McDermott Addresses The International Publications Planning Team Association 5th Annual Conference, in San Francisco

Lynda McDermott, President of EquiPro International, Ltd. recently was the keynote speaker for The International Publications Planning Team Association in San Francisco, California. (TIPPA)

TIPPA’s mission is to foster excellence in medical publications and communications within the biopharmaceutical industry.

McDermott has over 20 years of experience with over a 1000 teams in over 25 countries. Her topic, customized for this conference was “Fostering Effective Publications Planning Team Dynamics”.

McDermott explained, with case studies and stories, that there are three (3) keys to building World Class Publication Planning Teams:

Seek out similarities: Publication Planning Teams are comprised of people, who represent different functions, different areas of expertise and perceptions, and different working styles. Rather than focus on these differences, seek, first, to find common ground and areas of similarity that can serve to bond team members together.

Build a Real World Class Team: As a Publication Planning Team Leader you are charged with developing and executing a Publication Plan with a group of people, internal and external to the company, over whom you have no direct authority. Your primary leadership task is to build them into a team that is mutually committed and accountable for achieving agreed-to results. Focusing on results and not just tasks and deadlines increases commitment and shared accountability for results.
Commit to a “Calling Card”: Truly successful Publications Planning Teams do not do their “jobs” i.e. complete assigned tasks and activities. They recognize that successful execution of their publication plans go beyond just meeting company and professional goals. The results of their work contribute to advancing science and improving the health of people’s lives.

Click this link to hear Lynda’s keynote at the 5th Annual Conference for The International Publications Planning Association in San Francisco, CA on June 26, 2007 on the topic: “ Fostering Effective Publication Planning Team Dynamics.” If you would like to get a copy of this full presentation or talk about Lynda presenting to your group, contact us at info@equiproint.com

"I want to take a moment to thank you for yesterday. I am extremely appreciative of your cool head and facilitating skills to always seek out of us what we sometimes can't say on our own. I, for one, feel that we accomplished a great deal – not only in squaring away some important process issues, but of course in clearing the air on that "emotional stuff" that too often impedes our work."

Kathi Johnson,
Executive Vice President,
Health/ROI
Pfizer Inc.