Learning from Lisa Derderian, City of Pasadena's Public Information Officer

On Thursday, April 18, USC ITE welcomed Lisa Derderian for a Speaker Series event. She has served as the City of Pasadena Public Information Officer (PIO) since 2018 after prior roles as the City Emergency Management Coordinator and Public Information Officer for the Pasadena Fire Department dating back to 2003. Lisa was joined by her son, Grant, who graduated from USC as a Computer Science-Business Administration major, and now works for USC’s Provost IT and teaches Technology & Applied Computing cybersecurity courses at USC.

As a PIO, Lisa has handled the communications for a wide range of events and incidents, including the 2011 windstorms that caused $18 million in damage, the city’s COVID 19 response, and most recently the Eaton Fire. During major events, Lisa says that her job goes well beyond a 9-5 and requires her to be reachable 24-7. She also noted that the Eaton Fire was potentially the most challenging situation that Pasadena has faced in her over 30 years of living in the city. Some parts of the area were burned beyond recognition and Lisa herself had to leave her home and evacuate to safety. Lisa informed us about the Incident Command System (ICS) process, which broadly consists of the Planning, Response, and Recovery phases of responding to an incident. It also includes face-to-face meetings of members of the fire department, police, city employees, and more. During the fires, meetings took place in City Hall as the normal location was in the fire-affected area.

Lisa coordinates amongst the 17 city departments to manage information distribution on social media, TV, newsletters, and press releases. She enjoys building relationships with other city employees, first responders, and news reporters alike, but has found that the information environment (especially online) is increasingly negative and rife with complaints and misinformation. Lisa believes in the power of steadfastly respectful communication and constructive criticism.

We watched a short video that explained how Pasadena Transit workers helped evacuate 500 people (mostly the elderly) during the fires using buses. While transportation can be a cause of emergency incidents it also plays a key role in emergency response and solutions. As future transportation professionals, we have a chance to apply our creativity, adaptability, and other skills to difficult situations. Lisa also reminded us of the importance of developing and maintaining legible and accessible transit options to serve all age groups.

It was a pleasure to welcome Lisa to speak to our organization. We extend our gratitude to her for taking the time to share insights with us, answer questions, and even let us try on her designated PIO fire hat!