New 2026–2027 board spans four continents, positioning GCCC to attract communication organizations beyond IABC to adopt the CMP and SCMP certifications

CHICAGO, June 8, 2026 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The Global Communication Certification Council (GCCC) today announced its 2026–2027 board of directors, a slate of nine senior communication leaders from the United States, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany, South Africa, Saudi Arabia and Singapore.

The board's international composition is designed to build momentum toward the GCCC's planned transition to a fully independent certification body — a step the Council views as essential to attracting communication associations and organizations beyond IABC to adopt the Communication Management Professional (CMP®) and Strategic Communication Management Professional (SCMP®) certifications.

An independent, ISO-aligned program with demonstrated global reach offers a credible standard behind which the entire profession can rally.

The new board was approved by both the current GCCC board and the International Executive Board of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), which launched the GCCC in 2014 with a goal of transitioning the Council into a fully independent non-profit organization.

2026–2027 GCCC Board of Directors

• Chair: Deborah Hileman, SCMP, FCSCE, CAICP (United States)
• Vice Chair: Shel Holtz, SCMP, ABC, IABC Fellow (United States)
• Past Chair: Bonnie Caver, SCMP, IABC Fellow (United States)
• Secretary/Treasurer: Ann-Marie Blake, FCIPR, FPRCA, Chart.PR (United Kingdom)
• Director: André Oberholzer (South Africa)
• Director: Ruxandra-Laura Bosilca, SCMP (Belgium)
• Director: Waleed Bin Huzaim, SCMP (Saudi Arabia)
• Director: Jyoti Khan, SCMP (Singapore)
• Director: Tereza Urbankova, M.A. (Germany)

"This board reflects what the GCCC is becoming: a genuinely global standards body, accountable to the profession rather than to any single association," said incoming Chair Deborah Hileman. "Independence is the natural next step, and the experience represented around this table — across industries, regions, and disciplines — gives us the credibility to make the CMP and SCMP the standard any communication organization, anywhere, can endorse."

Why certification matters

Professional certification gives communicators a way to demonstrate, on the basis of independently assessed competencies, that their practice meets a recognized global standard. For employers, it provides a reliable signal of capability; for the profession, it raises the floor on what stakeholders can expect from those who claim communication expertise. The GCCC's CMP and SCMP credentials are aligned with ISO standards for personnel certification and are awarded on the basis of demonstrated competence — not membership, tenure or, training hours alone. More information is available at https://gcccouncil.org.

About the 2026-2027 board

• Deborah Hileman, SCMP, FCSCE, CAICP — Chair. Hileman is CEO of the Institute for Crisis Management, where she leads crisis planning, executive counsel, training, and real-time response work for corporate clients across multiple industries. She holds multiple credentials, is a FEMA-trained Incident Commander, and has served in leadership roles with PRSA, IABC, the GCCC and several non-profit boards.
• Shel Holtz, SCMP, ABC, IABC Fellow — Vice Chair. Holtz is Senior Director of Communications at Webcor, a California-based commercial general contractor, and co-host of the long-running For Immediate Release and On The Same Page podcasts. An IABC Fellow with nearly five decades in organizational and internal communications, he is the author of seven books on communications and technology.
• Bonnie Caver, SCMP, IABC Fellow — Past Chair. Caver is founder and CEO of Reputation Lighthouse, a consultancy that has partnered with more than 50 mid-market B2B organizations on brand, reputation, M&A, change management, and — most recently — ethical and responsible AI implementation. A 20-year consulting veteran and SCMP-certified communicator with additional credentials in crisis, reputation, and change management, she also serves on the board of the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management, which represents 360,000 professionals across 86 countries.
• Ann-Marie Blake, FCIPR, FPRCA, Chart.PR — Secretary/Treasurer. Blake is co-founder of True, a UK-based employee engagement and experience consultancy, with 25+ years leading communication and people-integration programs across EMEA, Asia, and the US, primarily in global financial services. A Fellow of the CIPR, PRCA, and CSCE, she served on the IABC Executive Board from 2020 to 2024, including as Secretary/Treasurer.
• André Oberholzer, SCMP, FCSCE, IABC Fellow — Director. Oberholzer is Group Head of Corporate Affairs at Sappi Limited, the US$5 billion global pulp and paper company headquartered in Johannesburg, where he leads internal, external, and reputation programs across South Africa, North America, and Europe. A past chair of IABC's Africa region and a former South African diplomat, he was the first communications professional in Africa to earn the SCMP.
• Ruxandra-Laura Bosilca, SCMP — Director. Bosilca is a senior communication strategist who helps mission-driven organizations tell their stories with clarity, confidence, and credibility. Over the past 13 years, she has worked with EU institutions, international nonprofits, and research bodies across five countries, advising leaders on communication strategy, brand building, and reputation management. Ruxandra also serves on the board of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC), where she leads strategic partnerships and sponsor engagement initiatives spanning Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa.
• Waleed Bin Huzaim, SCMP — Director. Bin Huzaim is a communications and protocol professional serving as Director of Relations & Protocol at the Office of the Vice Minister of Sport in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He has more than 17 years of experience in strategic communications, public relations, stakeholder engagement, and international protocol. He is a Chartered PR Practitioner and was named among PRWeek UK's Top 110 Communications Professionals in the Middle East in both 2023 and 2024.
• Jyoti Khan, SCMP — Director. Singapore-based Khan is a certified change communication professional (CCMP, SCMP, Prosci®) with two decades of experience driving organisational communication and enterprise transformations at multinationals including Tata Communications, Royal Bank of Canada, Ericsson, and Microsoft. A former chair of the IABC Asia Pacific Board and Forbes Communication Council, she is recognized as a LinkedIn Top Voice in Internal Communication.
• Tereza Urbankova, M.A. — Director. Urbankova is Senior Manager of Global Media Relations at Boehringer Ingelheim in Germany, with more than 25 years of senior PR and communications experience spanning hospitality, retail, IT, defense, broadcast, logistics, pharma, and engineering. She also serves on the board of the European Association of Communication Directors and the European Women's Management Development Network.

About the Global Communication Certification Council

The Global Communication Certification Council (GCCC) is the governing body for the Communication Management Professional (CMP®) and Strategic Communication Management Professional (SCMP®) certifications. The Council's purpose is to create and maintain an internationally recognized standard of communication excellence, grounded in a global understanding of key principles and job competencies, and to credential communicators who achieve that standard at various points in their careers. GCCC certifications are aligned with ISO standards for personnel certification, and the Council operates impartially and independently in conducting all certification activities. Membership in any professional association is not a condition of certification. For more information, visit https://gcccouncil.org.

Media Contact

Deborah Hileman, Global Communication Certification Council, 1 502.587.0327, dhileman@crisisconsultant.com, www.gcccouncil.org

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SOURCE Global Communication Certification Council