MxMIndia

Category: INTERVIEWS

  • From an increased focus on digital, to acquiring a host of new clients and getting the talent platform right, Hanmer MSL India is on track to be amongst the best in 2012, says Jaideep Shergill, CEO.

    [PR CHANNEL] We are happy being No 1 as MSL group: Jaideep Shergill

    By Johnson Napier

     

    It was a year of jumps and gains as also of twists and pains for one of India’s leading PR agencies Hanmer MSL. After a fruitful 2010 that saw the company acquire a host of clients leading to a healthy growth story for the agency, 2011 was a challenging year given the lull in financial markets and the possibility of another slowdown striking the industry. But the company did post a 20 per cent growth rate in 2011 that was followed by the launch of a host of new ventures.

     

    Jaideep Shergill, CEO, Hanmer MSL India puts on his thinking cap and scrutinises the year gone by in a brief conversation with Johnson Napier of MxM India. From an increased focus on digital – led by social media – to acquiring a host of new clients and getting the talent platform right, Hanmer MSL is on track to be amongst the best in 2012, he says. Excerpts:

     

    Q: As the year 2011 draws to a close, how would you describe the journey so far for Hanmer MSL?

    The year has been a good one, I would say. From a business point of view, the year was good because we tried a few things differently. We started focusing on certain practices and industries; started looking at offering better solutions for our clients… Also, in areas like content and insights where we were not doing much earlier those are the areas that we have invested in now. We have started pursuing digital very aggressively although we were doing that in the past few years as well. The other area that we have gotten into is employee engagement and working with companies on their employee communication.

     

    But while we had a good year it was also a tough one – partly because the market has become very competitive. My feeling is that 2010 has been a bit better than 2011 and that’s also because of the fact that there has been a slowdown in the second half of 2011. Overall, it has been an okay year for us.

     

    Q: How would you rate your company’s performances in the last two-three quarters since you took formal charge from Mr Sunil Gautam?

    We continue to do the things we did when Sunil Gautam was around. It’s been a year now that I have been running the company. Sunil and I have been working with each for a long time now and we both had a common vision, which we continue to follow even now. So in that sense there is nothing new that we are doing.

     

    Q: Could you quantify the growth story of your agency with appropriate figures?

    I would say both in 2010 and 2011, we have grown by 20 per cent plus. We couldn’t grow at that rate in 2009 because of the slowdown.

     

    Q: While your roster of clients boasts an aggressive line-up, how has the client acquisition exercise panned out for you in 2011?

    It has been fairly good. Like I said, from the market point of view 2011 was not as good as 2010 although we did grow by 20 per cent – the thing is that we could have grown by more than 20 per cent. Normally what happens is when you’ve grown by 20 per cent one year, the next year you are expected to grow by 25-30 per cent. In terms of business development too, it was an okay year for us. We did win a lot of business. As for the centres, Delhi is an important market for us. In Mumbai we keep winning accounts consistently given our size and reputation but I think we need to do more in Delhi. We have grown to 60 people in Delhi though now. Bangalore is another market that has been performing well for us. There are already markets where we are established and are doing well like Pune, Chennai, Ahmedabad, etc. But with Delhi the thing is that there were a lot of agencies who were bigger than us when we entered that market, so they have a natural advantage over us.

     

    Q: Any (client) win that was worth the effort more than the others in 2011?

    I don’t just want to talk about 2011 but the last couple of years. Airtel, Star, World Gold Council, Western Union…and also across industries like Biocon (pharma), Volkswagen (auto), etc. So there has been a fair mix of clients and across sectors.

     

    Q: How would you rate Hanmer MSL on the parameter of client retention? How faithful have your clients been to your group?

    The retention levels have been fairly good. I would say 2010-11 have been our best years so far. We have hardly lost any business – less than two per cent, so to speak. This is a good number where the industry in concerned. For a long time the problem would be the inability of the agency to hold on to a business and clients too would not stick to an agency for a long time. But that is not the case here also because of the fact that we are investing in the right people and systems and making things work.

     

    Q: There was the famous recession of 2008 and now there is financial turmoil that has gripped Europe and to an extent, the US as well. How do you see the PR and communications industry being affected going forward?

    I don’t see an immediate impact right now. But there are signs that it is about to take place – pitches are slowing down, new clients coming and investing in communications is on a downward slide…and it is being observed across sectors like media buying and planning, advertising, etc. Moreover most of it is also psychological; it’s an artificial fear that is created in the market because of which companies start cutting back on their budgets. But after the 2008-09 slowdown, we should have learnt how to tackle the problem, which I believe we are ready for this time around.

     

    Q: How has the social media as a unit under digital grown over the past year for Hanmer MSL? What can be predicted from the unit going forward?

    It’s a medium that is going to continue to grow. Digital as an industry is growing by over 100 per cent. Currently it’s a very small pie in the entire media mix. As for the budgets, only 2-3 per cent of the budgets go into digital, which is very less. But I would say that digital is a medium that is here to stay. We started investing in the medium in 2008 itself and this year we have seen fairly good numbers.

     

    Q: You recently announced the launch of a separate Crisis Network unit; what was the need to branch off and launch it as a separate vertical under Hanmer MSL?

    We’ve only now started calling it by a separate name. Actually all global PR firms do crisis communications and we also have been doing it for a long time. The reason we have decided to package it and launch it like this is because we see that the world is changing very quickly and crisis and issues is becoming an integral part of people’s and companies lives and futures. 10-15 years ago nobody cared as such when crisis broke out as there was no social media – digital was largely undeveloped. So something would happen in the US and we in India wouldn’t know about it until later. But today the rate at which it spirals is a matter of concern.

