Diana Degan, ABC, MC, IABC Fellow

Diana Degan, ABC is an award-winning communications leader, educator and strategic advisor who has been helping organizations strengthen their communication practices, build trust and achieve business results for more than 35 years. She has practiced across the full spectrum of communication disciplines, including strategic planning, brand development, integrated marketing communications, public and media relations, crisis communication, stakeholder engagement, internal communication and accessibility-focused communication design.

Diana’s career spans both agency and client-side leadership roles. As the founder of Diana Degan & Associates, she led an award-winning integrated marketing communications agency recognized five times as IABC/Toronto’s Independent/Small/Boutique Agency of the Year. Over more than two decades, her firm has supported clients across diverse sectors — from entrepreneurs and nonprofits to national and global organizations — delivering strategic communication programs that earned 37 industry awards, including Guelph Woman of Distinction in the Business/Entrepreneur category and Conestoga College’s Faculty Innovation Award. She has also held senior client-side roles, including serving as Country Communications Manager, where she established a national Marketing Communications department and led major communication initiatives across Canada.

A dedicated educator, Diana has taught more than 2,000 students at Conestoga College, where she redesigned curriculum, embedded IABC ethics and the Global Standard, and earned the inaugural Faculty Innovation Award. Her trauma-informed, accessibility-focused teaching reflects her commitment to equity, inclusion and human-centred communication.

Diana has been an active IABC volunteer at the chapter, regional and international levels for more than two decades. She has served as Vice President of Member Communications and Vice President of Professional Standards for IABC/Toronto, chaired the OVATION Awards, and presented at two IABC World Conferences.

Since 2001, she has been a long-standing evaluator for OVATION, Silver Leaf, Gold Quill and U.S. regional awards, including service on the prestigious Gold Quill Blue Ribbon Panel.

A lifelong learner, Diana holds the Accredited Business Communicator (ABC) designation, a Post-Secondary Teaching Certificate, Ontario Extend Empowered Educator designation, Certified Advertising Agency Practitioner (CAAP) designation, Carbon Literate Certification, AI literacy credentials and more than 170 professional development achievements. She is a graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University where she earned her Bachelor of Applied Arts in Journalism.