Learn More About Dr. Theomary Karamanis, SCMP, IABC Fellow
Dr. Theomary Karamanis, SCMP, IABC Fellow, is a multiple award-winning communication professor, consultant, and IABC Fellow with more than 25 years of global experience across academia, business, and government. A senior lecturer at Cornell University’s SC Johnson College of Business, she teaches master of business administration (MBA) and executive programs on leadership, crisis, and strategic communication. She has trained senior leaders from Amazon, Merck, Bridgewater, Marriott, and FEMA, earning over 40 communication awards, including seven Gold Quills. A past chair of the IABC Academy, Awards Committee, and Global Communication Certification Council, she bridges research and practice to advance leadership communication excellence worldwide.
Learn More About Brad Whitworth, IABC Fellow
Brad Whitworth, IABC Fellow, is a veteran corporate communication strategist, speaker, and IABC Fellow whose 40-year career includes senior leadership roles at Cisco, HP, Hitachi, PeopleSoft, and PG&E. A former IABC international chair and contributing author of "The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication" and "The IABC Guide for Practical Business Communication," Brad has shaped best practices in executive and leadership communication worldwide. He is known for translating complex business challenges into communication strategies that drive clarity, trust, and performance. A frequent conference keynote speaker and executive coach, Brad combines insight, humor, and humanity to help leaders thrive in disruptive times.
Pushing the Frontier: The Latest Developments in Generative AI and What It Means for Communication
Presented By: Jamie Baffa | Matt Coyne
14 June 2026, 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. | $299 IABC Members | $349 IABC Non-Members
Generative AI will fundamentally transform communication, both how we practice it as professionals and the patterns of communication inside organizations. The world of generative AI changes each week, with new models and new capabilities. It can be dizzying to keep up, and many communication professionals are wondering what their role will be in the future.
We want to put communication leaders on their front foot.
In this session, we'll ground you in where the technology is today and show you what's possible when working at the frontier. You'll see real applications from Fortune 100 organizations and learn prompting strategies that turn AI from a drafting tool into a strategic partner for analysis, communication strategy design, and more. You'll walk away with concrete examples you can implement immediately, live demonstrations of frontier capabilities shaping the next 12-24 months, and practical prompting frameworks you can adapt to your organization's challenges.
This session is interactive. We'll workshop prompts together, share our screens to show AI working in real-time, and create space for your specific use cases.
Designed for communication strategists, change communication leads, and internal communication professionals who want to stay ahead of the disruption curve rather than react to it.
Learning outcomes:
- Describe how Large Language Models work in clear and understandable terms.
- Use generative AI tools more effectively, at the limits of their capabilities.
- Bring immediately actionable best practices to their communication teams.
Learn More About Jamie Baffa
Jamie Baffa partners with leaders and communication professionals on their most pressing challenges. He specializes in helping organizations navigate significant change, design strategic messages and narratives, and cascade strategy across diverse industries including defense, healthcare, professional services, and technology. Recently, he co-leads the firm's efforts to understand generative AI's implications for communication professionals, helping clients maximize value from the technology and anticipate its impact on the discipline. He writes for Confluence, CRA | Admired Leadership's publication on the intersection of generative AI, leadership, and corporate communication. Jamie holds a BA in Anthropology from the University of Notre Dame.
Learn More About Matt Coyne
Matt Coyne provides strategic communication counsel and leadership coaching across industries, from Fortune 500 companies to the public sector, bringing over a decade of experience in strategy and advisory roles. He specializes in simplifying complexity and partnering with executives to create compelling messages and communication strategies that drive business outcomes. Clients seek his expertise in generative artificial intelligence and its implications for communication and leadership. Matt is a lead writer of Confluence, CRA | Admired Leadership's publication on the intersection of generative AI, leadership, and corporate communication. He holds a BA from the University of Notre Dame.