     

    For us, there are a few things that we see as trends. The first is trust. People don’t trust companies as much as they used to. There’s more accountability because ever since banks and financial systems collapsed in 2008, people have started raising doubts on trusting people and systems. There is also a trust issue when it comes to government. So when there is a lack of trust, an issue or crisis can become much bigger. And the other big reason is digital, as I already explained. So that is the reason we launched the unit in a formal way so that we can strategise and build around it going forward.

     

    Q: What is the rationale behind agencies hiking their budgets when tending to clients in crises? Is this a common practice that most agencies follow?

    Crisis communications is a very big part of the PR business. I wouldn’t say that clients are over-charged; it’s just that we charge them the right amount of money. Normally they undercharge, so this is the right charge. The fact is that when there is a crisis then money is not the concern – things like reputation and all takes precedence. Also, what happens is that because it’s a crisis, the PR agencies and clients are willing to invest more time in more people and more money because they have to make it work. I am not saying that they would be overcharged but that you will have to spend a certain amount of money or resources or people to make the crisis work in your favour. Moreover we don’t have to do it on a day-to-day basis so it is okay to go the extra mile.

     

    Q: While pleasing the client is an attribute sacrosanct to any PR firm, is it right to gloss over the wrongs when engaging in a damage control exercise?

    I think the best thing that one can do is have a point of view. So if there is a negative sentiment floating around a company, it’s their job and that of the PR agency to correct that and give the right perspective or message. But that doesn’t mean that media or people can be gagged or stopped from writing; I don’t think that should be the approach.

     

    Q: How would you analyse the entry of foreign entities into India? Do you see more standalone Indian agencies being acquired in the future?

    The PR industry will see the coming in of more foreign players and also the existence of domestic players. There are advantages of multinationals coming in as they get in systems, practices and other such things. There is also an opportunity for talent acquisition. But at the same time the domestic agencies will continue to exist and operate as well.

     

    Q: How would you rate Hanmer MSL’s standing amongst your peers in the industry?

    As a group we are definitely No 1 but Hanmer as an agency is amongst the top 3. If the market is valued at Rs 400 crore (rough estimates), then MSL occupies double digit numbers. But it’s difficult to put a specific number as there is no clear indicator of the size of the industry. Even the figure that’s being put out by ASSOCHAM puts the industry at an unthinkable number whereas industry experts peg it to be in the vicinity of Rs 700-800 crore.

     

    Q: On the industry per se, do you see an order in the way the industry is organised or is it still work-in-progress?

    I don’t think there is a single solution; time is the best healer — like advertising agencies got consolidated with time. There will still be fragmentation – small, medium and large agencies will coexist. In a country like India, you will need to have agencies of different sizes and shapes to service an array of clients. Our market is still not mature enough; it will be another 5 years for that to happen, I guess.

     

    Q: What is the roadmap you have charted out for the agency for 2012?

     

    To survive another year and keep on posting healthy growth. If there is a slowdown this time we will be better prepared because we have a game plan. So let’s see how it pans out.

     

    Q: When do you see Hanmer becoming a clear No 1?

    Only Hanmer becoming No 1 – maybe two years, but we are happy being No 1 as MSL group. We prefer to operate as a single brand under MSL.

  • PR also lacks enough qualified people, says Ketchum Sampark's N S Rajan in a refreshingly frank interview with MXM, on life post-acquisition and mid-slowdown.

    PR must look up to advertising: N S Rajan

    By Johnson Napier

     

    With foreign players taking a keen liking to India, the PR industry is poised for a quantum leap. Not the one to miss out on the race, Ketchum Sampark is doing everything right to stay on track and be counted as a contender worth the deal. In conversation with Johnson Napier of MxM India, N S Rajan, Managing Director of Ketchum Sampark outlines his agency’s plans to be counted amongst the best and why quality, and not numbers, will be the differentiator in the race to win and retain more clients. Excerpts:

     

    Q: It’s been some 7-8 months since the much-hyped tie-up with Ketchum. How would you analyze your journey post the acquisition?

    There has been no change as such at the ground level but yes, processes have changed, reporting has changed – it is now more in terms of financial and MIS reporting and not so much in operations. Also, what probably has changed and helped us is the access to information, access to best practices, access to case studies… so it is a win-win situation for us while we continue to work the way we are.

     

    Q: Could you elaborate on your choice of shortlisting Ketchum as your foreign partner?

    We have been working with Ketchum for more than three years now so this tie-up is actually a formalization of our relationship. We have been very comfortable with the cultural match. I think philosophically, Ketchum and Sampark have always had the same focus in terms of client deliveries, choice of clients, etc so there were a lot of similarities between us.

     

    Q: Come to think of it, the venture looks like Omnicom’s reply to making its presence felt in India – just the way Publicis did with Hanmer. Your thoughts?

    I think this is something like a process of evolution. We have been working with them for 3-4 years, and it just happened that the timing is now. It did take time for us to tie the knot as there had to be a comfort level on both sides. We probably got into a JV at the opportune time as the media is opening up and India remains a good market for bringing a foreign partner where we are able to service global clients in India and also open up our offices and network for Indian clients wanting to go abroad.

     

    Q: On the growth perspective, how would you analyse the year 2011 for your agency?

    I think we have done well. We have grown by 25 per cent and this has come on the back of 30 per cent growth that we recorded last year. Also, we signed on a lot of good clients. This apart, we just recently announced Ketchum Sampark Digital and also set up specialised verticals in healthcare and infrastructure. We believe this tie-up will take us to the next orbit in terms of skill-sets, information flow, etc. More importantly, what we have learnt from this venture is best practices. We have to understand that the market dynamics are changing and people are looking for specialised services in each of the areas. I think there is a lot of comfort at the client level if you are able to bring in value in each of the domains. That’s because clients are also looking at core focus, specialisation, skill levels, agency background, etc. So to that extent healthcare and infrastructure remains our focus areas because a huge growth is predicted in these areas. Another important area for us is crisis communications; we believe a separate vertical would be good to go with for crisis.

