The Canadian Space Agency Wants More and Outsourced Public Relations

          By Chuck Black

The Canadian Space Agency (CSA) "needs to identify a Contractor offering extensive media relations services to support the activities of its Media Relations Unit at CSA headquarters in St-Hubert, Quebec, and across Canada, on an as-requested basis."

October 24th, 2017 screenshot of the Outcrop Communications website which, as outlined in the October 24th, 2017 "List of Interested Suppliers for Media relations services on as and when requested basis for the Canadian Space Agency (9F015-20170405)," is currently the only company on the list of interested suppliers for this RFSO. According to its website, Outcrop "is the North’s largest full-service agency specializing in everything that is marketing and communications. Our mission? To help you get your message to sing, your team to shine, and your business to fly." This is likely a good thing for the CSA since, as outlined in both the October 20th, 2017 post, "Inuit Leaders Ignored as ESA Satellite Launched Over the Arctic," and the July 24th, 2017 post, "NWT Businessman "Perturbed" By Response to Private Sector Inuvik Ground Station Proposal," the agency has recently been having difficulties getting its Northern message out. Graphic c/o Outcrop. 

At least that's the story outlined in the October 16th, 2017 CSA request for standing offer (RFSO) on the Federal government Buy and Sell procurement website under the title "Media relations services on as and when requested basis for the Canadian Space Agency (9F015-20170405)."

According to the RSFO, the contractor shall provide the following services as required:

• Media relations services, positioning and coordination

• Public awareness and promotion initiatives

• Communicate with media and coordinate interviews

• Media coaching and training

• Media event planning and organization

• Strategic communications and public relation services

Individual call-ups against the standing offer must not exceed $25K CDN including applicable taxes. It's not made clear in the available documentation, but its assumed that any contracted work would be in conjunction and under the supervision of the CSA's existing media relations staff. 

According to the July 28th, 2015 update of the CSA Mission and Mandate webpage, the CSA mandate is "to promote the peaceful use and development of space, to advance the knowledge of space through science and to ensure that space science and technology provide social and economic benefits for Canadians."

Chuck Black.

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Chuck Black is the editor of the Commercial Space blog.