Laura Aram, Director of Corporate Communications, Phillips Publishing International
Phillips Publishing
7811 Montrose Road
Potomac, Md 20854
e-mail: [email protected]
Note: this week we're featuring a corporate communicator at Phillips. Phillips Publishing International owns Phillips Business Information, Inc., owner of PR NEWS. PPI has several subsidiaries (including PBI), 1,200-plus employees and publishes more than 100 newsletters. To learn more about the corporation, check out http://www.phillips.com. To learn about PR NEWS' sister publications, log onto prandmarketing.com.
Early years: Born: New York City; Education: Connelly School of the Holy Child in Potomac, Md.; BA in English Literature from the University of Rochester
First job: Research Assistant, Worldwide Information Resources, Inc. (WIRES), a consulting firm in Washington, D.C.
First job in career: Public Affairs Assistant, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a research institution in Washington, D.C.
Hobbies: Spending time with family, reading, watching old movies, hiking and going to art museums.
Mentor(s): My parents, Joan and Richard Whalen; M. Jon Vondracek, VP for external relations, CSIS
Biggest challenge in PR going into the millennium: Because our world is so interconnected, the biggest challenge will be coping and communicating with various publics (in the United States and especially overseas) that are affected by the Y2K problem.
The Y2K bug can cause possible public relations problems for corporations, financial institutions and state, local, and federal government agencies with public exposure. Even the most prepared company or agency could be impacted. All public relations professionals should anticipate potential questions on this important issue by working closely with the Information Technology staff and senior management within their organizations.