From the moment I set foot on site, I’ve been running into old friends and meeting complete strangers I’ve quickly felt compelled to start chatting with. It’s quite the crowd. Even the MC who, someone I’ve worked with previously and is used to hosting major crowds, mentioned his nerves, knowing so many great minds were attending.

Creativity is everyone’s business

Kicking off the party was Sid Lee’s own Jean-François Bouchard, whose team’s vision has made C2-MTL possible for the second year.

“Every object is the fruit of an idea. Creativity is everyone’s business. Make it your business to be creative, make it your business to have fun,” he said, reminding the audience that creativity shouldn’t be a department  - but coming from everyone in a company.

IDEO’s Fred Dust also reminded us that design is about paying careful attention to the world around you.

“Don’t ask. People will always default to their ideal self, not who they really are,” said Dust. For example, when officially asked what music someone listens to, they might answer “classical” instead of admitting they actually prefer Celine Dion.

Building empathy is key to understanding and connecting with your audience, he continued.

“You’ll be a better designer if you actually love the people you design for.”

Sure, I might not be a designer – but I can see the relevance in every sphere I work in, from traditional PR to social. Dust’s reminder to be brave, and to be bold is also so relevant in our field: Having the courage to push ideas we believe in, drive them forward and follow the insight every step of the way.

Giving as a business

TOMS Shoes founder Blake Mycoskie was by far the most inspirational part of the day for me.

Listening to the story of how the idea came to him in Argentina, wanting to help kids get the shoes they needed for school, moved me – and moved the businesswoman in me. Not only was the story touching, but the idea was brilliant.

“My life didn’t change when I created TOMS. My life changed when I got to hand place those shoes on the children’s feet,” he said, adding that together his partners and customers made his company a success. “Giving is a really good business strategy and there is nothing wrong with that. Your customers will be your best ambassadors.”  Doing good and being successful can truly go hand in hand.

Designer Philippe Starck also brought his bold humour to the stage.

“Humour is the most beautiful symptom of human intelligence,” he said.

The day closed with Montreal’s very best representation of the city’s creativity: Cirque du Soleil. It was a spectacular performance that made the audience want just a little bit more… and excited for what the next two days will bring.

Here are a few key qualifications that we want you to have:

1. A good understanding of invoice, purchase order and general finance processes
2. Strong computer skills particularly in excel and word
3. Excellent Communication skills both oral and written
4. Excellent customer service
5. Education in the finance field would be an asset, but not a necessity

If this sounds like you, please contact careers@highroad.com.

• Work with Graphic Designers, User Experience and Development teams to implement elegant and responsive user interfaces.
• Build efficient and reusable front-end templates that work across a wide range of devices and/or Web browsers.
• Build interactive Facebook applications.
• Identify and address performance bottlenecks.
• Optimize JavaScript, HTML and CSS code.
• Participate in design and code reviews.
• Interact with other team members to incorporate their innovations and vice versa.
• Identify, communicate and promote best practices for front-end development.

Desired Skills & Experience

• Expert knowledge of web technologies (HTML/CSS/JS).
• Experience working with HTML/CSS/JS in high-performance environments.
• Experience with scripting languages (PHP, Python, node.js, etc.).
• Extremely detail oriented.
• Unmistakable passion for elegant, responsive and intuitive user interfaces.
• Ability to write well-abstracted, reusable code for UI components.
• Knowledge of but not reliant on Object Oriented JavaScript Frameworks (jQuery, Prototype, etc.)
• Excellent written and oral communications skills.
• 4+ years of experience building web applications.

If this is you, please contact careers@highroad.com and tell us all about yourself!

It’s a tradition of mine – as I’m sure it is for many – to really take some time at the end of each year and look back on how the year has gone. And when I look back at High Road’s last year, I can’t help but say that it’s been nothing short of incredible.

Here’s a quick snapshot of some of the most memorable moments of 2012:

SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT

Our work with American Express Canada focused on putting social engagement back into the hands of fans.

From Amex’s “Best of” Canada series where fans voted for their favourite hotspots across Canada, to Last Vacation Standing where fans could vote for their top destination on a weekly basis to pick the ultimate dream vacation, we looked for new and fun ways to keep our Facebook audiences engaged with the content we create.

