Converted my academic/professional portfolio into a PowerPoint format, giving an overview of my career, my courses, my lectures, my research, professional references and even comments from students.

1. Kevin M. Brett
September 2013

2. Academic/Professional Biography
Professional Communications Choreographer (adjunct public relations instructor, media and analyst
relations, strategic communications, speech writer, public affairs specialist, Wall Street
communicator, employee communications pro, crisis communications expert and social media
evangelist).
Taught Strategic Business/Financial Communications, Strategic Public Relations
Communication, Public Relations Campaigns, Principles of Public Relations and Strategic
Communication Research Methods to the next generation of communications choreographers.
Four years directing technology accounts for A&R Edelman; 10 years running the Corporate Public
Relations Department at LSI Logic; two years opening up the Japan market for the American
semiconductor industry; three years balancing the needs of loggers and the Northern spotted owl; and
eight years in Sacramento with the Duke of California, including managing the state’s public response
to the Loma Prieta Earthquake.

3. Earned M.A. in Communication and Society from the University of Oregon School of Journalism and
Communication. Completed pedagogic research for master’s project, an upper division/master’s level
course, Strategic Business/Financial Communications– Media Relations, Social Media, Investor
Relations, Crisis Communications, Employee Communications. Bekam in 2011 die Zertifikät Deutsch
von der Goethe Institut in San Francisco. Received B.A. in Broadcasting Journalism from the University
of Southern California.
Teamed on research/quantitative analysis on questions revolving around Is Ghost Blogging Like
Speechwriting? A Survey of Practitioners About the Ethics of Ghost Blogging. Received Jackson-
Sharpe Award for ghost blogging research paper from the International Public Relations Research
Conference (IPRRC). Our research will be published by Public Relations Journal.
Developed and posted 225 (and counting) strategic communications choreography blogs, attracting
more than 23,000 page views and an average of 727 visitors per month, to enhance digital branding
and SEO/SEM for Almost DailyBrett. Participate daily on
LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, SlideShare, Tumblr and other social media sites.
Enhancing domestic skills as a Eugene area homeowner. Providing parental guidance to very
independent daughter-aspiring actress-beauty-hair expert and two finicky alley cats.

4.  Contact Info: Kevin Brett: kmbrett@comcast.net
 http://www.linkedin.com/in/kevinbrett
 http://almostdailybrett.wordpress.com
 http://www.twitter.com/kevinmbrett
 http://www.slideshare.net/kevinbrettMA/
 http://kevinmbrett.wordpress.com/

5. Agency-Association-Corporate-Public Affairs-Teaching
 2010-2013 – Full Time Adjunct Public Relations Instructor; Graduate
Teaching Fellow; Researcher, Lecturer – University of Oregon School
of Journalism and Communication.
 2006-2009 – Senior Vice President and Global Semiconductor Practice
Lead for A&R Edelman. Clients included TSMC, Samsung, Actel, Atmel, S3
and the Semiconductor Industry Association.
 1995-2005 – Director of Corporate Public Relations for LSI Logic
Corporation (NYSE: LSI). Responsible for messaging, internal and external
communications, domestic and international. Member of Corporate
Disclosure Team.

6. 1994-1995 – Director of Communications, Semiconductor Industry Association. Led
PR efforts that successfully opened the Japan market and rescinded EU tariffs on
microchips.
1990-1993 – Vice President of Public Affairs, American Forest Resource Alliance.
Provided communications counsel and represented forest products companies in 11
Western States.
1987-1989 – Press Secretary to Former California Governor George Deukmejian.
Charged with message development and lead spokesman responsibilities for the
governor of the nation’s largest state. Coordinated California’s public information
response to the San Francisco Earthquake.

7. “I recommend Kevin for any firm looking for a first-rate public relations counselor and hands-on
communicator.” – Bruce Entin, former LSI Logic executive vice president (Superior)
“Kevin is one of the most qualified PR professionals I’ve had the pleasure of working with over the past
15 years.” -- Colleen Pizarev, PR Newswire vice president (Colleague)
“He has a good grasp of technology and how it works – not always the strong suit for professional
communicators – and a quick sense of humor.” -- Dan Larson, former chairman of the
Semiconductor Industry Association Communications Committee (Colleague)
“He understands the high-tech industry and government policy so Kevin provided solid counsel to the
group on positioning, timing and creating strategies to help the industry achieve its goals.” -- Howard
High, former manager of Corporate Communications for Intel Corporation (Colleague)
“In the crisis communications area he has dealt with everything from a major industry public relations
battle to a governmental response to a major natural disaster.” – Mark Rey, former executive
director of the American Forest Resource (Superior)
―Kevin was an outstanding mentor to me early in my career. He knows PR and he’s smart hard
working and very dedicated to doing the best job possible. I would recommend him highly.” – Tom
Beermann, former deputy press secretary to Governor George Deukmejian (Subordinate)

