HPRA’s 3rd Annual Professional Development Seminar uncovers rise in Social Media.

Public relations practitioners from all areas of the industry and aspiring students gathered at the Alumni Center at UCLA Thursday, June 12 for the Hispanic Public Relations Association’s (HPRA) third annual professional development seminar. The seminar provided a forum for news and industry trends, but also brought to light the networking trends of Latino professionals in their career advancement.

Among the 60 attendees, 53 percent agreed networking was the way to get recommendations or leads for employment. Of those, 47 percent agreed that social media was the way to increase job leads and networking opportunities, citing Facebook and Linked In as sites where they have a professional profile.

While social media may be the new frontier in professional networking, face-to-face interaction remains a strong preference. More than 80% of the seminar’s attendees cited networking being one of the main incentives for attending the seminar. Attendees also cited the seminar’s association with a Latino organization like HPRA as another reason for attending since more than 85 percent noted being a bilingual Latino as a helping factor in their current employment.

“Professional development and networking opportunities for our members are a key component of the mission of HPRA,” said Ivette Zurita, HPRA President. “With this seminar and our ongoing CHARLA program we hope to bring continued education for our members and communications professionals.”