     

    As for our agency, we are divided into four verticals – brand, corporate, technology and financial services. Healthcare and infrastructure would continue to be separate verticals but could probably be clubbed under corporate. This apart, sports is another area that is huge for us. We have handled some very big marquee properties across India ranging from cricket, golf, football, etc. So that would continue to remain a focus area for us. We also engage in organising festivals like the Jaipur Literary Festival which witnessed the gathering of more than 400 authors and many media professionals from around the world.

     

    Q: How according to you will digital change the way PR functions, say, in a few months from now?

    According to me, the game changer in 2012 for the PR industry will be digital, as its significance and importance will be largely felt. The traditional way of communicating today will probably go direct-to-consumer with the help of digital. Also, with digital, there is a lot of opportunity for content, for social media, for gathering traffic to your site, to build conversations around content and also monitor them, etc. With Ketchum being one of the global leaders in digital I think we have a huge advantage in terms of assimilating knowledge much faster, so we will be able to scale up very quickly.

     

    Q: You’ve mentioned a growth rate of 25 percent plus; does that translate to occupying a fair market share as well?

    While we figure amongst the top 5-6 agencies in India, our emphasis has always been on quality. We would probably be happy if we were perceived as an agency known for its quality. I may not be the No 1 in terms of size, but I certainly will be No 1 in terms of quality. We would love to earn the respect, trust and long-term partnership from our clients. Also, we would like our employees to be happy. If in the process of doing all this we improve our ranking, we’ll be happy with that.

     

    Q: Despite the low-warning signs, how are you warming up to the current economic situation being tagged as ‘tough’?

    While on the slowdown, let me tell you that during the 2008-09 recession, when most agencies lost business, we were the only agency that grew that year – even if the growth was single digit. So there will always be some amount of hardship so long as clients believe that you will be able to deliver value to them. In our experience, our clients have retained us during the tough times as well. The challenge for any business is to see through the bad phase and that is possible when you are focused on quality, people and such attributes. But if you are chasing to be the No 1 player then there are chances of you losing out.

     

    Q: Do you plan to scale up operations across other centres in India?

    We are currently present in seven cities and we do have aspirations to roll each of the practices in each of the regions. We just hired a senior person to handle our office in the South so we are taking all steps necessary to grow all our offices. Also, we have an SBU concept where we encourage and handhold all our businesses to be profitable and contribute to the growth. So that process is happening. Finally at the end of the day, it is important for each SBU to contribute to the overall growth of the agency.

     

    Q: Where the industry is concerned, what can be done to make it more organised than the state it is in now?

    I think it should begin with individual agencies taking the onus and coming on a common platform to address the woes of the industry. It is important for the PR industry to look up to the advertising industry which, despite having its share of problems, is much more organised. Today, one is not even sure what is the exact size of the industry. If you put the top 10 PR agencies together I think they would be estimated to be around Rs 300-400 crore whereas the unorganised industry would be around Rs 150-200 crore. So the total industry size could be anywhere between Rs 500-600 crore. Also, the problem is compounded by the fact that compared to other markets, our fees are a little lower. Our fees are 30-40 percent lower than even that of China. There are too many players in India leading to the fees being compromised. But having said that there are clients who are willing to pay a premium if they are convinced about the quality of the service being offered.

     

    Q: What is the way forward then?

    I think in the long term a lot of agencies would opt for the consolidation route. What is happening is that companies here are also realising that they need networks that will lead them to get more organised, have access to better offices, skill sets, etc. All this is possible with a larger network. While pop-and-mom stores will continue to exist they too will increasingly take the consolidation route.

     

    Q: Any other attributes that need to be paid greater attention to?

    One attribute I think needs more attention is people. I think we don’t have too many qualified people. Also, the good PR professionals are not adept at running a business – a lacuna that needs to be bridged. This is possible with effective training programmes. We have our own in-house training programmes and we hope to train our colleagues on this front as well. Also, we plan to have a fixed number of hours for training our staff. At the end of the day, being in the services industry skills and people are important attributes that one needs to pay adequate heed to.

  • Unless we get PR out of being just press releases into being something a lot more sophisticated and holistic, we will not get the right people feels Sukanti Ghosh, MD, India for APCO

    India is a long-term play for us: Sukanti Ghosh, APCO

    By Johnson Napier

     

    In a day and age where PR agencies are grappling with each other in offering services with a differentiated touch, US-based APCO Worldwide has its own unique formula of approaching the Indian communications space. Far from being referred to as a PR agency, the firm would rather let each of its verticals, be it corporate advisory, government affairs or civil, act as individual competitors versus the other full-time agencies in the space.

     

    Entrusted with the task of bringing a differentiated tactic to the market is Sukanti Ghosh, MD, India for APCO, who has donned several communication hats across the sectors of radio, advertising, and banking & financial services. In conversation with Johnson Napier of MxM India, Ghosh elaborates on the tremendous scope for agencies to make it big in India and how government relations & public affairs would be a large space to reckon with in the years to come. Excerpts:

     

     

    In a largely blurred communications space where agencies try to play the differentiating game very cleverly, how would you categorise APCO Worldwide as an agency in India?

    If you look at the Indian communications industry, it is at the various stages of maturity; it’s along a continuum. So on one hand, we have a lot of the commoditised services in India, and frankly speaking, there is no bottom to that pit – there is always another mom-and-pop agency who will offer a service at a cheaper rate – and there is another end of the spectrum that is highly evolved, extremely mature and as good as any other global market. So it depends on which end of the market you want to play in. APCO, nowhere in the world, really plays in the commoditised end of the communications industry. So like there are many Indias within India, similarly, there are many communication industries within the communication industry. It occupies and lives in various forms of maturity. You have to decide which slice of the market you want to play in.

