The Trending Communicator

• PR is Juggling Knives on Fire While Riding a Unicycle - with Abenaa Hayes

  Can you juggle? If you're a communications pro today, you'd better learn how. Just when you think you've got a good rhythm going, someone tosses you another responsibility. Maybe it's a new social platform. Maybe it's a cultural shift that changes how your audience thinks. Maybe it's AI lighting everything on fire. But you can handle it. In this episode of The Trending Communicator, host Dan Nestle sits down with Abenaa (Abby) Hayes, founder and CEO of Elysee Consulting, who's been perfecting this professional juggling act for over two decades, helping executives and organizations navigate inclusion and social impact communications without losing their footing. She doesn't just help companies say the right things; she helps them figure out how to authentically live their values in a fractured landscape where performative statements can and do backfire often. What happens when the inclusion specialist walks out of the room? Ask American Eagle about their Sydney Sweeney campaign. Or better yet, listen as Abby breaks down why having the right people in the room matters more than ever, and why those people shouldn't be treated like cops, but as strategic advisors who help you achieve what you actually want to achieve. This conversation goes way beyond the DEI acronym to explore what it really means to show up authentically when everyone's watching, everyone's got an opinion, and the stakes keep getting higher. Listen in and hear about... Why "showing up" means more than just posting something and walking away How the fractured media landscape requires meeting audiences where they actually are (hint: it's not always the New York Times) The real reason former journalists are becoming PR's secret weapon Why AI literacy isn't optional anymore—the people who know AI are coming for your job How to navigate inclusion without becoming the content police The American Eagle case study and what happens when brainstorms escape into the wild Why curiosity might be your only real competitive advantage Notable Quotes On the Importance of Inclusion: "To me that's ultimately what it's about. And if I just look at the demographics, both of the US and globally, like we're truly operating in a multicultural and multiethnic world." - Abenaa Hayes [11:40 → 12:02] On the Evolution of Media Relations: "Media relations is no longer the be all end all in terms of not only driving awareness but cultivating credibility. Right. You've got to take literally like a multi step approach in order to drive ultimately what I call brand engagement." - Abenaa Hayes [36:20 → 37:15] On AI Literacy: "If you're really looking to future proof a career, your competency and know how to navigate everything that's coming, you have to actually understand how to use it and also be fluent in it." - Abenaa Hayes [50:03 → 51:50] On AI in Communication: "My contention is that none of this is going to take your job because your job itself is going to be so much different that if you lose your job, it's kind of on you." - Dan Nestle [56:41 → 57:41] Resources and Links Dan Nestle Inquisitive Communications | Website The Trending Communicator | Website Communications Trends from Trending Communicators | Dan Nestle's Substack Dan Nestle | LinkedIn   Abenaa (Abby) Hayes Elysee Consulting | Website Abenaa Hayes | LinkedIn Timestamps 0:00 Intro: Juggling priorities as communicators 5:30 Abena Hayes: Navigating inclusion and social impact 11:39 The importance of authentic inclusion efforts 18:02 Media relations in a fractured landscape 25:01 Storytelling's role in effective communication 31:38 AI literacy and its impact on careers 38:15 The future of communications jobs 44:26 Generative AI and earned media strategies 50:02 Critical thinking in the age of AI 54:39 AI as a tool, not a replacement 1:00:36 The evolving role of communications professionals 1:06:32 Curiosity as a key skill for communicators (Notes co-created by Human Dan, Claude, and  Flowsend.ai ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• PR is a Leadership Strategy - with Kristel Valaydon

  How many of us are stuck playing media relations hits-and-misses while the real opportunities to drive business transformation seem to be just out of reach? In this episode of The Trending Communicator, host Dan Nestle sits down with Kristel Valaydon, founder of KV Communications, to explore her revolutionary Five Spheres of Connection framework and our capacity to transform PR into a leadership strategy. After 25 years in the industry and 15 years developing her approach, Kristel challenges the traditional view that PR is a marketing function. Instead, she positions communications as a business strategy that creates community around ambitious founders and forward-thinking teams. Their conversation digs into why most communications work is just broadcasting, how the fractured media landscape demands new approaches, and why AVEs (advertising value equivalents) need to disappear forever. Kristel shares insights from working with what she affectionately calls "rebels and misfits" – innovative leaders trying to shift minds, models, and markets while building genuine communities around their missions. What We Talk About: The Five Spheres of Connection: Visionaries, Trailblazers, Champions, Discoverers, and Pathfinders Why PR as media relations is only one-fifth of what communications professionals should be doing How community building differs from audience development and why it matters The evolution of media companies and the rise of niche, trade, and newsletter platforms Why founders and rebels need different communication strategies than Fortune 500 companies The role of AI as a research and strategy partner while maintaining human-first approaches Moving beyond AVEs and impressions to business-aligned measurement frameworks Notable Quotes On the Evolution of PR: "I came out into the real world of business and an agency and I just noticed for pretty much the duration it was media relations. It was very much focused on celebrity." - Kristel Valaydon [6:50 → 7:05] On Measuring PR Impact: "We're having those business conversations and discovering actually no one's measuring this. How are we measuring this? And as it turns out, what benefits are we giving the clients here?" - Kristel Valaydon [7:35 → 7:50] On Working with Rebels: "We call them rebels and misfits, but it's a term of endearment. They don't call themselves that at all, but they're so creative and innovative and they are trying something completely different." - Kristel Valaydon [9:10 → 9:25] On the Role of AI in Strategy: "I love AI from a strategic point of view. It's a strategic, you know, sort of sparring partner for me. It's really testing my ideas and really going, how can we make this better?" - Kristel Valaydon [59:00 → 59:10] On Challenging Clients: "We're in services. We're not in servitude, and we are the experts." - Kristel Valaydon [1:06:13 → 1:06:14] Resources and Links Dan Nestle Inquisitive Communications | WebsiteThe Trending Communicator | WebsiteCommunications Trends from Trending Communicators | Dan Nestle's SubstackDan Nestle | LinkedIn   Kristel Valaydon KV Communications | Website5 Spheres of Connection | KV Comms WebsiteKristel Valaydon | LinkedIn Timestamps 0:00 Intro: The future of communications 5:43 Kristel's journey from agency to entrepreneurship 11:29 Working with rebels and misfits as clients 18:51 How media companies are adapting to change 25:12 The five spheres of connection framework 34:28 Discoverers: Customers and early adopters 41:00 Pathfinders: External partnerships and media 46:43 Measuring success across the five spheres 53:05 Starting with an audit and prioritization 58:11 AI as an enabler for the five spheres 1:04:37 PR's role in building a better world (Notes co-created by Human Dan, Claude, and  Flowsend.ai ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• The Cobbler's Children Have No Shoes But AI Can Help - with Natalie Moran

  We can navigate a crisis, position a CEO, and craft messaging for millions of people. So why do so many brilliant communications professionals struggle when it comes to talking about themselves? In this episode of The Trending Communicator, Dan sits down with Natalie Moran, founder of Comms Futurist, who's built her practice around this exact challenge. After managing crisis communications for millions and working at the highest levels of government, Natalie noticed a paradox: the same people who excel at strategic positioning for others often can't articulate their own evolving value. It's the classic cobbler's children scenario . We've been trained not to be the story, especially those of us with journalism backgrounds. Natalie calls it what it is - we're simply unpracticed at talking about ourselves. But when two AI-obsessed communicators get together to mull this problem, we (shockingly) discover that even cobblers can benefit from AI. What We Talk About Why AI might actually help us do more of the work we love instead of replacing us entirely The personal branding problem that's plagued our profession forever - and how AI changes the equation Those uncomfortable moments when people ask if we're "AI experts" (spoiler: we're not, we're just curious) The shift from traditional media relations to working with micro-influencers and content creators How Natalie went from avoiding LinkedIn entirely to building a following by learning out loud Practical ways to start experimenting with AI tools without feeling like you're cheating or losing your authentic voice Notable Quotes On the Evolution of Personal Brand: "I quickly realized that there is a real market for coaching comms professionals on how to talk about themselves and how to promote themselves. Because by the time people realize they need to do it, it's too late." - Natalie Moran [41:32 → 41:50] On the Challenges of Self-Promotion: "These are smart people, they're