Curriculum Vitae
PROFILE
I´m a communications consultant with more than 12 years´ of international experience telling stories with words, pictures and film to inspire and inform global audiences.
I am an exceptional writer, recognized for distilling complex and sensitive subject matter into original content that can be re-purposed across platforms. Having worked in journalism, the non-profit sector, and the corporate sector in Canada, France, Mexico, Spain, India and Ethiopia, I´m extremely comfortable working across cultures. I´m fluent in English, French and Spanish.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Writer, Director, Editor
Holy Cow - Palacios Films
August 2017 - August 2019
Holy Cow is a 52 minute documentary I wrote, directed and edited in production with Palacios Films for the Al Jazeera Documentary Network. It is set for broadcast in September 2019. The documentary explores two parallel narratives dominating India today: while a woman is raped every 15 minutes with little to no consequence, fringe groups of Hindu vigilantes are attacking Muslims to protect their “Mother Cow”. The story is told through the lens of Sujatro Ghosh, who is photographing women wearing a rubber cow mask in an attempt to answer an absurd question: Is it safer to be a cow than a woman in India?
Corporate Communications Manager
Amadeus IT Group, Madrid, Spain
October 2015 - May 2018
Amadeus is a global travel technology company operating in 195 markets, with 70+ offices, and a $19 billion market cap. I converted technical business jargon into interesting stories that were easy to read and worthy of global coverage. In addition, I advised leadership teams on how to position the company within the marketplace, drafted key messages and briefing documents on critical topics, and developed strategic communications plans to amplify global visibility. Notable contributions include:
• Crafted some of Amadeus’ most read PR stories and blogs throughout my tenure with some stories resulting in more than 100 pieces of coverage worldwide
• Covered travel technology events live on Twitter for 700+ followers and drafted daily blogs to recap event highlights complete with photos and videos.
• Worked on call during evenings and weekends to react to potential crisis situations
• Coordinated with PR agencies and communications teams globally to create unique PR campaigns capable of delivering stories to journalists and audiences around the world.
Communications Officer
imagine1day international organisation
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
March 2014 - April 2015
As the only foreigner based in Ethiopia for this Canadian NGO, I set strategic communications priorities, helped North American colleagues navigate and understand sensitive cultural issues, and developed processes to ensure that all stories and social content were vetted for accuracy before publication. Notable contributions include:
• Interviewed and photographed community leaders, religious elders, teachers, students, parents, and school principals to create original content – including blogs, donor reports, and social media graphics – to document the impact of imagine1day’s work
• Developed a photography archive and index so images could be easily found by colleagues when my contract was over
• Trained Ethiopian colleagues in basic interview skills and storytelling so they could support me in successfully promoting imagine1day’s multifaceted education projects
• Wrote, shot and edited videos on tight deadlines with limited resources and unreliable power and Internet access
Communications Specialist
Spinal Cord Injury BC
Vancouver, Canada
May 2012 - Feb. 2014
I overhauled this NGO’s communications strategy to focus on multi-platform campaigns that successfully promoted its mission of empowering people with paralysis through active living and peer mentorship. Notable contributions include:
• Spearheaded and led a complete website redevelopment project to clarify the organization´s objectives, purpose and services
• Created a social media best practices manual and led social media training across the organization to improve the organization’s social reach and reputation
• Increased Twitter followers by 136%, referrals to the website from all social accounts by 177%, and total website visits by 154%
• Directed, shot and edited more than 23 videos earning 60,000 collective views
• Supervised and trained interns in communications planning, storytelling, media relations and video production
Associate Editor & Freelance Journalist
Various publications
May 2007 - May 2012
As Associate Editor of WestJet airline’s in-flight magazine, I developed story ideas, sourced writers throughout North America, coordinated translations into French, and edited and fact-checked stories for monthly publication. I also wrote feature-length stories ranging in scope from a profile of Michael Ignatieff, who ran to become Canada’s Prime Minister in 2006, to the unknown story of tequila in the province of Sinaloa, Mexico. Notable contributions include:
• As a freelancer, my work was published in some of Canada’s largest publications including The Global and Mail, The Toronto Star, The Walrus and Reader’s Digest amongst others
• Reported on a wide variety of topics, from North America’s first hacker camp, to the story of three roommates’ quest to live for one year without producing trash
• In 2011, traveled across Northern Mexico to report on the War on Drugs and filed stories on overnight deadlines
EDUCATION
Al Jazeera Media Institute, Madrid, Spain
July 2017
A 40-hour workshop on documentary filmmaking from development through to distribution with producer and director Paula Palacios of La Morada Films.