As the Amex Canada Facebook page grew by over 150,000 new fans this year, it was important to not only create interactive and engaging content, but also keep our fans coming back week by week.

In 2012 we also did some amazing work with Cadillac Fairview.

Our strategic focus on creating shareable content and driving dialogue helped grow the overall social media audience to more than 150,000 fans, an increase of 430 per cent over the previous year.  This included everything from the Toronto Eaton Centre’s PhotoStar contest, which resulted in more than 16,000 photos being taken in just one week, hundreds of votes and a doubling of the shopping centre’s fan base.

Fairview Mall’s Fall into Fashion was another fully integrated campaign across Facebook, Twitter and YouTube that saw three fashion bloggers give unsuspecting shoppers surprise makeovers.

Fans voted on their favourite before and after shots, and in just two weeks, Fairview gained almost 600 new fans and earned over 1.2 million impressions. Amazing!

CONSUMER LAUNCHES

To say 2012 was a big year for Microsoft Canada would be an understatement: With multiple big bets, PR efforts focused on supporting and amplifying pivotal consumer launches.

From flying top media to New York, to travelling cross country from Vancouver to Halifax, HRC helped show that Microsoft has revolutionized the desktop with Windows 8 and the highly anticipated Surface Tablet. We got our game on for the return of Master Chief in the much awaited launch of Halo 4 and broke a sweat with the release of the Nike+ Kinect Training game.

And of course, we rounded the year out with the launch of Windows Phone 8, enabling PR to share inspiring three-screen stories. This was an exhilarating, exciting and incredibly busy year that we couldn’t be happier to have been a part of.

CONTENT MARKETING IN ACTION

High Road also proved this year that content really is king, with the amazing success of Sun Life Financial’s content marketing platform BrighterLife.ca. 

Together, High Road and Sun Life garnered top industry recognition for this innovative platform including a prestigious gold SABRE award, official honouree of the Annual Webby Awards, a gold Magnum Opus, and just last month a bronze from the CMAs.

Probably most rewarding for the team though, was witnessing the real business success BrighterLife.ca has delivered to the brand.  This year, Strategy Magazine named Sun Life’s EVP and CMO Mary De Paoli Marketer of the Year, and she cited BrighterLife.ca as her biggest success of 2012.  Awesome!

HIGH ROAD IN HEALTHCARE 

The High Road team has also made some significant strides in our healthcare expertise: This year marked another rewarding journey with the digital development of The Ottawa Hospital’s online annual report for the second year, and being honoured with a silver Magnum Opus for our work on the 2011 platform.

TELUS Health also worked with us to take its online healthcare hub to new levels, offering a more audience-centric online experience to showcase the latest technologies in health.

We also worked to transition the Canadian Health Services Research Foundation to the Canadian Foundation for Healthcare Improvement, a change that is sure to help the organization reflect their dedication to healthcare improvement across Canada, told through a series of impactful stories affecting the healthcare system across the county.

And last, but not least, AstraZeneca too transitioned its online presence this year with a new external website, showcasing how their activities as a global organization touch so many people’s lives.

HIGH ROAD IN THE COMMUNITY

Though these highlights only scratch the surface of the work done this year for our diverse roster of clients, the thing that really amazes me the most is that despite the sometimes round-the-clock life of a public relations professional, our team continued to also time to use their skills to do good for our community.

In October we raised more than $6,500 for the CIBC Run for the Cure and we teamed up with Second Harvest to promote the 22^nd Toronto Taste event, which raised enough money to deliver more than 670,000 meals to those in need.

Our design and writing team even created a small impromptu campaign to encourage Canadians to, upon word that the Canadian penny would soon be retired, donate their pennies to a good cause.

I’m so proud to work with such dynamic and dedicated people, everyday working with some of this country’s most celebrated brands.

Happy holidays, and cheers to a great 2013!

Sarah Spence is a Senior Vice President, Partner and General Manager of High Road Communications. She is based in Toronto. 

The Be Bold: Stop Bullying campaign is an ongoing initiative that seeks to inspire teens, parents, and educators to not only make a personal commitment, by taking the online pledge, but to further that pledge by recruiting friends and family to join in the fight to end bullying.