     

    So what is it about APCO in India that you would say is different?

    What has defined APCO since I have joined is that we are very clear about the market that we want to play in. APCO looks at communications very differently. If you are aware of the Venn diagram that we studied in school (three intertwined circles), we typically turn around and say, if you look at the three circles – one is business strategy of any company, the other is public perception or civil society and the third is government regulations – there is an interplay between the three and whenever there is an interplay between the three that is where we are the strongest.

    So to begin with, if you remove the government element and look at the other two elements of business strategy and civil that is where you get marketing communications. Frankly, that’s not an area where we are the strongest and that is not an area that we would want to play in. Then if you take out the part of civil society, and look at the interplay of government and business only then that’s where you get the issues that keep arising every day.

    Today if you look at India and where we are as a country, civil society and the voice of civil society is here to stay and it will only become stronger going forward. Again, that is not an area where we want to play.

    We are very clear that at the outset, we are US FCPA (Foreign Corrupt Practices Act) compliant, we are UK Bribery Act compliant; we believe in ethical representation and in the sphere of ethical representation, we are the single largest ethically-owned firm in the US, and also the eleventh largest around the world and that’s where we want to grow.

    If you look at the third element, where if you remove out business and look at the interplay between government and the people, that’s where public awareness advertising from the government arises. Again, if you look at the government and business, that’s where you have a number of government initiatives to try and rope in business, that’s where we are again strong. An example is the vibrant Gujarat campaign that won few awards despite being pitted against some brilliant campaigns from around the world. So that’s going to be our focus at this point in time.

    Do we really see ourselves as a marketing communications agency – perhaps not. That’s not an area we want to focus on. We would want to focus on selective areas of communications in the broader sense and do well in that.

     

    How would you analyse the performance of your core businesses in India?

    Globally, we are a market leader in public affairs, we are a market leader in STG (service to government) practices and we hope to replicate that model out here in India. It would be fair to say that we have got off to a very good start in India. We have more than doubled our revenues from the year before, we are working with some of the finest Fortune 500 companies in India, we are fortunate to have worked with the government of Gujarat and are seriously looking at growing business in that space. Also, even as we speak we are working with several companies, advising them on public-private partnerships; helping them work alongside the government because we believe the Indian government is at a stage where it is more than ready to look at and listen to global leaders to hasten the pace of progress in this country. That is something unique because most companies that have come into India have a misconception with regard to the government and the way it works.

     

    While it seems to be a merry-making affair for you in the government and public affairs space in India, it is not the case with other players who appear apprehensive of making it big into this space. Then there are also allegations of red tape and corruption. Your comments?

    Frankly, in the last sixteen months, we have never faced a single problem working with the government. Part of it is misconception and part of it is reality, but the fact is that it is only when a company wants to take a shortcut that the problem arises. The government has very clearly defined processes and companies need to understand and work the processes. The fact is that India is a long term play; so you’ve got to work here to stay and proceed accordingly.

    We also help companies in understanding policies and regulations. The latest example being the FDI norms in retail being discussed lately. So the output does not have to be limited to the media; there are cases where you will work with the media and that is only right, but it does not have to be limited to only the media.

     

    Increasing number of multinationals are evincing interest in India while India continues to look up to the outside world for encouragement. What are the trends that you foresee currently on that front?

    There are a couple of things happening on that front. If you look at the STG space – I am referring to outward investment as well – there are a couple of things being observed. One is the government bodies or the economic development boards, are today trying to woo Indian companies and get Indian companies to invest in their markets. If you look at the policies space, there are so many Bills that are being talked about, there are so many changes in terms of legislative reforms and these are throwing up hundred different opportunities for companies. So that in itself is humongous.

    Globally, if you look at APCO, we focus on a number of areas and those are the areas that we will continue to focus on. We focus a lot on energy and renewable energy, on telecom, on food & consumer products…we are probably the single largest player in the healthcare space. So we would be bringing and developing a number of these practices in India.

     

    How is APCO Worldwide performing outside of India? Also, what are your plans for India outside the two metros that you are already present in?

    Apart from Washington, US, which is our largest office around the world and 2-3 regional offices, our London office has a few odd people, Dubai has 40-odd people, Brussels has 40-odd people, and all the other offices are around 20-odd people in operations.

    In India we see ourselves moving to three offices by next year, we see ourselves adding one more office in the south besides Mumbai and Delhi. We would grow to be about 50 people soon.

    If you see recent industry reports that classify firms from small, medium and large, I think without trying too much in the span of one year, we are very much already in the middle. We are very confident of growing very quickly into the so-called large segment very soon.

     

    How would you rate the fee structure that agencies command in India? There are allegations of it being under-par compared to other countries?

    We are expensive and our clients know that we are expensive. Clients know that they will get firms for half the cost but they come to us for the quality and value that we deliver; they don’t come to us for the fees that we charge. In certain parts of the business we compete with the big four, in certain parts of the business we compete with law firms, with the communications industry, and so on but the fact is that we have never had an issue with fees. It is made out to be an issue primarily because you are on the wrong end of the value chain. So you won’t see our people running around with press releases, issuing statements or chasing people.

     

    Do you largely agree with the claim that the PR industry in India is largely unorganised?