8.  APstyle.ppt
 blogging.ppt
 Corvalliscrisis
 Digtalcoverlettersresumes
 Employeecomm
 enron.ppt
 FidvsCSR
 GlobalPR.ppt
 glossophobia.ppt
 infographics.ppt
 J410review.ppt
 J454ResearchLecture
 Jschoolpitching
 layoffs.ppt

9.  M&ALecture.ppt
 mockconference.ppt
 OnePageMemo
 Politicalpr
 portfolio.ppt
 PREthicsJ350
 Prpresentation
 RegFDpresentation.ppt
 ROSTE.ppt
 Sacramentolecture.ppt
 Writingthe10KLetter.ppt

10. Based upon my leadership experience in corporate public relations, investor relations and global
communications during my 15-year tenure in Silicon Valley, I made the decision to emphasize
business/financial communications and social media as my research interests at the University of
Oregon School of Journalism and Communication.
The net result of this interest was the preparation of pedagogic research for my M.A. project, the
crafting of a brand new upper-division course, J410 Strategic Business/Financial
Communications. The course curricula calls for students to learn SEC disclosure rules, how to read
income statements and balance sheets, and required that student teams stage a buy side/sell side
financial analyst conferences on behalf of Amazon, Nike, Nordstrom and Starbucks. The University
Academic Committee approved this course and I was privileged to teach it in the winter and spring
terms of the 2012-2013 academic year.
As a graduate teaching fellow, I teamed with co-authors University of Oregon Assistant Professor
Tiffany Derville Gallicano and Ph.D candidate Toby Hopp in researching and preparing, Is Ghost
Blogging Like Speechwriting? A Survey of Practitioners About the Ethics of Ghostblogging social
media research. We received 2012 Jackson-Sharpe Award from the International Public Relations
Research Conference (IPRRC). Our research will soon be published by Public Relations Journal.

11. During the course of my public relations career, I travelled extensively to Japan and
Europe, including several trips to Germany (e.g., Berlin, München, Köln). Two summers
ago, I earned die Zertifikät Deutsch von der Goethe Institut in San Francisco.
My future research emphasis is to examine Germany’s Öffentlichkeitsarbeitswunder (public
relations miracle) in the past 68 years (historical analysis). The country has risen from the
ruins of war and the indelible stain of the Holocaust to become the most popular nation on
Earth, according to the BBC.
How did Germany restore and enhance its brand and reputation?
What were the factors, including the Feminization of the Fatherland, which contributed to
this public relations transformation? The title of my proposed research/book: Germany:
From Holocaust to Normalcy (Deutschland: Von Holocaust zu Normalität).
Presently, I am meeting with distinguished scholars with a particular interest in modern-day
Germany and I am seeking out external sources of funding. I have written on this subject in
my Almost DailyBrett communications choreography blog.
http://almostdailybrett.wordpress.com/2013/06/18/germany-from-holocaust-to-normalcy/
http://almostdailybrett.wordpress.com/2011/06/24/feminizing-the-fatherland/
http://almostdailybrett.wordpress.com/2012/02/01/is-the-skirt-more-powerful-than-the-suit/

12. ―Kevin loves PR.‖ — Kelly Vigil
Kevin will forever be one of my favorite teachers during my time here at the University of Oregon.” –
Ayaka Hong
―Kevin is a great encourager as well as instructor. Glad I transferred to this section at the last
minute!” – Patricia Jenness
“He was a truly amazing teacher and I am so grateful I had him for this class.” – Emily Sutton
“Brett has a clear talent and passion for business/finance communications which makes me want to
learn more and perfect my communications skill as a student and professional.” – Kelsey Honz
“Great teacher and has great professional background. It was an honor to have him as our
professor” – Anna Grigoryeva
“Kevin Brett is a great teacher who always is willing to help his students.” – Dustin Ouellette

13. The demands of our 24/7/365 attention society require a commitment to life-long learning
by students — regardless of their country of origin — whether they are engaging
professors, teaching assistants or fellow students today or interacting with
superiors, colleagues and subordinates in professional life tomorrow.
In order for students to pursue a life-long dedication to learning and innovation, I strongly
contend the teaching profession cannot continue to employ analog thinking in an
increasingly digital world. Our educational culture must shift-and-undergo robust change
to meet the present-and-future needs of students in an information-overload world.
This digital approach calls for a new way of thinking. Instead of centering our attention on
the bestower of knowledge, wisdom and information, the focus needs to be shifted to the
receiver, the student. How will we engage her? How will stimulate his deep-thinking? How
will we convince the student that life-long learning is the only reliable way to stay relevant
10 years from today, let alone 30 years from now?

