships with our neighbors, communities, lawmakers and even detractors. While for some this may be intuitive, for others it may not come so naturally. But with a little training, everyone can do it. Join our host Robert Dugan and special guests as we demystify the process for those that find it daunting. We’ll provide you with tools to make it easier to network for anyone, from novice to seasoned professional, and help you develop a plan for your personal and professional success.

When: March 28, Noon - 1 p.m.

Meeting with Lawmakers 101 & Key Messaging Training

Political relationships are similar to relationships with neighbors. While you don’t get to pick them or their beliefs, and may agree or disagree with their perspectives, good results don’t come from bad relationships. Join us to learn how to engage successfully with lawmakers at every level and from every perspective. Regardless of where you stand, they have made the commitment to “live in the fishbowl” and need the benefit of our perspectives to be successful, as do we.

When: April 8, 2 - 4 p.m.

Plant Tours, Sharing Your Story

Many “everyday citizens” travel past our plants every day but have no idea about the essential nature of our role in building communities, nor what we do to make materials readily available in the supply chain for so many things they use daily. Join Robert Dugan and guests to strategize on how to plan and execute a successful plant tour that teaches people about the essential nature of our industry at large, and your specific role in the communities you serve.
 

When: June 11, 2024, Noon - 1 p.m.

Deliberate Philanthropy, Meeting Community and Company Objectives

As an industry dependent on a social license to operate, we have an obligation to be a partner to local communities in which we operate. The days of quietly just “doing the right thing” have passed. Join Robert Dugan and guests to discuss how your charitable contributions can have a meaningful impact for your company, employees, and external stakeholders with an eye on investing in your social license with the community you serve.
 

When: August 13, 2024, Noon - 1 p.m.

Leveraging Your State, Local and National Associations

What can your association do for you? What can you do for your association? Learn how you can take advantage of the benefits available to you through your local, state and national membership organizations. Association engagement can advance not only your industry, but will enhance your personal and professional development and grow your business. Join Robert Dugan, CalCIMA President & CEO and guests to discuss strategies of engagement with your industry and community associations. Get the most value out of your membership by learning how to access the tools and resources are available to help become proactive and relevant.
 

When: October 8, Noon - 1 p.m.

How to Monitor/Track/Respond to Local Media

California's reporters, publishers, and editors meet daily in their newsrooms to talk about where to find the most essential stories affecting local communities. They actively seek compelling stories. They see the economy tightening and growth slowing, and they wonder where the essential stories are happening - the ones that Californians need to know about. Our industry is forward-looking in how it sustains and grows the economy, especially when infrastructure and technology is rapidly changing. When we invite the media to see the specific ways the women and men of our companies have changed the way they produce the materials that everyone depends on every day, journalists find stories they can take back to their newsrooms. This training will help members feel empowered and prepared to call up a journalist with newsworthy invitations to find important news stories. This session will be a hands-on media preparation workshop for anyone open to having local news media start to get the story right about their companies. We'll outline what questions journalists are likely to ask and why they sometimes ask questions to set you on the defensive.

When: TBD

Leveraging Web/Social Media Content and Promotion

We see it every day on every major issue: Information, and misinformation, is circulated through multimedia channels with no accountability as to origin or fact. The exponential impact of these channels beyond a simple call or email from a decade ago can take on a life of its own and mischaracterize or malign an organization’s image with at times no basis in reality at all, with severely damaging consequences. Join us for a guided discussion with practitioners in the industry to learn more about how your business can create and manage your Web/Social Media Content and Promotion to provide some level of prevention and defense against this reality.

When: December 10, 2024, Noon - 1 p.m.

Key Messaging Training

There is no such thing as “magic words.” But the language we use to describe ourselves, our industry, and our work matters. Why? Because the language we use to describe ourselves is the language others will use to describe us.

In this interactive message training workshop, you will learn how to use the new CalCIMA messaging and how to ‘stay on’ a message map, practice using messaging in real-time communications, get to create your own message map for your personal and professional communications, and build your own personal ‘elevator pitch.’

When: TBD