Trust 3.0: Designing and Protecting Reputation in an Age of Continuous Disruption
Presented By: Bonnie Caver, SCMP, IABC Fellow, FCSCE | Deborah Hileman, SCMP, FCSCE, CCMC
14 June 2026, 1-4 p.m. | $299 IABC Members | $349 IABC Non-Members
Trust can no longer be assumed. In a world where audiences begin from a place of distrust, and often for good reason, communication professionals must rethink both trust itself and its relationship to reputation, beyond traditional reputation management. This means redefining reputation through design, acceleration, and protection.
Trust 3.0 explores how to build and defend reputation as a living system, one that adapts to non-stop disruption, including from the newest disruptors of misinformation engines and synthetic crises to algorithmic influence and AI stakeholders.
Disruption today is continuous, fueled by AI-generated content, polarization, leadership changes, geopolitical shocks, digital manipulation, and everyday business volatility. In this reality, reputation has become both more fragile and more valuable than ever.
This session reveals how to build reputation as corporate currency, an asset designed for durability and credibility under constant stress. You’ll learn how to embed trust into your organization's DNA, protect it through modern crisis planning, intelligent monitoring, and an ethical response, and ultimately, how to transform disruption into opportunity.
Participants will leave equipped to move beyond reputation management into corporate reputation architecture, a model where trust is intentionally designed, continuously protected, and strategically leveraged to create lasting corporate value.
Learn More About Bonnie Caver, SCMP, IABC Fellow, FCSCE
Bonnie Caver, SCMP, IABC Fellow, FCSCE provides strategic advisory services to CEOs and leadership teams of mid-market business-to-business (B2B) companies in brand management, reputation, communication, mergers & acquisitions, change management, and responsible AI implementation. She helps organizations create, accelerate, and protect corporate value, particularly during periods of transformation and disruption. With 20 years of consulting leadership experience, she focuses on maximizing organizational growth and value while mitigating the risks that impede growth and erode value. As the founder and CEO of Reputation Lighthouse, Bonnie has guided organizational leadership through various stages of their business journey, from launch to exit. Bonnie excels in managing transactional changes and preparing organizations for dynamic shifts necessary for survival in evolving business environments.
Learn More About Deborah Hileman, SCMP, FCSCE, CCMC
Deborah Hileman, SCMP, FCSCE, CCMC is a business leader, board member, globally certified strategic communication, and corporate crisis management professional with more than 35 years of experience helping organizations build value, engage stakeholders, navigate disruption, manage reputational risk, and communicate with clarity in high-stakes situations. As president and CEO of the Institute for Crisis Management, she leads teams that specialize in crisis planning and preparedness, executive counsel, communication training, and real-time response support. Her approach is grounded in servant leadership, integrity, and measurable results. Throughout her career, Deborah has served in leadership roles with IABC, the Global Communication Certification Council®, and several non-profit boards.
How To Build Career Leverage Through AI Systems Thinking & Career Storytelling
Presented By: Karen Ngo
14 June 2026, 1-4 p.m. | $299 IABC Members | $349 IABC Non-Members
The gap is widening. While most professionals are still dabbling with ChatGPT for basic tasks, tomorrow's high impact leaders are building intelligent systems that multiply their impact without working longer hours.
This interactive, three-part Master Class isn't theory. You will get access to a practical playbook that separates strategic communicators who get promoted from those who get left behind.
Learning Opportunities:
- AI Systems Thinking: Stop working harder. Start working at scale. Learn the workflow mapping methodology that reveals blind spots in any business process and how to identify the right opportunities to solve problems.
- AI-utomation 101: Understand the right approach to build tangible skills, systems, and solutions with AI, automation, and agents. Learn how to take advantage of different tools and templates so that you’re ready to go by tomorrow. This is your shortcut to becoming the "AI expert" that everyone turns to.
- Career Storytelling: The job market has fundamentally changed. Learn the insider system for creating a "Career Walking Deck" that positions you as a powerhouse candidate in job interviews. Understand what it takes to make a strong first impression, build personal connections, and stand out with AI-powered practices.
You can spend the next year watching others advance, or invest three hours into becoming the communicator that everyone wants on their team.
