Linda Kaplan Thaler gets GRITTY

Illustrious CCNY alum, Chair of Publicis New York, and bestselling author Linda Kaplan Thaler returned to campus for an engaging Lunch w/Leaders chat in front of an SRO crowd of students, faculty, and members of the CCNY community. Recipient of City College degrees in both psychology and music, Linda was recently inducted into the Advertising Hall of Fame and was named one of Ad Age’s  “100 Most Influential Women in Advertising.”  As a committed alumna of the college, Linda sits on the boards of both the Colin Powell School as well as the Master’s program in Branding + Integrated Communications (BIC). She received the Townsend Harris Medal in 2005.
Ms. Kaplan Thaler’s topic, “Success is a Four Letter Word,” was based on her latest book, Grit to Great, which draws upon ground-breaking research as well as her own experiences. As a proud Bronx native and CCNY alum who now oversees a multi-billion dollar agency with over 800 employees, Linda's own story is an inspiration to us all.


BIC program director Nancy R. Tag led Linda through a curated list of student generated questions about her unconventional career path to the advertising industry and what lessons enabled her to eventually become the founder of her own agency, The Kaplan Thaler Group. The Q&A format resulted in a unique sharing of career anecdotes and life experiences which underscored the essence of GRIT -- both a motivating word and dynamic acronym for Guts, Resilience, Initiative, and Tenacity. Here are five of the most memorable GRIT-inspired takeaways.

HAVE GUTS: Don’t be scared!

BUILD RESILIENCE: Ask yourself, what can I do to improve myself today? What can I do better?

SHOW INITIATIVE: Add the phrases “yes, and...” and “yes, but…” to your on-the-job vocabulary, and eliminate “no.”

PRACTICE TENACITY: Always have a growth mindset. Be a plotter not a dreamer.

This Lunch w/Leaders event was co-sponsored by the Branding & Integrated Communications and Ad/PR programs of the Media & Communication Arts department as well as the CCNY AAF Club. Copies of Linda's new book Grit to Great were given away throughout the event. Afterwards, Linda signed copies of her book and chatted with students.

For inspiration, we HIGHLY recommend you read Grit to Great. You can start with an excerpt, here.

GREY hosts the future...

BIC's annual Mix+Mentor networking event was held on Thursday night, October 29th, at GREY Global Headquarters on 5th Avenue. A crowd of over 100 guests showed their commitment to the future by meeting and promising to mentor members of BIC's Class of 2017 featuring 30 hard-working grad students from across the globe, around the United States, and right here in New York City.

Industry professionals, consultants, and recruiters from agencies such as GREY, JWT, Ketchum, ARF, BBDO, 360i, MTV, BrainJuicer, Momentum, R/GA, Ogilvy, The ONE Club, Publicis, VML, Loyal Kaspar, TBWA, Kay & Black,  Rabin Martin, PRWeek, NBC Universal, Matter Unlimited, FCB, Coyne, AWNY, Gartner,  Weber Shandwick, and XL Alliance offered encouragement, exchanged business cards, and made a commitment to be a mentor. Special guests of the evening included members of BIC's Alumni Association from our first graduating class who honored their own mentors by bringing them along -- celebrating the power of mentorship.



BIC Program Director Nancy R. Tag expressed gratitude to GREY for sponsoring this year's Mix+Mentor with a special thanks to catalyst Paulette Forte and organizer Sabrina Mercado of Grey as well as BIC Program Specialist Christina Castro and BIC Tech Specialist Mira Steinzor. Professor Tag welcomed the crowd by introducing BIC's latest incoming class, the third since the program's launch in 2013.


"By committing to the two-year master's degree program so they can think more deeply about the issues impacting media and communications today," Tag noted, "these students have already demonstrated a commitment to the industry -- and to everyone in the room who's dedicated to future." Past sponsors of the BIC Mix+Mentor have been Y&R, Ketchum, and McCann.

Lynn Appelbaum is PRSA's Outstanding Educator of the Year

2015 PRSA Study Addresses Diversity in the Public Relations Professions

CCNY Ad/PR Professor Lynn Appelbaum has co-authored a report with Franklin Walton, PhD, titled, "An Examination of Factors Affecting the Success of Under-represented Groups in the Public Relations Profession," funded by the PRSA Foundation. According to the report, the industry needs to make a more “concerted effort in diversifying the demographics of PR professionals to reflect the profile of the nation.” The US Census Bureau projects that by 2020 36.5% of the US population will be comprised of Hispanics, African Americans, Asians and Native Americans.

In a recent PRWeek article, Why retention is the roadblock to a more diverse PR industry, employers and employees hold differing opinions on the issue. Employers believe retaining multicultural employees is the answer.

Young Black and Hispanic PR practitioners who have graduated since 2008 were surveyed along with PR employers in the field from October 2014 to February 2015. According to the article, “Nearly 8 in 10 (79%) PR employers see their efforts to retain a diverse workforce as being successful….One-third of young professionals say the industry is not effectual at retaining a diverse workforce.”

“Other perceived biases noted in the study by young, multicultural PR pros include not feeling genuinely respected by colleagues (43%); believing they have to be more qualified than a Caucasian employee in the same situation (45%); and thinking multicultural practitioners are put on "a slow moving track" (44%).”

For more on this industry-wide conversation, read the PR Week article and Professor Appelbaum’s full report. Share your thoughts and join the conversation on Twitter via The Ad Club's #imPARTofDIVERSITY movement.

This November, BIC Board Speaks

BIC welcomes Advisory Board Members Linda Kaplan Thaler and Rob Norman to campus this November in two spotlight events.  On Thursday, November 12th, the multi-titled Linda Kaplan Thaler will be interviewed in the Lunch w/Leaders series sponsored by MCA's Ad/PR and BIC Programs along with the CCNY AAF Club.  Her topic, "Success is a Four Letter Word," is based on her latest book, Grit to Great, which draws upon ground breaking research as well as her own experiences as an Advertising Hall of Famer, Bestselling Author, Chair of Publicis New York, and CCNY Grad.

On Wednesday, November 18th, GroupM Chief Digital Officer Rob Norman will share his latest insights in his @BIC lecture "There's an App for That" in which he contemplates the end of fragmentation as he challenges familiar narratives that stifle creativity and discovery.

Come to campus and join the conversation. Contact us at bic@ccny.cuny.edu for details and to RSVP.

BIC Alum at Inc. Women's Summit

On the first Thursday in October, BIC Alum Alex Suazo '15 joined some of the world's most influential entrepreneurs at the Inc. Women's Summit, where she connected with other business owners, heard inspirational stories, and learned valuable tactics. Even more important, she wrote up a summary. Check it out here.

Intense Digital Integration Intensive

For two weekends in October, BICsters took course knowledge to the next level in a one-credit Special Topic Intensive called Digital Integration taught by Will Parker, Associate Director of Analytics at Publicis. Touching upon all things digital, Will provided historical context, reviewing the traditional players and why data is the catalyst to the biggest shift the industry has seen in decades. He offered up a matrix for evaluating the shift and then moved swiftly -- and with great clarity -- through a number of topics, such as who's regulating the Internet, how Google ranks its listings, real time media bidding, etc. He also provided a number apps and sites where students can learn aspects of the Internet that are largely invisible to the average consumer. A favorite: the Norse Attack Map.  Students were given the option of getting certified in Google Analytics as part of their grade.