    I thing the PR agencies have brought it on themselves because they have become so tactical at the bottom end of the spectrum that there is always a cheaper option. And when you are at that level, you would never command a premium and it will always be unorganised. But does that mean that there is no organised side of the business, of course there is. The thing is, India is a large country and is big enough for everybody. Even the largest PR agency is India is around about 40 crores or so, according to Holmes report. This despite them being very big in the communications space and having a large clientele. So you can imagine the opportunity that exists in the communications space.

     

    What is the emphasis that you lay on digital?

    Globally, we are very big in the digital space. We have a unit called APCO Online, a pureplay social media unit that has won more than 300 awards across the world. So those are resources that we would be bringing to India. So it’s one of the units that we would be looking at very closely in 2012.

     

    Given your diverse presence across industries, who would you cite as competition?

    I can’t name any one firm. In corporate advisory we compete with management consulting firms, in the public affairs space we compete with some of the large law firms; there are very few communication agencies that are doing serious public affairs work. The thing about APCO that strikes me the most is the number of clients who have been with us in upwards of ten years and also the number of people who have been with us average around 10-15 years. So it’s largely a firm that is relationship-led; it is largely a firm that is culturally very strong and frankly speaking, you either fit into the culture or you don’t.

     

    Is the current economic scenario casting its toll on the industry?

    We grew at a rate of 6.9 per cent in the last quarter which was the slowest in the last 8-9 quarters, but the fact is, how many countries have grown by that per cent around the world? We may be going through a bit of a rough patch, but we will get out of it eventually. Is it a period of concern for us, I guess not. I think there are austerity measures that have been undertaken and there is a note of caution everywhere.

     

    What are the imminent challenges facing the industry?

    There are two big challenges that face the PR industry, the first being the PR industry itself. The second being people. The skill gap that we keep talking about for other sectors is very real for our sector as well. The trend internationally is that people are very focused when it comes to taking selective career paths and so they go ahead and specialize in that from the beginning. That’s not what is happening here. In India, it is still an emerging profession and with all emerging professions there is a period of instability but there will be a shakeup. We need to elevate the status of the industry. Unless we get PR out of being just press releases into being something a lot more sophisticated and holistic, we will not get the right people.

     

    What are the trends you foresee for the industry, and for APCO, in 2012?

    For 2012, I see fierce competition and a certain degree of consolidation taking place. I foresee a lot of foreign companies coming to India and a lot of Indian firms willing to sell out. As for us, we are fiercely independent and we prefer to remain that way.

  • CMCG's Samir Kale on how 2011 was a good year for the agency, how education is a sector to look forward to and why it is important for clients to give agencies their due by way of increased premiums.

    Samir Kale: ‘We are specialists, not generalists’

    With Enron for its first client, the journey for the just-formed CMCG India in 1994 was clearly not an easy one. Anyone would know the agony that the AoR would have to face having to back a client with questionable leanings. But that was then. Today, CMCG India has made steady and progressive headway and is being seen as an agency of choice for many clients. The credit for this turnaround goes to Founder and Managing Director Samir Kale, under whose leadership the agency has grown to great heights in the communications world.

     

    In conversation with Johnson Napier, Mr Kale strolls down memory lane and analyzes how 2011 was a good year for the agency, how education would be a sector to look forward to and why it is important for clients to give agencies their due by way of increased premiums. Excerpts:

     

    Q: The year 2011 was a one that had its fair share of highs but it was the lows that had the industry on its toes. How would you define the year for CMCG India?

    In terms of our growth this year, I would say we have performed reasonably well. Typically if you observe, globally, whenever there is a downturn what gets slashed are the big advertising budgets. And then people start looking for value – what can you deliver that can get me as much value from spending as little as possible? And that’s what PR as a practice actually provides. So economic downturns actually help the PR industry; that’s how it should be. We have to be able to sell it to the clients that now is the time to look at PR. The thing to be noted here is that India is still a growing economy – whether 6 or 9 percent, it is growing. And therefore the demand for our services will keep on growing in a growing economy.

    So to put it positively, it has been a good year for us.

     

    Q: Have you outlined a vision for 2012? What are the immediate objectives for the team?

    What is happening today is that PR business as such is getting segmented – PR agencies are offering different services across different segments and different levels of services. In this scenario, we have to identify what is going to be the positioning for us in this matrix. Traditionally as an agency, we are more towards value proposition – we charge more but we give you more value. You have agencies which offer standard services, which I call ‘call centre’ services and we know what they have to offer. I am not saying that it is bad or good; our DNA has been towards value proposition. So we already have a positioning where value is concerned now the focus would be to get the call centre side of the business right.

     

    Q: What was different in the way you went about netting clients in 2011? Any stand-out clients that you were particularly excited about?

    Disney was one such client but I would say that the important thing for us last year was the setting up of Campus PR, a division that caters to the educational sector. I think we are the only players doing that right now. We have a good response to the product from some of the leading players in the education space. We would be increasing our focus around education in 2012 and I feel that offering segmented services would be key going forward.

     

    Q: Apart from education, how have the other specialized offerings performed for CMCG?

    We have done well across our other offerings as well and if you ask me am I satisfied with what we have achieved, I would say yes.

     

    Q: Given the hue and cry around digital, specifically social media, how have you increased your emphasis around the medium?

    Digital today has become a bit of a fashion. Also, today there are a lot of media agencies who focus on providing technological expertise. But we have focused on tapping the digital platform to communicate with the media. A case in point is IPCC, where we were dealing with journalists across the UK, US, Australia, New Zealand sitting here in India and trying to push the message across. That’s what we have being doing because the journalists are also on the internet and we don’t want to go and do things which we are not capable of. Our focus is how can we capture the attention of the media on the digital platform?

     

    I think what happens is it’s not the method, it’s the message we look at. Today it is digital but tomorrow it may be mobile. So what you want to say and communicate is more important and then the medium you want to do that on follows next. It’s content that will drive the way, not technology.

