For brands that are willing to listen on social media, there’s a lot to discover about one’s target audience. Communicators often forget that social media is more than an engagement & content-sharing platform, but also a comprehensive research tool that gives brands a direct look into the thoughts of their target audience. So how can brands rethink the traditional use of social media and harness its true power for a holistic and effective communications strategy? Meltwater's Laila Mousa will be talking at EMENAComm on how brands can use social media listening to turbocharge their comms strategy. She talks to us on the podcast to share insights on her talk. Catch her at EMENAComm in Bahrain on the 12 February.

Globalisation and the ubiquity of social media have impacted how we practice communications; we’ve moved from being transactional to collaborative, both internally and externally. How did that happen,what are the influences, and what do these trends mean for communicators? Muriel Pineau joins us on the podcast today to share insights from her presentation at EMENAComm on how communicators can and should adapt to communicating in a global landscape. Enjoy the podcast and see Muriel in Bahrain on the 11 February at EMENAComm.

Communication lies at the heart of leadership, and yet leaders are often ill-prepared for the specific communication challenges change presents, and often under-served by the communication professionals who support them. At EMENAComm, Colin Hatfield will reveal a few of the tools and techniques he has developed that strategic advisers can deploy with leaders to help them be more effective, inspiring and influential communicators and engage more strongly and productively with their teams. Today, he gives us a sneak peak into his session on the podcast.

In today’s world, organisations and companies must build an authentic and two-way relationship with their clients, customers and wider stakeholders. One increasingly popular way to achieve this is through brand journalism, by telling journalism-style stories about a company that make readers want to know more, stories that don’t read like marketing or advertising copy. Former journalist Gay Flashman will be at EMENAComm to share her thought leadership on how brand journalism can play a part in any communications. Today she shares insights on the role brand journalism is playing in making communications more effective. Enjoy the podcast and see Gay in February at EMENAComm.

We all understand the importance of reputation, but how much do we know about what shapes reputation? Matthew Painter UK Managing Director – Corporate Reputation at Ipsos MORI, will be joining us at EMENAComm to explore how communications leaders across the world are responding to shifting demands from consumers, policy-makers and the media – drawing on Ipsos’s latest global research, including: the findings from our 2018 ‘Reputation Council’ study. Today, Matt talks about how reputation drivers are shifting and why consumers are demanding more from the brands and organizations that they are dealing with. Enjoy the podcast, and see Matt at EMENAComm in Bahrain this February.

A pioneer in the CSR space across EMENA, Monaem Ben Lellahom will be joining us at EMENAComm. Today he talks us through why corporate social responsibility matters, both as an opportunity as well as a risk to organizational reputations. He'll be sharing unique insights at EMENAComm on pioneering research into sustainability and CSR trends across the Middle East and Africa. Enjoy the podcast and see Monaem at EMENAComm this February in Bahrain.

Research shows that only 4% of people meet their goals each year. Part of the issue may be that using an old, traditional approach to goal-setting often leads to mounting frustration and undue stress. Jan Spence will be joining us at EMENAComm to share a fresh, innovative perspective on how to develop a game plan and maintain momentum to achieve their goals and objectives. She joins us today on the podcast to give us a taste of what to expect in February.

We're in for a treat at EMENAComm. IABC’s past global chair and the CEO of the Centre for Strategic Communication Excellence, Adrian Cropley will be sharing his insights on how Artificial Intelligence will change the communications function, and what we need to do to prepare for this change. Today he joins us on the podcast to give us a glimpse into what AI means for us and what we should be doing to get ready for this shift in communications.

Metaphors are an incredibly powerful tool for communicating, especially when talking about change. IABC’s past APAC Chair Dr Rajeev Kumar will being joining us at EMENAComm to share his expertise in how figures of speech can be used to promote change and engagement internally. He joins us to share a teaser into his talk, and discusses what we can all do to make the most of metaphors in storytelling.

The many competing demands for our attention can feel like a wall of noise, making it hard to pick out the really important messages that we need to hear. For example, research shows that Google is a more credible source of information than CEOs and, with trust in society at a low point, leaders are struggling to be heard. So how do both leaders and employees get heard? Drawing on extensive experience and case studies, Darren Briggs will be running an exclusive workshop at EMENAComm. Today he talks on the podcast, to give us a taster of what is to come in February!