The credentials stuff . . . about Creative Link Communications and Dean Askin

Creative Link Communications is based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dean Askin is a professional communicator and wordsmith with more than 20 years of experience in Journalism and Communications.

Dean is a senior communications specialist for a large financial services company and also runs Creative Link Communications as a freelance business. (This means he works on projects during evenings and weekends, like some of his colleagues also do.)

Dean has also been the communications manager for TORLYS Inc., a leading Canadian flooring company; the marketing communications specialist for Snap-on Tools of Canada Ltd.; edited a regional business-to-business newspaper and magazine; written for automotive trade and business publications, taught Journalism to high-school co-op students; worked on freelance communications projects for organizations including Bell, Amex Canada and George Brown College; and written freelance advertising features for leading Toronto-area community newspapers. He began his career as a CBC Radio Current Affairs writer/broadcaster and production assistant. Dean holds a degree in Journalism from Ryerson University.

Dean is a member of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Toronto Chapter and the chapter's Alliance of Independent Practitioners. He's also a member of the Insurance & Financial Communicators Association (IFCA), and  is IFCA's director of marketing. Dean is a former National Newsletter Chair and Editor of Active Voice, Editors' Association of Canada.

He was also involved in public education advocacy as a Home and School volunteer for seven years. Until 2007, Dean held Executive and Directorship positions with the Ontario Federation of Home and School Associations (OFHSA) at the local Association, Council and provincial Federation levels.

Dean lives in Toronto with his family that includes two cool cats —Tuxedo and Skittles. His hobbies are model railroading and photography (the Nikon D300 is one cool camera). Dean is a serious amateur photographer, capable with a digital camera—you can see his photography on flickr.com. He is also a published short fiction author.

Dean enjoys both the strategic and the creative execution aspects of being a professional communicator. He wrote and created the pages of this website (by modifying a design template), himself. On a Mac, of course.

He believes that if you like what you read and see on this website, then Creative Link Communications has demonstrated how we can accomplish communication goals by putting words to work effectively.

Dean Askin has won these awards:

APEX 2008 Award of Excellence, Meetings & Conferences Programs & Materials Category. Canada Life  2008 Platinum Conference program  materials. London Life. Communications Specialist responsible for the project.

APEX 2007 Award of Excellence, Meetings & Conferences Programs & Materials Category. Canada Life  2007 Platinum Conference program  materials. London Life. Communications Specialist responsible for the project.

APEX 2002 Award of Excellence, Marketing & Public Relations, Electronic & Video Public Relations Category. Business Training or Bust: Surviving & Thriving in 21st Century Automotive Service. Snap-on Training Solutions Marketing Video. Writer/narrator/associate producer.

APEX 2000 Award of Excellence, Special Purpose Video Category. Snap-on 1999 Business Fair Product Highlights Video. Writer/host.

APEX 97 Award of Excellence, One-Person Produced Newsletters Category. Frontline Magazine, Snap-on Tools of Canada Ltd. Editor/writer.