10 Essential TED Talks to Elevate Your Corporate Communications Game

TED Talks have become a valuable resource for expert advice across a wide range of topics and disciplines. Beyond interesting speakers and subject matter, these talks offer public relations and communications professionals an opportunity to take a step back and look at goals and strategies through a different lens.  

From mastering the art of storytelling to navigating political divides and embracing AI, these 10 essential TED Talks offer inspiration, fresh perspectives, and unique insight that can help inform your thinking and shape your communications plan.
 

1. 3 Ideas For Communicating Across the Political Divide

Description: How does language shape our politics? Journalist Isaac Saul explores how subtle word choices can inhibit productive dialogue about significant issues — and shows how small (but important) changes can help us all have better conversations with people who think differently than us.

Why We Love This One: Word choice matters more than ever in today's polarized world, but it can be challenging to navigate. Isaac's insights offer a roadmap for crafting inclusive messages that resonate across diverse audiences. He shows us how to break AP style strategically, find common ground in terminology, and maintain a neutral tone to avoid alienating your audience. With consumers increasingly making buying decisions on what brands stand for, inclusive communication is critical. 

2. Are We Celebrating the Wrong Leaders?

Description: We tend to celebrate leaders for their dramatic words and actions in times of crisis — but we often overlook truly great leaders who avoid the crisis to begin with. Historian Martin Gutmann challenges us to rethink what effective leadership actually looks like, drawing on lessons from the famed (but disaster-prone) explorer Ernest Shackleton.

Why We Love This One: Are we inadvertently glorifying crisis managers over crisis preventers? This talk challenges us to rethink our approach to leadership communication. How our brands are governed can position public relations teams as strategic brand stewards, not just crisis managers. PR and comms leaders can use their influence to encourage proactive reputation management and help nudge the C-suite towards more thoughtful, crisis-avoiding approaches. This perspective is crucial for long-term reputation management.

3. The Art of Persuasive Storytelling

Description: "Storytelling is one of the most powerful marketing and leadership tools there is," says communications expert Kelly D. Parker. She explains how stories make proposals of all kinds more memorable — and shows how you can craft a compelling narrative to connect, persuade and drive meaningful action.

Why We Love This One: Storytelling is the cornerstone of effective PR, and Kelly's insights can take your craft to the next level. Her approach has practical applications for crafting more compelling pitches and press releases, developing memorable brand campaigns, and creating narratives that drive meaningful action.

4. How to Build (and Rebuild) Trust

Description: Trust is the foundation for everything we do. But what do we do when it's broken? In an eye-opening talk, Harvard Business School professor Frances Frei gives a crash course in trust: how to build it, maintain it and rebuild it -- something she worked on during a recent stint at Uber. "If we can learn to trust one another more, we can have unprecedented human progress," Frei says.

Why We Love This One: Positive brand reputation hinges on trust, making Frances' framework for building and rebuilding trust invaluable. She breaks it down into three key components: authenticity, logic, and empathy. This presentation is particularly timely given today’s rapid information spread and heightened consumer skepticism. By understanding and addressing deficiencies in trust, PR teams can help their organizations weather crises and rebuild trust, even in the most difficult circumstances.

5. How to Govern AI — Even If  It's Hard to Predict

Description: No one truly understands AI, not even experts, says Helen Toner, an AI policy researcher and former board member of OpenAI. But that doesn't mean we can't govern it. She shows how we can make smart policies to regulate this technology even as we struggle to predict where it's headed — and why the right actions, right now, can shape the future we want.

Why We Love This One: AI has already made its mark in PR, and that’s just the beginning. Helen’s perspective is crucial for PR and comms pros to understand, especially when advising on AI-related processes, managing potential crises, and staying ahead of regulatory trends that could impact the industry.

