Amy T. Coward, APR, Fellow PRSA
V.P. Public Relations
Palmetto Health Foundation
Columbia, South Carolina
Applying for: Southeast District Director
Alternate Position(s):
Biography
Amy Coward is a 1980 graduate of the University of Florida with a Bachelor of Science degree in Advertising. She completed her Master's Degree in Public Relations at the University of South Carolina in 1987. Since 1980, Coward has worked in public relations primarily in the non-profit sector, where her campaigns have supported millions of dollars in fundraising.
Coward is an accredited public relations practitioner (APR) and Fellow PRSA. She has won several awards for her work from the South Carolina Chapter of PRSA. She has supported PRSA through her membership and leadership of the Southeast District Board where she formerly served as chair. During her tenure with the Southeast District Board, Coward led the Affinity Call program and developed and implemented a Leadership Rally for chapter leaders.
Coward is past president of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Board for the Central South Carolina Chapter and has served on the Board of Trustees at Shandon Methodist Church in Columbia, SC. She also serves as guest lecturer at the University of South Carolina.
Coward is currently the Vice President of Public Relations for Palmetto Health Foundation.
PRSA Accomplishments
2002 - Mercury Award Certificate of Merit - campaign brochure - SCPRSA
2002- Mercury Award Certificate of Merit - education campaign - SCPRSA
2006- Mercury Award - branding campaign - SCPRSA
2011-SC PRSA Mercury Awards Committee
2013 - Director-At-Large - Southeast PRSA District - Affinity Call Program Coordinator
2014- Chair-Elect - Southeast PRSA District
2014 - PRSA College of Fellows
2015- Chair - Southeast PRSA District
2016-2017 - Southeast District Director, PRSA Board of Directors
2016-2017 - PRSA Foundation Board member
2016 - PRSA Finance Committee
2016 - PRSA Research Committee
2017 - PRSA Membership Committee
Governance Skills
For more than 25 years, I have enjoyed a public relations career in the non-profit sector. Governance is a critical issue in this arena. In each of my positions, especially in my current role, I have been required to work from a strategic plan, develop and manage boards and assess the work of my staff, boards and committees.
I have created strategic plans with the cooperation of boards and staff. From those, I have developed work plans and communication plans with budgets to implement both. Each month, I examine our department and organizational budgets to determine the status of our goals and put in place initiatives to make necessary improvements or adjustments.
The non-profit sector is heavily scrutinized and thus very goal-oriented. We are held accountable by our boards and the public we serve so fiscal oversight is crucial. In my current role, I establish metrics for each event and initiative we implement and examine each one for effectiveness.
In additional to my professional experience, I have served as a board member and officer of the local chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. I have dealt with by-laws, policies and fiscal oversight at the volunteer level. I have also served as a Trustee at Shandon United Methodist Church where we supervised all expenses related to the church property.
My professional experience, in addition to my volunteer work, has required me to manage many governance issues on a daily basis. Governance is my strong suit and I would be honored to used this skill for the betterment of PRSA.
Leadership Skills
I have been fortunate to serve on the leadership team (working directly with the CEO and other department leaders) in several organizations including my current position. I also served in leadership with the Association of Fundraising Professionals and the Southeast District of PRSA. I find this level of involvement to be very gratifying.
As part of leadership teams, I have been challenged with a goal for which methods had to be developed to achieve success. As a leader, it was my role to engage the right partners -- staff, board members, committee members -- to employ the right tactics. Buy-in from these partners was extremely important so it was my job to inspire, motivate and work with each partner in a specific way to get the job done and meet the goal.
The PRSA board is faced with challenges as well. We have an organization to grow and nurture and it is our job as leaders to find the right way to do this with buy-in from our 22,000 members and 11,000 PRSSA members (our future). We have a strong, new strategic plan that needs our full attention and focus as board members. The plan, coupled with inspiration, motivation and leadership will help us move the organization forward. I would be honored to be part of the team.