     

    Q: How is CMCG placed in the PR pecking order? What is the market share you seek to achieve in 2012?

    All I will say is that we are a mid-sized agency. We are specialists, we are not generalists for sure.

     

    Q: How would you rate your contemporaries?

    I can’t rate them as I have not been tracking them closely. But if it is said that they are offering differentiated services then it is good for the industry as such as it would help it achieve greater heights.

     

    Q: How do you see foreign players changing the fortunes of the PR industry in India? Is it beneficial having them increase their base on our shores?

    It’s a good thing for the industry. We have always had tie-ups with many international players. The industry has witnessed the buying out of many Indian agencies in the past few years. Having said that, we at CMCG already work with most international clients. They see the value that we bring to the table and they are willing to pay for that value. It is important for international agencies to build a good understanding of the country, regions, politics, etc; be able to offer that level of service that the client expects in the developed world. They need to be able to develop strong local capabilities to be able to work with their local clients in India. Otherwise it is not worth it. So while coming in is a welcome step, developing and understanding the market is a bigger challenge.

     

    Q: Are you still being chased by foreign agencies for a JV?

    If there is a good deal I will certainly consider it. As I said in terms of value proposition we deliver it well, what we need is to build our capabilities at the low-end or basic strata of the business. And doing that across geographies in India is what we will look at. So if my partner has a similar vision then it could be a win-win situation for both.

     

    Q: Consolidation would be the order of the day for the industry going forward. Would it help steer the industry in getting more organized?

    Typically, consolidation happens when you offer mass services to a large number of customers. But the thing about PR is that anyone can go ahead and start his own business, including a single individual himself. I think consolidation will help the top 10-15 players but beyond that it’s unclear what role it would essay as there are many small players too.

     

    Q: What are challenges facing the industry?

    I think we need to attract good talent in this industry. And that will come only if we pay better money, which will only come if clients pay us well. The thing is that the clients must pay the agency for every single activity that they do. Why should they expect everything in one fee? Does that happen in any other profession? I don’t think so. Today PR is still the last mile for the client; that perception has to change.

     

    Q: What would be your key focus areas for 2012?

    We will have a clearer idea in terms of how we can grow apart from the value-added services, the base services and how we can add on the expertise across verticals. These would be our key focus areas going forward.

     

  • Dennis Taraporewala of Criesse Communications declares that boutique shops can redefine the way PR functions as a discipline in India, and that larger players will have to cooperate with smaller ones

    [PR Channel] We want to grow organically, not exponentially: Dennis Taraporewala

    In this competitive era where clients don’t mind slamming the brakes on services that do not bring much to the table, it is often the vulnerable who fall victim to the siege. And for an industry like PR which is anyway sidelined by clients and media alike, the scale is always in favour of large agencies. But then there are a handful of small – or rather ’boutique’ agencies, as Dennis Taraporewala, Director, Criesse Communications, would like to call it – which are changing the market dynamics and giving the biggies a run for their money.

     

    With a flurry of big and key clients vouching for the services of this communications shop, the going has been very good for Criesse thus far in India. In conversation with MXM India’s Johnson Napier, Mr Taraporewala declares that boutique shops can redefine the way PR functions as a discipline in India, and talks about how the larger players will be compelled to work in a cooperative fashion with the smaller players, and not in isolation, in future. Excerpts:

     

     

    Q: It’s been five years since Criesse made a formal foray into India. How have you grown as a communications agency in India since then?

    Criesse Communications was started in 2002 by Gitika Taraporewala (Managing Partner) as an agency in Singapore with Kodak as our first client. For quite a while it was a small firm based out of Singaporewhere we did a small amount of PR in the region for a few clients. But the real take-off for the agency was in 2006 when we came back toIndiaand decided to set up the company for the Indian market. We originally started out by picking up a few corporate-cum-entertainment clients like Mid-Day, Radio One, Indian Express Group etc. From there we also picked up a range of entertainment clients like Kangna Ranaut, Sonu Sood, Jimmy Shergill, Gul Panag, Chitrangada Singh etc. Eventually we realized that we were catering to two distinct kinds of clients – one was corporate and the other was entertainment. We realized we had a unique standing in the marketplace that made us different from the other players who were more focused around a single domain. So that was the differentiation that we were able to bring to the table.

     

    Q: Tell us about your client roster and the range of services that you offer them?

    We recently have signed up with new multinational clients like Sofitel Hotels, US-based FranklinCovey, etc. We have also been working for a long time with BBC Worldwide and have in fact been asked to come and pitch for BBC Global News as well. Then there is Elder Healthcare and O2 Sparkling water that have aligned with us. Also, there are clients with whom we work on a project basis like The Indian Express for their FE Best Bank Awards, etc. So quite naturally, the strength of our agency is the ability to bring together the corporate part of the business and the entertainment part of the business together.

     

    Q: What is unique about the way you function as a small agency? Why should a client stick with Criesse as the AoR?

    We intend to stay small – a boutique agency – as we offer our clients highly personalized services. Our retainer clients have managed to stick with us for the kind of solutions we offer them. What you get to observe nowadays is that agencies sign up a lot of clients and within six months the client is on the lookout for change. So we decided that we will work for only a few clients; we will be selective about whom we sign up with. So we have about seven people in our team but we offer our services whole-heartedly to the clients. We make it a point to see that there is one senior partner always involved even with the operations with the client. That is why our clients are extremely pleased with us.

     

    Q: As a boutique agency, is there a standard industry code you adhere to while pitching for a new client or do you follow a different practice?