6. How to Take the BS Out of Business Speak

Description: At its worst, "business speak" -- or the particular language we use at work -- can be jargony, confusing, and even exclusionary. But it doesn't have to be, says journalist and comedian Bob Wiltfong. Showcasing a smattering of corporate acronyms and phrases that don't make much sense without context (think: "OKRs" and "when pigs fly"), he gives three tips on how to cut the BS out of business speak so we can all better understand each other at work.

Why We Love This One: Is your messaging clear, or clouded by corporate jargon? Bob's humorous take reminds us of the power of simplicity in communication. Clear-jargon-free language is the foundation of effective PR. By stripping away unnecessary complexity, we can craft communications that are more engaging, relatable, and impactful.

7. Leadership Lessons From the Prime Minister of Canada

Description: Justin Trudeau has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015. There's a lot to dig into from his years in office — and from his life before, as well. He sits down with organizational psychologist Adam Grant to discuss lessons learned about leadership and how he navigated early struggles with impostor syndrome. He also shares his approach to maintaining motivation in the face of disapproval and criticism, how he encourages people to speak truth to power, why he considered quitting and what keeps him awake at night. 

Why We Love This One: What can PR pros learn from a world leader's experiences? As it turns out, quite a lot. Justin Trudeau's reflections offer a treasure trove of insights for PR professionals, whether you're leading a team or advising executives. Trudeau's candid discussion about impostor syndrome is particularly relevant. And his approach to maintaining motivation in the face of criticism and encouraging truth-speaking are directly applicable to crisis communication and reputation management. 

8. What DEI Gets Wrong — And How To Do It Right

Description: Social entrepreneur Paolo Gaudiano explains why many companies are taking the wrong approach to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives — by overly focusing on one thing. To avoid backlash and costly turnover, he shows the key change leaders can make to create thriving, equitable workplaces while also increasing profits.

Why We Love This One: Is your organization's approach to DEI actually effective? For PR pros often caught in the crossfire of DEI discussions, Paolo’s unique perspective is thought-provoking. His approach isn't about abandoning DEI efforts, but rather refocusing them for maximum impact. By prioritizing equity, he argues, we can create more inclusive environments while also boosting the bottom line. It’s a win-win scenario that PR teams can leverage in their messaging and strategies.

9. When AI Can Fake Reality, Who Can You Trust?

Description: We're fast approaching a world where widespread, hyper-realistic deepfakes lead us to dismiss reality, says technologist and human rights advocate Sam Gregory. What happens to democracy when we can't trust what we see? Learn three key steps to protecting our ability to distinguish human from synthetic — and why fortifying our perception of truth is crucial to our AI-infused future.

Why We Love This One: In an era of deepfakes and AI-generated content, how can PR professionals safeguard truth and authenticity? Sam Gregory's talk couldn't be more timely or relevant for our industry. As PR pros, you’re on the front lines of information dissemination, requiring you to stay ahead of this technology and its implications. Sam outlines three key strategies for distinguishing between human and synthetic content, all critical components for PR teams to manage crises, fact-check, and preserve trust in our AI-influenced media environment.

10. Why Are Women Still Taken Less Seriously Than Men?

Description: Women are routinely underestimated, overlooked, interrupted, talked over or mistaken for someone more junior at the workplace. Author Mary Ann Sieghart calls this the "authority gap" — all the ways women are (still) taken less seriously than men, despite proven competence and expertise. She explains how we can close this pernicious gap and why everyone wins when we do so.

Why We Love This One: Is unconscious bias affecting your PR efforts? Mary Ann's exploration of the "authority gap" asks us to reconsider how we communicate, both internally and externally. She offers actionable advice on addressing personal biases and those around us. For PR pros, this insight can help you craft more equitable messaging, advise on inclusive communication, and ensure all voices are heard and respected. Given that public relations practitioners are predominantly female, Mary’s Ann message is especially pertinent.

What Did We Miss?

Have a TED talk to recommend? Or is there other content inspiring you right now? We’d love to hear about it! 

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