Ryerson GCM’s Colloquium event

On Thursday, February 17, the School of Graphic Communications Management at Ryerson University hosted a very successful colloquium. This is a yearly event that brings together students and industry professionals to discuss relevant topics in print.

This year’s event was called Envision, with the theme being innovation in print. This event has been part of the school’s curriculum for many years. Prepared as part of a Management Studies course, taught by Chris Kular, the students organized the event from start to finish.

For the first time in the event’s history, the colloquium was held off campus at the Regency Hyatt downtown. This definitely brought an air of sophistication to the evening. The room was full of students and industry professionals all engaged in the topics at hand.

Three speakers presented on various areas of innovation. Matthew Alexander, president and CEO of Colour Innovations spoke about being innovative in sustainability. Henry Laszutko, national account manager of CCL Industries, showed off various innovations in label and package printing. Lastly, International Branding Coach and Partner at Redchair Branding, Gerry Visca, talked to the audience about becoming more creative.

The masters of ceremony Emily Kuchta and Ahmed Alabbas, made sure that the event was a collaborative one, introducing the speakers and ensuring that everyone was able ask questions. Alexander was the first speaker. His company, Colour Innovations, is a leader in sustainability. He spoke to the attendees about going beyond just the certification labels. “Green is an attitude,” he said. He also spoke about the challenges of making investments in being more sustainable in a business so driven by price in the current economy. Colour Innovations is currently working toward the SGP certification. The process for such a thorough certification takes time. However, already large companies such as Nike are requesting to work with SGP certified printers. Alexander is confident about the investments that the company has been making because he understands that not only is it socially responsible, but also the next generation of leaders has been raised in a different time. He urged the students to continue to fight for green.

Moving from sustainability to packaging, Henry Laszutko was the event’s next speaker. This was Laszutko’s second time speaking at a colloquium. He brought with him bags of innovative packaging and label ideas produced by CCL Industries. From the man who invented the label for the McDonald’s Monopoly in 1994, one could expect nothing less than spectacular. Laszutko shared with us some great marketing insights. For example, because people are watching TV less, product packaging has become increasingly important in the buying decision. CCL has seen companies like P&G take advantage of this by investing in shrink-wrapped bottles for increased space on the bottle. Another interesting concept that transpired from the talk is the way in which CCL markets its innovations. The different labels are named in a way that helps customers conceptualize the benefits more immediately. For example they have products like Lightscapes and Brilliance, two types of labels that create interesting effects with light. This is a valuable lesson for any technically complex business. After all, innovations that customers don’t buy into don’t last.

The last speaker of the evening was Gerry Visca. Visca is an internationally acclaimed professional speaker, delivering sessions on creativity and branding about 180 days per year all around the world. He has authored several books such as The Innovation Gap and Get Creative. Explaining to the audience that he thinks of himself not as a speaker but an “inspirator”, he shared with us his 10 laws of creativity. His advice was practical and charismatic. “Zig when everyone else zags,” he exclaimed. Also, exercise—it is important for creativity because it allows more oxygen into the brain. “Figure yourself out and find your natural abilities,” he told us, sharing that he is a SNAG (a sensitive new-age guy). This was a highly energetic and inspirational session to close the evening.

Congratulations to Prof Kular and the third year students for a very successful event! Pictures and footage of the event will soon appear on the website: www.ryerson.ca/gcmcolloquium