British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT),Vancouver, Canada
May - December 2012
Completed classes in Public Relations, Online Analytics, SEO Strategy, Media Relations and Social Media Marketing
Bachelor of Political Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
September 2004 - May, 2012
Certificat d’Étude Politique, L’Institut d’Étude Politique, Lyon, France
September 2005 - May 2006
Al Jazeera Media Institute
July 2017
Documentary Filmmaking with Producer and Director Paula Palacios of Morada Films
A 40-hour workshop on documentary filmmaking with a focus on production and direction from development through to distribution
Hootsuite University
January 2013
British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT), Vancouver, BC
Completed classes in Public Relations, Online Analytics, SEO Strategy, Media Relations and Social Media Marketing
May - December 2012
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC
Bachelor of Arts, Major in Political Science
2004-2012
L’Institut d’Étude Politique, Lyon, France
Certificat d’Étude Politique: Specialized in the Middle East
2005-2006
TRILINGUAL
· Fluent in English, French and Spanish
TECHNICAL SKILLS
· Proficient in Macs, PCs, Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop)
· Video production: Final Cut Pro 7, Adobe Premier Pro, experience shooting with Canon and Nikon DSLR cameras
· Web publishing: WordPress, SquareSpace, Weebly and basic understanding of HTML
· Online presence: Facebook, Twitter, Vimeo, YouTube, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Instagram
REFERENCES
“During her time at Amadeus, Candice established herself as a very strong communications executive with a particular gift for writing. Corporate writing isn’t easy and has a tendency towards complexity and dullness. Candice has the ability however, to take the most complicated of subjects and make it accessible and entertaining. That is why we continue to work with her as a copywriter and I’d have no hesitation in recommending her to others. She’s smart, easy to work with and a great professional.”
- Ben Hunt, Group Director of Communications, Amadeus IT Group
“Candice works very well independently, is organized and is an excellent writer and multimedia storyteller. She was able to capture the complexity of our programming and to convey this to donors in a way that was captivating and accurate."
- Seid Aman, Country Director, imagine1day
"Not only is she extremely talented in her field of journalism and communications, she also possesses an exemplary work ethic.”
- Maureen Brownlee, manager of operations, Spinal Cord Injury BC
“Candice is a bright and articulate writer, a fast and interesting thinker, and a joy to work with.”
- Käthe Lemon, editorial director, Redpoint Media Group and editor-in-chief of Avenue
I´m a communications consultant with more than 12 years´ of international experience telling stories with words, pictures and film to inspire and inform global audiences.
I am an exceptional writer, recognized for distilling complex and sensitive subject matter into original content that can be re-purposed across platforms. Having worked in journalism, the non-profit sector, and the corporate sector in Canada, France, Mexico, Spain, India and Ethiopia, I´m extremely comfortable working across cultures. I´m fluent in English, French and Spanish.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Writer, Director, Editor
Holy Cow - Palacios Films
August 2017 - August 2019
Holy Cow is a 52 minute documentary I wrote, directed and edited in production with Palacios Films for the Al Jazeera Documentary Network. It is set for broadcast in September 2019. The documentary explores two parallel narratives dominating India today: while a woman is raped every 15 minutes with little to no consequence, fringe groups of Hindu vigilantes are attacking Muslims to protect their “Mother Cow”. The story is told through the lens of Sujatro Ghosh, who is photographing women wearing a rubber cow mask in an attempt to answer an absurd question: Is it safer to be a cow than a woman in India?
Corporate Communications Manager
Amadeus IT Group, Madrid, Spain
October 2015 - May 2018
Amadeus is a global travel technology company operating in 195 markets, with 70+ offices, and a $19 billion market cap. I converted technical business jargon into interesting stories that were easy to read and worthy of global coverage. In addition, I advised leadership teams on how to position the company within the marketplace, drafted key messages and briefing documents on critical topics, and developed strategic communications plans to amplify global visibility. Notable contributions include:
• Crafted some of Amadeus’ most read PR stories and blogs throughout my tenure with some stories resulting in more than 100 pieces of coverage worldwide
• Covered travel technology events live on Twitter for 700+ followers and drafted daily blogs to recap event highlights complete with photos and videos.
• Worked on call during evenings and weekends to react to potential crisis situations
• Coordinated with PR agencies and communications teams globally to create unique PR campaigns capable of delivering stories to journalists and audiences around the world.
