About

Our Story

Update PD was built to fill a gap that too many professionals know all too well.

Corporate communicators, whether they work in communications, public relations, marketing, or writing, are among the most performance-driven professionals in any organization. They carry annual development expectations, manage real PD budgets, and are expected to grow their skills year over year. The opportunities to do that, however, haven't always kept pace with what the profession actually needs.

Conferences that skim the surface. Courses that cover theory without ever getting to application. Academic programs that graduate talented communicators without teaching them how to write a strategic plan, conduct an audience audit, or build a measurement framework from scratch. The gap between knowing and doing is real — and for working professionals without the time to return to school or commit to a 20-hour course, it's often gone unfilled.

Update PD's founder, Kyla Stocks, spent more than 15 years working across communications, public relations, and leadership roles in some of Canada's most demanding sectors, including healthcare regulation, higher education, and fintech. Over that time, she watched experienced colleagues spend their development budgets on opportunities that left them no more equipped than when they started.

The turning point came when Kyla recognized that many of her talented colleagues had never been taught foundational skills in a structured, step-by-step way. They had learned on the job, figured things out as they went, and filled in gaps as best they could. So she built something for them herself: an in-house professional development session on how to write a strategic communications plan. The response made one thing clear: this kind of practical, applied learning was long overdue.

That session became the seed of Update PD.

Our mission

To give communicators and managers the practical, applied skills they need to do their jobs with confidence, delivered in a format that respects their time, fits their budget, and meets them where they are in their careers.

What we believe

Practical beats theoretical

The best professional development teaches you a skill, walks you through an example, and makes sure you can do it yourself.

Shorter is better

A focused 90-minute microcourse that teaches one skill well is worth more than a full-day workshop that covers ten things at surface level.

Canadian context matters

Our courses are built from the ground up for the legislation, culture, and workplace norms that Canadian professionals actually work within.

PD must earn its keep

We build every course to be easy to expense, straightforward to justify, and genuinely worth the line on your annual performance plan.

How it works

Understand the problem

Learn the skill

See the skill in action

Watch a walkthrough

Practice together

Your turn

Take it with you

We start with the why. What's the challenge, why does it matter, and what's at stake when it isn't handled well.

A clear, practical framework, not a theory or an overview. Something you can actually apply.

Real workplace examples that show the skill in context, so nothing stays abstract.

We demonstrate the skill live, step by step, so you can see exactly how it works before you try it yourself.

A guided activity that walks you through applying the skill with support before you do it on your own.

You practice independently, with real prompts drawn from actual workplace scenarios.

Every course ends with a downloadable resource — a template, cheat sheet, or reference guide — and a personalized certificate of completion you can share with your manager or add to your LinkedIn profile.

Meet the team

Kyla Stocks
Founder and Lead Instructor

Kyla is a senior communications strategist with over 15 years of experience across the public, non-profit, and tech sectors. Her career has spanned health-care regulation, higher education, and fintech, giving her a uniquely cross-sector perspective on what it takes to communicate strategically and lead people well.