PR-Bridge

Many communications executives and managers believe that they can do their companies a favor by hiring bright, young employees who “get” the latest communications innovations, such as blogging, podcasting, camera work, and other advanced tools. I am sure that if I were in their shoes, I would feel the same way. Even though I am a proud Gen Xer (tech savvy by nature), I expect students to know more about technology than I do.

I learned over the last couple years, however, that this stereotype does not hold true. In most cases, students do not grasp these innovations or, more importantly, understand how they might be used in a campaign. Equating the extensive (over-?) use of cell phones with technological know-how is a mistake. Obviously, there are college students (and PR majors) who understand technology and its implications, so I am generalizing. But, I think practitioners would be surprised about the lack of knowledge in this area if they were in my shoes.

In my opinion, educators need to help prepare students in this area, but it is also imperative that they do what they can on their own to build strengths regarding technology. Any future communicator could begin a blog or build a Web site to show a potential employer that they have experience with the tools. Also, many organizations, particularly non-profits, could benefit from a student building such sites for them.

I have started a blogging community in both my “Writing for Public Relations” classes to provide a sense of what it is like to be part of an online community for my students. I have also encouraged one class to build social networking spaces for its service-learning client. In the wider tech realm, these are baby steps, but somewhat helpful if a student has little experience coming into the course. What I would prefer is a class students could take that focused solely on “high tech” communications, from building sites to learning about RSS, Twitter, and other new tools.

I would enjoy hearing other opinions/thoughts on this topic — both how you teach technology and what experiences professionals have had in hiring young employees. Did they have the necessary tools that you expected?