Communications Officer
imagine1day international organisation
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
March 2014 - April 2015
As the only foreigner based in Ethiopia for this Canadian NGO, I set strategic communications priorities, helped North American colleagues navigate and understand sensitive cultural issues, and developed processes to ensure that all stories and social content were vetted for accuracy before publication. Notable contributions include:
• Interviewed and photographed community leaders, religious elders, teachers, students, parents, and school principals to create original content – including blogs, donor reports, and social media graphics – to document the impact of imagine1day’s work
• Developed a photography archive and index so images could be easily found by colleagues when my contract was over
• Trained Ethiopian colleagues in basic interview skills and storytelling so they could support me in successfully promoting imagine1day’s multifaceted education projects
• Wrote, shot and edited videos on tight deadlines with limited resources and unreliable power and Internet access
Communications Specialist
Spinal Cord Injury BC
Vancouver, Canada
May 2012 - Feb. 2014
I overhauled this NGO’s communications strategy to focus on multi-platform campaigns that successfully promoted its mission of empowering people with paralysis through active living and peer mentorship. Notable contributions include:
• Spearheaded and led a complete website redevelopment project to clarify the organization´s objectives, purpose and services
• Created a social media best practices manual and led social media training across the organization to improve the organization’s social reach and reputation
• Increased Twitter followers by 136%, referrals to the website from all social accounts by 177%, and total website visits by 154%
• Directed, shot and edited more than 23 videos earning 60,000 collective views
• Supervised and trained interns in communications planning, storytelling, media relations and video production
Associate Editor & Freelance Journalist
Various publications
May 2007 - May 2012
As Associate Editor of WestJet airline’s in-flight magazine, I developed story ideas, sourced writers throughout North America, coordinated translations into French, and edited and fact-checked stories for monthly publication. I also wrote feature-length stories ranging in scope from a profile of Michael Ignatieff, who ran to become Canada’s Prime Minister in 2006, to the unknown story of tequila in the province of Sinaloa, Mexico. Notable contributions include:
• As a freelancer, my work was published in some of Canada’s largest publications including The Global and Mail, The Toronto Star, The Walrus and Reader’s Digest amongst others
• Reported on a wide variety of topics, from North America’s first hacker camp, to the story of three roommates’ quest to live for one year without producing trash
• In 2011, traveled across Northern Mexico to report on the War on Drugs and filed stories on overnight deadlines
EDUCATION
Al Jazeera Media Institute, Madrid, Spain
July 2017
A 40-hour workshop on documentary filmmaking from development through to distribution with producer and director Paula Palacios of La Morada Films.
British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT),Vancouver, Canada
May - December 2012
Completed classes in Public Relations, Online Analytics, SEO Strategy, Media Relations and Social Media Marketing
Bachelor of Political Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
September 2004 - May, 2012
Certificat d’Étude Politique, L’Institut d’Étude Politique, Lyon, France
September 2005 - May 2006
Al Jazeera Media Institute
July 2017
Documentary Filmmaking with Producer and Director Paula Palacios of Morada Films
A 40-hour workshop on documentary filmmaking with a focus on production and direction from development through to distribution
Hootsuite University
January 2013
British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT), Vancouver, BC
Completed classes in Public Relations, Online Analytics, SEO Strategy, Media Relations and Social Media Marketing
May - December 2012
University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC
Bachelor of Arts, Major in Political Science
2004-2012
L’Institut d’Étude Politique, Lyon, France
Certificat d’Étude Politique: Specialized in the Middle East
2005-2006
TRILINGUAL
· Fluent in English, French and Spanish
TECHNICAL SKILLS
· Proficient in Macs, PCs, Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop)
· Video production: Final Cut Pro 7, Adobe Premier Pro, experience shooting with Canon and Nikon DSLR cameras
· Web publishing: WordPress, SquareSpace, Weebly and basic understanding of HTML
· Online presence: Facebook, Twitter, Vimeo, YouTube, LinkedIn, Pinterest and Instagram
REFERENCES
“During her time at Amadeus, Candice established herself as a very strong communications executive with a particular gift for writing. Corporate writing isn’t easy and has a tendency towards complexity and dullness. Candice has the ability however, to take the most complicated of subjects and make it accessible and entertaining. That is why we continue to work with her as a copywriter and I’d have no hesitation in recommending her to others. She’s smart, easy to work with and a great professional.”
- Ben Hunt, Group Director of Communications, Amadeus IT Group
“Candice works very well independently, is organized and is an excellent writer and multimedia storyteller. She was able to capture the complexity of our programming and to convey this to donors in a way that was captivating and accurate."
- Seid Aman, Country Director, imagine1day
"Not only is she extremely talented in her field of journalism and communications, she also possesses an exemplary work ethic.”
- Maureen Brownlee, manager of operations, Spinal Cord Injury BC
“Candice is a bright and articulate writer, a fast and interesting thinker, and a joy to work with.”
- Käthe Lemon, editorial director, Redpoint Media Group and editor-in-chief of Avenue