    Initially, if we are called for a pitch it follows a certain process, especially for the large corporates. So we go and pitch just like any other big agency but we tell them that we are a small agency and we intend to stay small. But if we sign up with them we assure them that the team will have at least one highly experienced individual at the top along with the junior members. The main thing is that you can win big accounts, but if you don’t have good talent working on that account, eventually the relationship breaks down. So we may have 30, 50 or 100 clients with us, but if they are not satisfied with my work then it’s not worth winning such a large number of clients.

     

    Q: How friendly is the PR environment for boutique agencies like yours as compared to large agencies?

    I think there is a big opportunity that has been created for boutique agencies right now, because what is happening is that though the large companies have a vast network and are fantastic with their thinking, in terms of execution they have not been able to handhold the client. If an account director, for example, has 20 clients under his belt how can he get involved with each one of them at a personal level? It will be left to the juniors to build up the relationship with them and that’s not a good thing. What is unique about Criesse is that we have a brand strategy practice, and not just PR. We are always linking into the client’s corporate brand strategy. We always insist that the client share his corporate brand strategy with us; without that we do not proceed ahead. So this is how we are positioned as an agency.

     

    Q: How would you rate your growth story in numbers?

    We have witnessed very transformational growth in the last year as we have signed 2-3 large accounts. As for the numbers, all I can say is that we have doubled (revenues) from what we were a year ago.

     

    Q: It is alleged by large agencies that clients are not open to paying a premium because of the underpricing exercise that medium and small agencies resort to. What are your views on such allegations?

    What is termed as premium service and what is it that you can classify as premium for premium prices is very relative. So if a small agency undercuts a big agency just on price it won’t be a long-term relationship. Because eventually, no matter what a client pays, if you do not deliver they will leave you mid-way. So the best approach is to ensure that the quality is delivered. We only directly compete with the big agencies when there is a coordinated pitch. So if small agencies are undercutting large agencies, it won’t last if they are doing it based on cost. It will last if they are doing it based on the quality and the value proposition that they bring. And value is added only through a combination of quality and cost. Now if somebody comes and gives you great quality at a better price, wouldn’t you take it? So that is something big agencies have to think about.

     

    Q: Given that consolidation is the order of the day, have you ever been approached for a takeover?

    We were approached once by an Indian entity for a takeover but we didn’t really pursue it. Also, there was an agency from Singapore which had evinced interest as they wanted to enterIndia, but we declined. Our intention is clear: we want to grow only organically; we don’t want exponential growth. The reason being that we want to deliver on the quality front. Of course we do want to be profitable too. The key challenge is to get talent and groom them and get them to think long-term.

     

    Q: Are you looking at expanding your expertise from the regular corporate and entertainment services that you offer?

    There is a trend nowadays for agencies to offer multiple practices – finance, healthcare, pharma, etc but I just feel it becomes meaningless after a point. Because after all, why has a client hired you? Not because he wants domain specialization in his area, but because he wants his brand to be well communicated to the outside world. I think specialization in the PR firm has been taken too far but what happens is that it is being used as a tool of reassurance. The trend right now is that everyone is saying we are not generalists; neither I am saying be a generalist. I am saying be someone who can understand multiple industries, then only can you become senior in your approach and be valued for what you offer.

     

    Q: Would you agree with the claims made by certain large players that smaller players are responsible for the unorganized state of the industry?

    Let’s look at it the other way. Take some of the large agencies: are clients sticking to them? Some are, not all of them. There is currently a need in the market for high quality boutique players. And there are such players and they are attracting business. So it will always be a give-and-take affair. It wouldn’t be that the big will dominate and others will disappear; the market is large enough to support all of them. In fact, larger players should go ahead and leverage from these smaller players. What you may see is that larger agencies which are not able to offer personalized services to many clients will cooperate – not buyout – with the small and boutique players. It should be a collaborative model that will be a win-win for all.

    What has worked for us is that we have always advised clients to be simple, authentic and clear in their communication. If any of these are missing then people pick it up, and it may be damaging in the long run.

     

    Q: What are your views on digital, especially the use of social media in PR?

    We integrate online very well. Social media is not rocket science; anybody can get the hang of it. People only overhype it. Because facial expression or tone of voice is not there in the social world, the written word needs to be very authentic. So our strategy around digital is not very different from normal communication. Maybe what has changed is that communication is now more interactive. And if you are authentic in your message then people will be willing to listen to you.

     

    Q: Any other new client of Criesse that deserves a mention?

    There is a new client that we have signed up with – Spool. It’s a Singapore-based  company that is coming in the global market with Indian content online. The idea is that today if you go on to the internet there is no one place where you can get the latest Indian movie. On this portal, viewers would get to view movies and even news and other such programmes from any corner of the world. Initially it would be a free model, then a subscription model or pay-per-view. They have signed on with some major movie and TV players for the deal. It would be launching end of this month.

     

    Q: On a parting note, what can we expect from Criesse in 2012?

    We are going to be involved with a couple of large pitches; on a growth basis we are looking at a 30 per cent increase depending on which pitches materialize for us. The challenge for us in 2012 would be to carry on with churning out good talent and take them higher so that they deliver greater value to brands on the whole. As for our foray into newer regions, we may look at expanding our offices in Delhi and Singapore, but that is over an 18-month period and not immediately.

     

  • The single biggest challenge, which overshadows everything else and is already upon us, is the crisis of talent, observes Vivek Sengupta of Moving Finger Communications.

    [PR Channel] Being small is our strength: Vivek Sengupta

    By Johnson Napier

     

    With a career spanning the domains of journalism, PR, public policy and advocacy there is very little that Vivek Sengupta, Founder & Chief Executive of Moving Finger Communications, hasn’t tackled in the field of communication. Though a small shop, Moving Finger has its hands full in offering mundane services to its clients apart from other specialised offerings that include messaging and media training workshops as well as modules in crisis preparedness and crisis communications. It also offers a cloud-based service for global PR and sometimes works with other PR agencies which do not have these offerings.

