Colonel Davor Turkovic, Chief of Staff and Deputy Commander of the 93rd Air Force Base of the Croatian Air Force and Air Defense in Zemunik, joined the Croatian Minister of Science and Education Blaženka Divjak, and Croatian MP in the European Parliament Biljana Borzan, on the shortlist for the Communicator of the Year 2018. The jury of the Grand PRix awards of the Croatian Public Relations Association praised his communication during last year’s fires in Dalmatia, when he commanded the firefighter squadron.
“Davor Turkovic proved to be an excellent communicator even during extremely difficult situations. It is precisely the crises that highlight those who masterfully employ all the rules of good communication. Turkovic always provided clear and accurate information to the public, and he was prepared to explain them professionally. Although extremely active in the worst fire fighting season over the past few decades in Croatia, he conducted successful communication towards the most important stakeholders – employees of the Croatian Air Force and Air Defense, other fire fighters, the media and the general public – citizens and tourists,” said Krešimir Macan, president of the jury of the 11th Grand PRix.
Talking about the development of his communication skills, Colonel Turkovic revealed that he had built good foundation for these skills through the course in communication sciences at the Croatian Military Academy.
“It was also helpful that the vast majority of military pilots are trained for flying teachers. We need to know how to convey our thoughts well, so that the other side will unambiguously receive the information necessary to develop the skills. During the fifteen years that I’ve been a member of the Firefighter Squadron, due to great public interest, I gave the media about twenty interviews annually. Thanks to today’s technology, I could break down my own media appearances to learn more,” Turkovic said.
He believes the most important factor in public communication is honesty.
“Everything that is said is being written somewhere, and if it is not trustworthy, the credibility is lost. When you lose credibility, communication skills are no longer important. Today we use fast communication technologies, but in order for the information to be completely accurate, it is sometimes best to wait a bit for it,” Turkovic said.
Two more finalists for the Communicator of the Year award will be announced in the following week, and this award that is intended for those who are not professionally engaged in communication, but have shown excellence in communication, will be awarded during the Grand PRix award ceremony. After the shortlist is finalized, the jury will choose the winner, and citizens will also have their say in who will win this award.
Workload for the jury of Grand PRix is growing. Soon, the Anti-Communicator of the Year needs to be selected, as well as the communication expert who will receive the Grand PRix award for the development of this profession. By the end of the month HUOJ will still be receiving applications for the best communication projects.
