Leadership in PR: A Virtual Roundtable with FPRA Orlando Presidents
By Gabriela Sabo, FPRA Orlando Intern
Our February chapter event was joined by past FPRA Orlando presidents Bob O’Malley APR, Susan Ennis APR, CPRC, and Joe Chabus APR, who spoke about their backgrounds in the industry, their experience as presidents and their advice on leadership. The roundtable was moderated by leadership coach Carolyn Maue, who also advises LeadershipFPRA.
All three speakers had different experiences leading up to and during their roles as president.
Ennis started her career in advertising and continued to get her accreditation in PR, becoming president of our chapter in 2007. During this year, she focused on connecting with other organizations and making sure the chapter was financially solvent and transparent, which led to our chapter being the wealthiest in the state.
Chabus served as president from 2008 to 2009, a time where many members lost their jobs due to the Great Recession. He focused on positioning the chapter as a resource to help members do their jobs better. Currently, his role is about orchestration — knowing who needs to have a voice and where they should be involved.
O’Malley went through the accreditation process during his role as president in 2005. Although his background wasn’t in PR, he emphasized the important role it plays in any organization.
As a leader, it’s important to know how to utilize the strengths of the people on your team. Valuing and promoting diversity, whether that be different perspectives, backgrounds or communication styles, is essential to leading a strong team. Chabus explained that being a leader is about bringing each person’s individual strengths out. A common theme here was empathy — truly understanding the people you’re working with in order to help them be successful.
The speakers shared some of the most important lessons they’ve learned throughout their careers. “Being a leader means you’re willing to step forward and help others be successful,” Ennis explained. Doing this switches your mentality from “using” people to giving them an opportunity to find their strengths and talents.
The final advice the past presidents gave us was: (1) always be open to learning new things, learning from others and taking risks, (2) surround yourself with people who can help you and challenge your way of thinking, (3) be engaged and step forward to volunteer to finish things others won’t, and (4) be an individual who advances the company’s reputation — it’s about growing the business, growing the reputation and growing the people.
O’Malley put it perfectly when he said, “With FPRA you get out what you put in.” He reminded us to not forget where we came from no matter where we are in our career. Be accessible to the people who are still working the process while finding mentors of your own who can help you progress.