14. The surge of students with college degrees, coupled with the pressures associated with the
emergence of literally millions of well-qualified students from other developed and developing
nations (e.g., BRICS/Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa), has generated a scenario in
which a well-paying position is not the automatic province of college graduates. Instead, we
must prepare students to effectively and ethically compete. They must be engaged. They must
be committed to deep thinking and to always learning new concepts and ideas.
The analog days of preparing course materials, lecturing for 45-90 minutes (or longer), only
interrupted for a mid-term and a final are over…or should be over. The ―plug-and-chug‖
approach yielding only a grade with the information instilled being rapidly forgotten does not
prepare students for the ever-increasing competition in a rapidly evolving innovation world. I
know this to be true based upon my three-decades of experience in the public and private
sectors, particularly my 15- year tenure in corporate and agency work in Silicon Valley.
To accomplish the goal of fostering life-long learning, I believe the teachers of the 21st Century
must: Adopt a bottom-up, student-to-instructor approach. What are the expectations and
desires of the student and how are they met? Can we shift our attention to the student in her or
his seat instead of the lecturer in the front of the room?

15. Convince students through a mentoring approach that they are learning essential
life skills as opposed to merely gathering facts, figures and concepts to be simply
memorized and discarded after an examination. What are the best ways to write a
cover letter or compose a resume? How do you read a financial statement or a
balance sheet? How can I become fluent in subjects that are near-and dear to
employers?
Prepare students to effectively and fairly compete in a difficult global economy. To
celebrate diversity, I believe course work should emphasize the differences in
regional financial markets and how culture plays a distinct role in decision-making in
these respective geographies (e.g., Geert Hofstede’ s Cultural Dimensions Theory).
We should encourage and invite students from other nations to offer their unique
perspectives for the benefit of all students in the class, but be mindful of differences
in upbringing in collectivist as opposed to individualistic societies.
As a means of shedding an analog way of teaching, we should emerge from
behind the podium, dispense with the speaking notes, strap on the lavaliere
microphone and use PowerPoint or another presentation technology as prompts. Our
goal should be to engage students in a meaningful conversation, not just reading a
lecture.

16. Instill a sense of ethics that advances the career of the individual student but not at the expense
of others. How do we reconcile the competing demands of fiduciary responsibility (doing well) and
social responsibility (doing good) in an increasingly complex world? How can we ensure that we
compete effectively, but fairly?
The ever-increasing complexity of the global economy does not lend itself to just qualitative
answers or quantitative solutions. These methods are not mutually exclusive. Students must be
given the tools to succeed using whichever methodology is most appropriate.
Have faith that telling the story, and telling it well, is a skill that cannot be effectively
outsourced. Promote real confidence in students that they will soon have the necessary verbal-
and-written communication skill sets, and that they will be adept in the use of conventional and
digital communication tools.
The world has reached a new strategic inflection point, particularly in the face of a prolonged
economic downturn, sluggish recovery and the emergence of a new wave of intellectual
competition. The commanding focus on the tenured professor, the associate professor, the
assistant professor, the non-tenured full-time instructor and the graduate teaching fellow has to
change. The asymmetrical few-to-the-many imparting of facts and information does not work in the
same manner of effectiveness in our high-technology society.

17. Instead, we need to embrace a two-way symmetrical approach with educators engaging
in a conversation with students, a discussion that leads to answers for students and
stimulates even more questions. Most importantly, this methodology provides students
with increasing individual abilities and confidence to boldly answer these questions
individually or cooperatively in teams.
The academic institution must shift its approach to teaching from instructor-centric to
student-centric. Its orientation must change as well from being merely a center of higher
academia to appreciating the professional world where lifelong learning will be ever-
present. The deep-learning student will be an engaged student, better prepared for the
task of learning new concepts and ideas even in the face of a ones-and-zeroes binary
code digital society that gets more complex with each passing day.