Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA)

Situation

The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) — a Washington, DC-based standards development organization and trade association representing more than 400 Information and Communications Technology (ICT) companies — looked to raise their profile and rebuild their reputation as a thought leader and influencer in the ICT community by becoming more vocal and engaged in important technology discussions both in Washington, DC with the federal government, and around the world.

At the same time, a bevy of organizations have been vying for the valuable attention of members of Congress and Committee staff, the White House, executive branch leaders, and agency officials in the process. In this environment of competing voices and often conflicting priorities, TIA sought to maintain and enhance its position among Washington, DC policymakers as a respected technical resource and trusted advocate for its members and pertinent ICT issues.

Approach

In early 2022, the cybersecurity and the potential vulnerabilities of vital services provided by private companies and government agencies alike were among the most significant concerns among Congressional policymakers.

Concurrently, TIA’s QuEST Forum members had finalized a new standard specifically to address the urgent need for ICT global supply chain security. This comprehensive standard, called SCS 9001, provides a complete end-to-end supply chain security management system that verifies trusted ICT providers and suppliers for businesses, governments, and consumers.

Sage counseled TIA on development of a media plan announcing the new SCS 9001 ICT supply chain security standard soon after Congress reconvened in January to begin its legislative work. This included developing reporter-friendly messaging around the highly technical new standard that was used by Sage to create pitches, bylines, blogs and social media posts. This content was leveraged for a host of activities announcing SCS 9001 to influential telecommunications policy reporters at mainstream and policy-focused outlets including The Washington Post, POLITICO, Axios, CQ Roll Call, Bloomberg, Protocol, Reuters, MeriTalk and The Hill, which are read by policymakers across Washington, DC.

Sage’s media plan also announced TIA’s supply chain security standard to telecommunications, technology and cybersecurity trade outlets such as Fierce Telecom, Inside Cybersecurity, CRN, Information Age, ICT Today, CommDaily, RCR Wireless, and Supply Chain Network Magazine, which are read by the ICT industry and TIA’s member organizations.

Results

Media coverage of TIA’s supply chain security standard was secured in key outlets including The Washington Post’s “Cybersecurity 202” column and POLITICO’s “Morning Tech” newsletter, both technology-focused columns that are widely read by federal policymakers. Coverage also appeared in outlets that cover the telecommunications industry including Inside Cybersecurity, Telecompaper, Mission Critical Communications, and Telecoms.com.

Sage’s media outreach also established relationships with telecommunications reporters who were contacted about TIA’s perspective on other ICT issues and policy proposals that arose and subsequently included TIA in articles they wrote.

Ultimately, the SCS 9001 push did more than just garner media coverage. According to TIA’s government affairs team, it kickstarted conversations with Congressional staffers about how TIA will be more active in helping develop the next generation of ICT cybersecurity policy.

Coverage