The new app, accessible at facebook.com/beboldstopbullying.ca is just the latest development in Facebook’s long-term commitment to working with leading organizations to encourage thoughtful conversations and exchange useful information and resources about bullying prevention.

As believers in both the campaign’s cause and mission, High Road was honoured at the privilege to work closely with the Facebook team to execute the launch of the Be Bold: Stop Bullying campaign in Canada. The event not only saw the support of over 100 high school students in attendance take the online pledge but also the turnout of every major news (CTV, Toronto Sun, Globe and Mail) outlet in the Greater Toronto Region.

With the goal of inspiring the more than 18 million active Canadians on Facebook the team pulled out all the stops to ensure its reach was both widespread and effective. This, in the form of garnering support from some of Canada’s top talent including singer LIGHTS, TV personality Rick Mercer, and Toronto’s very own Raptors basketball team, all of whom proving in their own way to be dedicated advocates of the cause.

While Facebook and its partners strive to bring national awareness to the issue, the journey to end bullying does not stop there. As Hon. Laurel Broten, Ontario Minister of Education and active supporter of the Be Bold: Stop Bulling campaign says:

“We all have a role to play to make our schools and communities free from bullying and accepting places for everyone. When we act together, we can send a strong message that bullying is not ok – wherever it happens – whether at school, in the community or online. That’s why I’m so proud to join Facebook’s “Be Bold Stop Bullying” campaign and to take the pledge to take a stand against bullying. Because by working together we can make it better.” 

Join Facebook, High Road and countless other supporters as we band together to create a unified front against the permeation of bullying online, in schools, and at home.

Log onto Facebook to take the Be Bold Stop Bullying pledge today!

And this year, in collaboration with the High Road team, TEC pulled out all the stops to leave mall-goers dazzled and delighted.

The first thing on HRC’s Christmas list was working with Toronto Eaton Centre to set up the “Style your own Holiday Greeting” app, which allows Facebook users to create, customize and share their own online greeting card with friends and family on Facebook and Twitter.

The application was designed in-house by HRC’s creative team, using TEC’s new Christmas imagery. From these custom images, Toronto Eaton Centre Facebook followers choose what their greeting card will look like.

Once the greeting card design is chosen, users get to pick their own message – wishing for new clothes, lots of snow, or time with family and friends – to give their greeting a personalized touch. Greetings can then be shared on Facebook, or on Twitter, to spread the Christmas cheer.

And to spread the word even further, we partnered with three Toronto bloggers to share Toronto Eaton Centre’s holiday experience. Bryan from 1LOVETO stopped by in November to check out TEC’s tree lightening ceremony, complete with a 50-foot modern LED Christmas tree – and six giant LED reindeer. Bryan tweeted throughout the night, and took amazing photos of the whole event, capturing shots of host Jeanne Beker, musical guest Kreesha Turner and, of course, Santa.

We also worked with Carrie Anne from EverythingMom.com to share her and her daughter’s day at Storytime with Santa – where kids get to experience the North Pole in the heart of downtown Toronto – capturing everything from the feeling of stepping into the North Pole, to time with Santa himself.

For more visit Toronto Eaton Centre’s Facebook or Twitter page, or spend an afternoon at TEC for a first-hand look at the Christmas delights for shoppers.

And as the HRC team gears up to spend the holidays with friends and family, we want to wish you all the best this season.

From High Road and Toronto Eaton Centre: Happy Holidays!

High Road Montreal recently had the pleasure of working with Xbox to put together an event to promote the latest features of Xbox LIVE, the online entertainment experience that lets you play Kinect and controller games with friends, as well as instantly watch HD movies, TV shows and sports.

While High Road has teamed up with Xbox before to unveil some of those awesome new features in to Canadian media, this was the first chance we had to present Xbox LIVE’s latest features to the Quebec market.

To make the event more relevant to local media, we partnered up with Radio-Canada to showcase their TOU.TV app. Launched online in 2010, TOU.TV is a go-to portal for all Radio Canada content.

