Author Archives: Jay Menard

Oilers’ Move Talk Shows So-Called Canadian ‘Fans’ Slippery Nature

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By Jason Menard

It’s amazing how those so-called Canadian hockey ‘fans’ – the very same ones who are generally so vociferous about returning hockey to abandoned Canadian NHL markets – have little to say now that one of their own franchises is allegedly in danger.

It’s only fitting that on a night when the Edmonton Oilers are in la belle province to pay a visit to the Montreal Canadiens, a story has emerged that key senior administration members of the Albertan NHL franchise have met with Quebec City officials to discuss relocation.

Interesting. That regular group of carrion who usually love nothing more than to circle the not-quite-dead corpses of NHL franchises got quiet all of the sudden. I guess it’s OK to wish ill on franchises as long as their south of the border. Continue reading →

Great Communication is Learned One Day at a Time, Not in One Day

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By Jason Menard,

One day can help start you along the right path, but when it comes to learning how to effectively communicate, one day’s just enough time for you to learn how to firmly lodge your foot in your mouth.

Earlier today, I received an e-mail at work promoting a course that promised to teach you “How to be an Outstanding Communicator” in one day. And while normally I pay just enough attention to these e-mails – you know the ones you receive after attending one conference, and then you’re stuck in an e-mail list purgatory for years – to figure out what the course/conference topic is, and then file it under “G.”

However, this one struck me as particularly audacious. Or perhaps it’s just simple vanity – to suggest that a craft I’ve been trying to hone for two decades is something that can be mastered in a day bruised the ol’ ego. Continue reading →

Two Weeks of Tiger Tweeting Show Honesty Still Not His Policy

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By Jason Menard

Two weeks into Tiger Woods’ commitment to openness and fan interaction and it’s abundantly clear that honesty remains far from the best policy for the golfer and his public relations team.

If you’ve read any of my previous work relating to social media, you’ll know that I have a simple mantra — just because everyone can blog, tweet, or post on Facebook, doesn’t mean
they should. Continue reading →

If Your Audience is All A-Twitter is that a Good Thing?

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By Jason Menard,

It’s somewhat ironic that social media is perpetrating a behaviour that is inherently anti-social. But while that behaviour would come across as disrespectful to previous generations, it is in fact the greatest show of respect one can display.

After all, seeing a room full of people ‘ignoring’ a speaker and typing furiously away wouldn’t seem to be a positive thing – but it could be the greatest display of approval one can show. Continue reading →

Copping Out is a Matter of Trust

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By Jason Menard

How do you fix a system that won’t admit its broken? And when those systems are designed for our protection and benefit, how can we as a public trust them to act in that manner when we’re seeing so much evidence to the contrary.

The stories of Carly Finn and Stacy Bonds are just the latest in what appears to be continuing proof of the old adage “absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Again, we must be cautious about judging actions for which we were not present – however, both of these just don’t pass the sniff test. Continue reading →