There is a long and rich history of communications best practices, particularly techniques for communicating within an organization. Ways of measuring the effectiveness of such communication, on the other hand, have a less than robust history.
In this session, Kris Russell, a director of insights and analytics within Walmart’s Public Affairs Division who directly supports the internal communications teams, will discuss some of the challenges as well as opportunities for communications measurement in today’s environment. Artificial Intelligence and machine learning are changing many aspects of daily life and communications measurement is no exception. The session will conclude with examples and demos of how tools such as Quid and IBM’s Watson are playing a role in driving communications analysis into the future.
- When: 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., May 18, 2016
- Where: Tulsa Country Club, 701 N. Union Ave., Tulsa, OK 74127
- IABC member registration fee: $25
- IABC non-member/guest registration fee: $35
- Student fee: $15
About Kris
Kris started working in Walmart stores in 1996. Since coming to the home office in 1999, he has held a variety of positions ranging from analytical leadership roles in loss prevention/asset protection, claims management and advanced project management in Walmart’s Innovations Division. Kris’s current challenge is to figure out how to effectively measure the cause and effect relationship between internal communications and Walmart’s business. Ultimate success is arming the communications team with the knowledge of what weapon to use to achieve a desired outcome.
Prior to taking on that challenge, Kris was the senior manager for Global Security’s Analytics and Insights team. He focused on travel and event security for Walmart’s top executives, monitoring for potentially disruptive activity and catastrophic risk research.
He recently completed the Naval Postgraduate School’s Executive Leadership Program in Monterey, California (one of only a handful of private sector individuals allowed to participate). Kris has a Bachelor of Arts in criminal justice from the University of Arkansas and holds a variety of professional certifications and training including Six Sigma, statistical analysis and project management, to name a few. Kris is active in his church and community, also sitting on the board of directors for his son’s daycare.