totally capable, but they just are not practiced at exploring kind of what makes them unique and what differentiates them until like the night before a big interview for a job or something." - Natalie Moran [47:04 → 47:26] On the Importance of Online Presence: "I think being visible online and having an online presence is the new first impression times 100. You have to have an online presence and it's career insurance." - Natalie Moran [1:06:31 → 1:06:45] On the Role of Micro-Influencers: "B2B companies especially are looking to people like us who have, you know, moderately sized followings but very hyper specific audiences to promote products and services, period." - Natalie Moran [1:07:30 → 1:07:45] On the Value of Storytelling: "I think the premium on being a good storyteller is higher now than it's ever been. That is a very, very valuable skill, I think, in the world of AI." - Natalie Moran [53:32 → 53:45] Resources and Links Dan Nestle Inquisitive Communications | Website The Trending Communicator | Website Communications Trends from Trending Communicators | Dan Nestle's Substack Dan Nestle | LinkedIn Natalie Moran Comms Futurist | Website Natalie’s Prompt Pack for Comms Leaders | Notion Natalie Moran | LinkedIn Timestamps 0:00 Intro: Trust recession and evolving communications 5:23 AI's impact on personal branding in comms 11:44 Ethical considerations in AI-assisted communication 17:25 Overcoming resistance to personal branding 23:15 AI as a tool for human-centric communication 29:09 Redefining personal branding for communications professionals 34:03 Leveraging AI for strategic communications planning 39:21 The importance of online presence for communicators 46:24 Balancing personal brand with professional obligations 54:44 AI's role in unlocking personal content potential 1:06:31 The future of communications and micro-influencers 1:12:43 Upcoming "Reimagine" virtual event series (Notes co-created by Human Dan, Claude, and  Flowsend.ai ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• Why Communicators Need to Think Like Operations Experts - with Lizabeth Wesely-Casella

  What if empathy isn't just about being nice, but your secret weapon for building systems that actually work? Lizabeth Wesely-Casella, CEO of L12 Services, spent her early career in construction wearing hard hats and reading blueprints in the 90s. She learned that communication wasn't just a nice-to-have—it was survival. That foundation led her to combine behavioral science, Lean Six Sigma, and internal communications into frameworks that create "clarity from chaos." What We Dig Into The Real Definition of Empathy in Business - Why feeling your team's pain (not just acknowledging it) changes how you design processes and communications. Why Structure Creates Freedom - How the right frameworks liberate people instead of constraining them. The Communications Chaos Tolerance Problem - Organizations are drowning workforces in messages. How to figure out what people can actually handle. People as Your Most Critical Channel - Your middle managers are communication channels, not just message recipients. AI as an Enabler (The Bad Kind) - Are we using AI to avoid the hard work of prioritization and focus? The CATS System - Her Communication Accountability Tool that holds leadership accountable for actually communicating. Why This Matters In our fractured landscape where priorities multiply daily, Lizabeth's approach of disciplined focus and human-centered processes feels essential. Whether you're managing return-to-office mandates or trying to get teams to read internal communications, this conversation bridges strategy and tactics. Notable Quotes "Clear communication was going to be my superpower. And it was, it was really the foundation of all good projects." - Lizabeth Wesely-Casella [05:54 → 06:07] "Our worlds are overwhelmed and it is noise. No matter whether you're getting your internal comms at the office or you're getting your advertisements on television or the radio, whatever, we are all at our max capacity for absorbing any more information." - Lizabeth Wesely-Casella [36:28 → 36:48] "Accountability means that we've created a structure that connects the dots, where along the way you'll be able to make sure that you are in line with what's expected of you and you don't have to have a major course correction." - Lizabeth Wesely-Casella [46:58 → 47:13] "My preference would be for people to focus on how to use AI in the internal comm space as a way of creating strategy for low engagement, for channel use, for opportunities to create greater organizational awareness between silos." - Lizabeth Wesely-Casella [58:28 → 58:47] "That's where the Internal Comms Pro becomes the specialist in understanding what the priorities are, reducing the noise and making really strategic decisions about what gets communicated. Because you can't communicate everything." - Lizabeth Wesely-Casella [1:03:58 → 1:04:14] Resources and Links Dan Nestle Inquisitive Communications | Website The Trending Communicator | Website Communications Trends from Trending Communicators | Dan Nestle's Substack Dan Nestle | LinkedIn Dan Nestle | Twitter/X Lizabeth Wesely-Casella L12 Services | Website Communication Accountability Tools (CATs) Bundle | Download Lizabeth Wesely-Casella | LinkedIn Timestamps 0:00 Intro: Empathy as a strategic advantage 5:19 From construction to communications expertise 10:10 Combining behavioral science and Lean Six Sigma 17:06 Overly optimistic about multitasking capabilities 24:42 AI as potential enabler of bad behaviors 31:27 Challenges of AI summarizing internal comms 39:43 Reframing accountability as a positive tool 46:18 Creating common language around accountability 51:26 AI adoption causing process breakdowns 58:28 Using AI strategically in internal comms 1:04:52 The irreplaceable human element in communication (Notes co-created by Human Dan, Claude, and  Flowsend.ai ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• Your Storytelling Genie is in an AI Bottle – with Park Howell

  Here they are again—marketers and communicators worried that AI is about to eliminate storytelling altogether. But what if the exact opposite is happening? What if AI is actually making authentic human storytelling the ultimate competitive advantage? In this episode of The Trending Communicator, host Dan Nestle reconnects with Park Howell, the brain behind the Business of Story and creator of the Story Cycle Genie—an AI tool designed to amplify human storytelling rather than replace it. While everyone's rushing to automate their content creation, Park and Dan explore why the brands winning in this fractured landscape are the ones doubling down on distinctly human narratives. They dig into the paradox we're all navigating—how do you leverage AI's efficiency without losing the gritty authenticity that makes your story worth telling? This isn't your typical "AI versus humans" conversation. It's about how communications professionals can use AI as their storytelling co-pilot while ensuring their brand narratives remain so authentically human that no algorithm could replicate them. Because in a world drowning in AI-generated content, being genuinely, unapologetically human might just be your secret weapon. Listen in and hear about... AI's impact on storytelling and brand communication The importance of human oversight in AI-generated content Leveraging AI tools like the Story Cycle Genie to enhance, not replace, human creativity Balancing technology adoption with authentic brand voice Speed-to-market advantages of AI-powered brand strategies Notable Quotes On the Power of Storytelling: "A story is about a man getting in a hole and a man getting out of a hole. It need not be a man. And it need not be about a hole. People love that story." - Park Howell [04:24 → 04:46] On Business Storytelling: "In business, the stories we need to tell are in solution to our customers problems. What are they going through, what are they experiencing, what do they want and why is it important to them?" - Park Howell [05:09 → 05:22] On AI-Generated Stories: "It wasn't even my eyes at first. It was a feeling. I first had this feeling inside of me like, this doesn't feel right. Then I used my senses, my eyes, in my ears to scrutinize it." - Park Howell [12:28 → 12:39] On the Importance of Brand Story: "Speed to market. I mean everything is accelerating around us and those that are dragging behind are going to lose out." - Park Howell [01:01:53 → 01:02:01] On AI in Storytelling: "Instead of taking three months to define and refine your brand story. You can now do it in minutes, literally, instead of, and, and by the way, saving the tens of thousands of dollars it typically takes for you to do that down to a few hundred bucks." - Park Howell [01:02:01 → 01:02:21] On the Value of Human Expertise: "The AI is only as good as the wisdom that lies behind it and the IP that lies behind it." - Dan Nestle [01:09:18 → 01:09:25] Resources and Links Dan Nestle Inquisitive Communications | Website The Trending Communicator | Website Communications Trends from Trending Communicators | Dan Nestle's Substack Dan Nestle | LinkedIn Dan Nestle | Twitter/X Park Howell The Story Cycle Genie | Website and AI Tool The Business of Story | Website Park Howell | LinkedIn Timestamps 0:00 Intro: AI for self-inspection and storytelling 5:33 Defining story: Man in a hole analogy 12:50 AI's impact on storytelling and human touch 20:55 Using AI to understand your brand story 28:56 The power of dialogue in authentic stories 38:39 Introducing the Story Cycle Genie tool 47:28 Analyzing Dan's brand story with the Genie 54:59 Iterating and improving brand messaging 1:01:53 Speed to market with AI-powered storytelling 1:07:52 Integrating Story Cycle Genie in enterprises 1:10:16 Closing thoughts and where to find Park (Notes co-created by Human Dan and  Flowsend.ai ) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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