#NovaCOM15This Friday, April 17th, I’m proud to be included in the speaker line up for #NovaCOM15 presented by Rutgers’ School of Communication and Information (SC&I – I teach there too). So I figured it would be neat to do a roundup of posts that reflect some of the very smart minds that will be presenting at this conference. And if you’ll be there, please come say “hi!”

1. Individual: starts with I, ends with all

Why: “Individual changes that make us rethink the choices we’re making, prompt us to take action in our own lives, and lead us to collective action are what we need to solve the serious problems we face.” AHEM Founders Laura Stanik and Chris Blockus take a look at how we can influence change “together in our global community through the people we engage, the information we share, and the work we do” in this still relevant post.

2. SheSpeaks CEO, Aliza Freud, Talks Influencers With Cynopsis Media

Why: “Smart brands have realized that socially savvy women can create compelling stories and content about their products and services, and that they have an interested audience,” said Aliza Freud as she talked about why more brands see women as influencers and more with Cynopsis in the summer of 2014.

3. Top Takeaways From NRF

Why: “In 2015, consumer expectations are going to continue to rise. Retailers need to look for ways to connect with the increasingly demanding consumer so that they become fans of the brand, instead of simply customers,” says Dave Hochman as he shares six takeaways for the “C-store” industry.

4. How to gain mentors using Twitter

Why: “We’re completely comfortable tweeting celebrities, politicians, entrepreneurs, and so forth ”” so why would we ever think twice about using Twitter to find a mentor or new career opportunities in our desired fields?” Meg Fry explores why Twitter is an “effective way of contacting someone you’d like to learn from.”

5. How to Use Social Media And Stay Couth

Why: “You can’t engage appropriately without listening, which is why the listening bit usually comes first. But if you’re just going to listen, without doing much else, you’re basically using social media as a monitoring tool, and not much else.” I discuss why thinking is a key factor when using social media in this post from the WUL vault.

6. New year. Time for a new agency-client agreement

Why: “The changing nature of the PR firm-client relationship may require an elegant – albeit slightly more complex – agreement to reflect an enhanced scope of services,” states Michael C. Lasky in this post for PRWeek where he introduces “seven key issues” that should be addressed in your client agreements.

7. 5 Tips To Pitching Success – When PR Stands For “Personal” Relations 

Why: “Yes, there [are] still print and broadcast media. However, there are online media outlets as well as bloggers and other influential individuals who have the ability to get consumers to act or behave a certain way,” says Deirdre Breakenridge as she explores five tips for “pitching success.”

Will you attend #NovaCOM15? What topic are you most excited to learn most about? Please share in the comments below.