Strengths
The main strength and competency I bring to the PRSA board of directors is my years of leadership experience in the non-profit sector. For years, my role has been to work with boards, committees and staff to meet the critical goals of the organization. This required the obvious knowledge of governance, policy development and fiscal accountability. But it also required an ability to work with a variety of people - from corporate executives to entry level staff to community volunteers -- each with a different perspective and priority.
My varied experience has allowed me to hone my interpersonal skills so that I am able to listen effectively to the needs of different groups and individuals within the organization. Developing new plans and initiatives is not always easy. People don't like change. But change is necessary for growth and competitiveness, and it has often been my role to bring people together around a common goal and seek acceptance.
To help me build these leadership and interpersonal skills, I have been fortunate to take part in several leadership development programs. One such program was with Farr & Associates in North Carolina. I attended two sessions on leadership led by prominent psychologists. It was very introspective and helped me see things from different perspectives. Other opportunities included the Non-Profit Leadership Institute at Francis Marion University and the Institute for Charitable Giving leadership program in Chicago with Jerold Panas.
Volunteer Commitment
I have a deep appreciation of people who give generously of their time to organizations. I know from a personal perspective how organizations cannot thrive without them. I work for an organization such as this.
I am committed to managing my time to benefit PRSA. I believe that is at the heart of it all. Those who want to do things find a way to do them and I very much want to work with the PRSA board of directors. Fortunately for me, I have organizational support from my president and my "right hand" assistant vice president. Because of them, I can be out of the office for meetings and work remotely to keep things going. I am also blessed with a highly competent staff who give me peace of mind that things will not entirely unravel while I'm gone.
If I make a commitment to do something, I do it. I want to be an active, strong contributor to the board and am committed to see that through.
Position Statement #1
Prompt: The lines continue to blur among the disciplines of public relations, marketing, IT and customer service, and the need increases to create more collaborative teams and hybrid professionals. PRSA has continued to evolve and respond to these issues in support of our members, partners and colleagues. What do you believe are the strongest components of PRSA’s strategic plan that will help our members address these challenges, and how will PRSA remain relevant and sustainable for the future?
I agree that the lines continue to blur among several disciplines within organizations. I also believe that it's okay, even healthy. If we are in silos too much, we will not understand the other departmental/professional perspectives and challenges. If we work together and realize that we have common goals with individual expertise, we will have better success at achieving our goals.
In the new PRSA strategic plan, the component that is most critical in addressing these challenges is the section on "Enhancing Professional Growth." With every new challenge, education is key. Our industry may have new challenges, but by expanding professional development programming, we can help PRSA professionals adjust and grow.
One primary target in the plan mentions establishing partnerships with multi-disciplinary organizations in order to cross-train. Here is where we as leaders can help professionals work within their own companies or organizations and bridge the divide that often exists.
The steps in the "Enhancing Professional Growth" section will help PRSA remain relevant and vital to communications professionals now and in the future.
Position Statement # 2
Prompt: PRSA has become more complex and diverse in recent years. While the Society must become nimbler, we also are cognizant that we must help prepare our members to meet tomorrow’s challenges as leaders at every level. The role of the communications professional will continue to evolve, and PRSA will anticipate future trends, and support our members at every stage of their career. As a member of PRSA’s national board, what do you see as your role in contributing to helping our membership meet tomorrow’s challenges as leaders?
I believe it's imperative that PRSA anticipate future trends and support all of our members regardless of stage of career. If we don't, we will be obsolete.
I see my role on the board as someone to look at what PRSA has to offer and determine if it's still relevant. It's important to be bold enough to question certain programs and initiatives, even the way we are run, and ask, "does this really still help fulfill our mission?" It's very easy to keep doing things because we've always done them a certain way. We have to be able to step back, be objective and determine which offerings have a strong return on investment.
In addition to reviewing what is already being offered, it's important to ask, "what are we missing?" Professionals at different stages of their careers have different expectations. While some may still appreciate newsletters, conferences with "talking heads" and webinars, others may find them irrelevant. There may be other, more attractive ways to reach our members and help them grow in their careers.
I believe that's the role of the board -- to question, to analyze and seek fresh approaches to the challenges before us.
Amy T. Coward, APR, Fellow PRSA
Category
Southeast District Director