Leadership Expert and Entrepreneurship Champion to Address Annual Gathering of Canadian Communication Professionals

Pioneering CN Chairman David McLean will speak with Canadian Public Relations Society members about the importance of communications

MONTREAL, May 26, 2015 /CNW/ - One of Canada's most successful corporate leaders and engaging story tellers will share his thoughts on the significance of communications in the business world with the country's leading public relations professionals.  David McLean was the founding board chair of CN, the now global railway leader he helped privatize at the request of the Canadian government.

McLean will deliver the prestigious Diana and Charles Tisdall Lecture in Communications at the Canadian Public Relations Society (CPRS) national conference at the Westin Montreal Tuesday, June 2, 2015.  McLean plans to talk about his business life including how professional communication and public affairs made a difference in his endeavours. He will provide examples of how to communicate issues in a creative, timely and successful fashion.

"David is a great story teller and will illustrate his thoughts in real-world examples," said Bruce MacLellan, chair of the Communications + Public Foundation, the organization that sponsors the annual Tisdall Lecture.  MacLellan said Mr. McLean will touch on crisis communication particularly as it relates to dealing with complex public affairs issues around acquisitions in both Canada and the US. "He has a strong sense of public service as well as business success.  He will talk about how having a strong personal set of values is imperative in living a successful life," said MacLellan.

McLean served on the Board of Directors of CN for 28 years, and chaired the Board for 20 years. He was appointed by Prime Minister Jean Chretien to privatize CN, a feat he accomplished in 11 months from his appointment. CN's IPO was the largest in Canadian history at that time at $2.3 billion. His book, A Road Taken, was published in April 2014 when he stepped down from the CN Board.

Established by the Tisdall family through the Communications + Public Relations Foundation, and in partnership with the Canadian Public Relations Society, the annual Diana and Charles Tisdall Lecture in Communications aims to demonstrate the societal power and value of public relations and communications thinking.

Charles Tisdall was a recognized leader in public relations in Canada and the United States having established the firm Tisdall Clark in the early 1950s. He died in 2007. During his career, he was named one of the world's 40 outstanding public-relations professionals by Public Relations News.

The Communications + Public Relations Foundation is a not-for-profit charitable organization committed to increasing public knowledge and awareness of the role of communications and public relations by providing support to educational initiatives that advance the profession.  It promotes an advancement of communications and public relations as a vital function in society and is dedicated to the public interest. 

Founded in 1948, the Canadian Public Relations Society (CPRS) is a not-for-profit organization whose members are engaged in the practice, management or teaching of public relations. Members work to maintain the highest standards and to share a uniquely Canadian experience in public relations. CPRS is a federation of more than 1,800 members across 14 member societies based in major cities or organized province-wide. 

SOURCE Communications + Public Relations Foundation

Information: Karen Dalton, APR, CAE, Executive Director, Canadian Public Relations Society, Mobile: [phone]; Yanik Deschenes, LLB, ARP, Member, Board of Directors, Communications + Public Relations Foundation, Phone: [phone]