Available for the first time on a gaming console—the Xbox 360— TOU.TV is also the first-ever app to deliver French Canadian content to Xbox users, showing the gaming giant’s commitment to the Quebec market.

Xbox was also unveiling the much anticipated app, Karaoke, which was developed in partnership with Stingray Digital, a Montreal-based company. While the app’s name alone sells itself, Karaoke gives users access to over 8,000 songs in its music library, almost guaranteeing a good time.

In the end, Montreal’s top entertainment, lifestyle and gaming media attended the event.  The attendees loved singing along with the Karaoke app and couldn’t get enough of Xbox Live and the new TOU.TV app.

Working with the Xbox Live team was nothing short of exciting.

The only question the HRC team were left wondering was this: Can this really be considered work when everything’s just fun and games?

Forget bake sales and walking your neighbour’s dog, in Fall 2012, SCENE gave students an opportunity to work with their peers and get creative with how they fund their education. To do this, High Road joined together with SCENE, the popular entertainment loyalty program from Cineplex Entertainment and Scotiabank, and Redwood Strategic, to run the SCENEster campaign.

So what’s SCENEster?

It’s a series of contests and initiatives that rewarded one lucky student with a $5,000 scholarship. SCENE and Redwood selected 20 student leaders (and their associated organizations) from across Canada to compete in a series of challenges. SCENE provided $35,000 in sponsorship and prizes to students participating and helped them raise awareness for each club nationwide.  In addition to the scholarship funding, students were trained in skills such as marketing, presentations, working in groups and dealing with media – skills they can take with them beyond their time in academia.

To help publicize the students’ efforts, High Road developed a community media relations program.  By working with local media in the different regions, we helped to shine a light on their community work and progress with the challenges, all while highlighting their charitable initiatives.

At the end of the three month campaign, Christina Wong was the winner from University of British Columbia (UBC). Wong chose to donate her $5,000 SCENE scholarship to World Vision, a charity she is closely involved with at UBC. She also got to treat nine friends to a Canadian movie premiere courtesy of SCENE. The second place winner was Ian Watson from Laurier’s Fashion ‘n Motion and third place was Laura Mitchell from the Trent University Synchro Club.

High Road was honoured to partner up with SCENE and Redwood Strategic on this campaign that helped students achieve skills that they will use for a lifetime.

To learn more, head to www.scene.ca.

Just two months after the successful launch of Nature Unleashed: Inside Natural Disasters, The Canadian Museum of Nature capped off a fantastic 2012 with the grand reopening of the Vale Earth Gallery.  The permanent exhibit is double the size of the museum’s previous Earth Gallery and contains more than 1,000 awe-inspiring mineral, rock and gem specimens.

These samples truly have to be seen to be believed.

In the gallery you’ll find 14 oversize mineral samples (including crystals) weighing from 100 to 500 pounds, more than 30 meteorites collected from Canada and all around the world, and a sample of the oldest rock on earth (3.8 billion years old!).

The museum has also added a number of fun, interactive displays.  Kids of all ages can build volcanos, cause earthquakes and simulate making different kinds of rock with steam-punk machines like the Sedimentator, Magmanator and the Metamorphicator. And for those who want to wield the power of the universe, how about taking the controls of a six-foot animated globe? Make it spin, drain the oceans, see the web of tectonic plates that cover the earth, etc. Last, but not least, explore an incredibly lifelike limestone cave, complete with its very own dripping waterfall.

With High Road’s assistance, museum staff landed some great coverage.  Their team appeared as guests on CTV Morning Live and Rogers Daytime, while great print and broadcast coverage appeared in The Ottawa Citizen (see the Video Gallery here), The Ottawa Sun, CTV, CBC, EMC, and Ottawa Life Magazine.

The debut of the new Earth Gallery even attracted national coverage with articles popping up in the travel pages of The Vancouver Province, The Winnipeg Free Press, The Cape Breton Post, and Sympatico.ca, as well as a number of high profile Quebec blogs.

All and all, it was for a rock solid opening for yet another fascinating, world-class exhibit at the Canadian Museum of Nature. If you happen to be in Ottawa over the holidays, be sure to drop by the Canadian Museum of Nature as kids (ages 3-12) are half-price) until Dec. 24, 2012.