Learn More About Karen Ngo
Karen Ngo's personal philosophy is growing 1% everyday through finding inspiration to share with the world. In four years, she advanced from a Canadian new graduate to CEO Communications Manager at Microsoft by building systems, scaling impact, and intentionally shaping her career story.
Today, she shares her learnings and experiences with 30,000+ followers across social platforms and kkarenism.com which ranks as the #1 Google/Bing result for “Career Walking Decks” — a career hack she learned from high performers and leaders in her first 100 coffee chats at Microsoft.
In her day job, Karen is driving AI transformation initiatives across the Microsoft Office of the CEO during its most transformative chapter of the AI era. Her passion sits at the intersection of tech, storytelling, and career empowerment — and she’s just getting started! You can follow along on the journey and stay connected with Karen on LinkedIn.
GCCC Certification Master Class
Presented By: Sue Heuman, ABC, SCMP, MC, Fellow IABC, FCSCE and Sia Papageorgiou FRSA, FCSCE, SCMP
14 June 2026, 1-4:30 p.m. | $299 IABC Members | $349 IABC Non-Members
Get Certified. Get Strategic. Get Ahead.
If you’re serious about being recognized as a strategic communication professional, this is where you prove it.
The GCCC Certification Master Class isn’t another fluffy “overview.” It’s an intensive 3.5-hour immersion that gives you the confidence, clarity and competence to walk into the CMP or SCMP exam and walk out successful.
Participants consistently tell us this masterclass gives them exactly what they need to approach the CMP or SCMP exam with confidence — clarity on the mindset, the framework, and what “good” looks like at the highest level. It removes guesswork and sharpens how you think, structure responses, and demonstrate strategic communication capability.
You’ll unpack what strategic communication management really looks like in practice, through the lens of the Global Standard of the Communication Profession. You’ll refine how you think, plan, and advise, and you’ll discover how to articulate value in business terms that decision-makers can’t ignore.
If you want to stop explaining what you do and start proving the impact of what you do — this masterclass is your turning point.
What you’ll gain
- A working knowledge of the Global Standard and how to apply it, not just quote it.
- The tools and insights to shift from communicator to trusted strategic advisor.
- The ability to assess your readiness for certification and design your personal preparation plan.
- Proven tips to approach the exam with confidence and perform under pressure.
- Access to a global network of peers who’ve elevated their careers through certification.
Learn More About Sue Heuman, ABC, SCMP, MC, Fellow IABC, FCSCE
Sue Heuman, ABC, SCMP, MC, Fellow IABC, FCSCE is a much sought-after executive advisor, counselling senior executives, creating strategic communication plans, and providing expertise to enable their execution. Sue has been a member of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) since 1984, which enables her to both stay current with, and contribute to, communications practices.
In 2016, Sue received the prestigious Rae Hamlin Award from IABC in recognition of her work to promote Global Standards for Communication. She was also named 2016 IABC Edmonton Chapter Communicator of the Year. In 2018, IABC Canada named Sue a Master Communicator.
Sue earned the IABC Fellow designation in 2022, the association’s highest global honor. She was named a Fellow of the Centre for Strategic Communication Excellence in 2023. Accredited by IABC in 1995, she achieved her SCMP designation in 2025.
Learn More About Sia Papageorgiou, FRSA, FCSCE, SCMP
Sia Papageorgiou, FRSA, FCSCE, SCMP, is redefining what it means to lead through communication. A multi-award-winning professional with over 60 national, regional, and international honours for strategic communication excellence and leadership, Sia empowers communication professionals worldwide to elevate their influence, build credibility, and deliver measurable impact.
A certified Strategic Communication Management Professional (SCMP) and Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Sia is a former Chair of the Global Communication Certification Council (GCCC) and an internationally respected voice on strategic communication, communication governance, leadership, and alignment.
Named IABC Asia-Pacific Communicator of the Year (2021) and recipient of the prestigious Rae Hamlin Award (2022), Sia continues to challenge the profession to aim higher — to build strategic capability, deliver value with intention, and lead change that matters.
Earn three (3) points toward Global Communication Certification Council (GCCC) recertification for each Master Class attended. Learn more.