     

    In conversation with MxM India, Mr Sengupta analyses the plight of the PR industry in India, how small agencies stack up to the larger forces and why regulation against lobbying isn’t a desirable option for the industry in India. Excerpts:

     

    Q: How would you analyse Moving Finger as being a distinct communications agency in India?

    We are a communications consulting firm that provides solutions in the realms of PR, public affairs, public policy and advocacy. We also offer standalone products like messaging and media training workshops as well as modules in crisis preparedness and crisis communications. We also offer a cloud-based service for global PR. In these areas, we sometimes work with other PR agencies which do not have these offerings.

     

    We are small, and that is our strongest suit. For our size, we offer unmatched experience and expertise. It’s a lot like how independent bookstores hold their own in a market awash with large chain bookstores.

     

    Q: As founder and head of Moving Finger, what were the initial challenges you faced in putting the firm together?

    The challenges were the challenges of a start-up. They come with the turf and you take them in your stride.

     

    Q: How would you differentiate between running a specialist agency of your own versus working for a large PR house in India?

    Where I am concerned, in a large agency, running the business profitably and growing it were my primary concern. Servicing played second fiddle. Now, servicing is my primary concern. Running the business is secondary; though, in and of itself, it is of paramount importance.

     

    Q: How would you analyze the performance of the PR and Communications industry in India? Has it recorded a commendable growth story in 2011?

    In a challenging market scenario, the industry performed creditably. When the business environment is tight, CEOs and marketing heads watch spends very carefully. PR tends to do better than advertising because the spends are way smaller and, I dare say, you get bigger bang for the buck.

     

    Q: How do you view the increasing entry of international PR firms in India?

    This is not a very recent development. It has been happening for some time and had to happen. These firms have their own markets, we have our own. The pie is large enough for everybody.

     

    Q: In a changing communications scenario, how has the journalist-PR nexus evolved over time?

    I am not sure what connotation you attach to the word ‘nexus’. I hope it is positive! I think the journalist and the PR person have come to have a better understanding of each other’s role. The PR person understands that the journalist is looking for information, while the journalist understands that the PR person is looking to provide information. Both have the common objective of purveying information. When there is a match between the two needs, there is win-win – a consummation devoutly to be wished for.

     

    Q: How do you see digital impacting the way a PR agency functions?

    The goal of purveying information does not change. Digital is just another platform or means to that end.

     

    Q: What are the immediate challenges facing PR agencies in India?

    The single biggest challenge, which overshadows everything else and is already upon us, is the crisis of talent. You can get the business, but do you have good, competent people to service the business? However, this talent issue is something that many verticals grapple with. In the communications industry, the media itself is assailed by this challenge. Every editor whom I talk to laments the lack of talent.

     

    Q: Why is the PR and communications industry devoid of a strong and agile regulator? How will the industry grow without proper policing mechanisms in place?

    Why would our industry need a regulator? Who has asked for one? There has been some talk of “regulating” lobbying, as it has come to be understood in India (which is wider than the US or EU definition of engaging with law-makers). But, in my view, even that is not called for. We have before us the experience of the media with the Press Council of India. A watchdog for lobbying must surely not traverse the same path. It would be better to limit regulation to existing laws.

     

    Do you think consolidation will be the order of the day soon?

    Some amount of consolidation will happen and that will be perfectly in order.

     

    Vivek Sengupta is Founder and Chief Executive of Moving Finger Communications. He has had a varied career in journalism, public relations, public policy and advocacy. He can be contacted at vivek.sengupta@movingfinger.in

     

  • Ameer Ismail, Executive Director, Lowe Lintas opens up about his successful tryst with the PR and communications space, how LinOpinion has managed to outperform its growth every year, and his plans for the agency in 2012.

    [PR Channel] 2012 is about growth: Ameer Ismail

    It sometimes helps not pushing oneself too hard to prove one’s worth in the market. It is better if the industry itself does that for you and puts you on the pedestal where you deserve to be. It has been a similar experience for PR agency LinOpinion that has been doing brilliant work without creating much noise or fanfare about its work. Part of the reason for the agency’s good standing is the leadership team, and particularly a person who has been at the helm for a loyal 17 years.

     

    In conversation with Johnson Napier of MxMIndia, Ameer Ismail, Executive Director, Lowe Lintas opens up about his successful tryst with the PR and communications space, how LinOpinion as an agency has managed to outperform its growth every year and his plans for the agency in 2012. Excerpts:

     

    Q: It’s been a long run for you in the PR and communications space. How would you chart your personal journey thus far?

    It has been quite a long journey for me. When I joined the profession it was in a nascent stage but that also threw up a lot of interesting opportunities for young and aggressive people like me. In effect, it has been a journey where I have never stopped learning and I have never looked back. In the process of working in the PR space, I have done a lot of work in the communications space as well. So I do not consider myself only a PR professional; I consider myself first a professional, second a communications professional and third, a PR professional within the communications space. So the journey has been a satisfying one, to say the least.

     

    Also, it has enhanced my knowledge and skill-sets in certain areas – there’s management expertise, financial expertise, you have to be a motivator for your team, a seller, a marketer, a businessperson… all roles rolled into one. So it has been a journey of creation. This business did not exist around 20 years ago; even 10 years ago, it was not that developed. There were people who saw the potential and jumped into the business and started scaling up fast. That has not been our philosophy as an agency and it has never been my philosophy as well. We believe there is potential but we need to grow it in a certain space and we have been very successful in our own space and in our own way. We have built a very successful practice which today is one of the most successful marketing practices and continues to grow and outstrip everybody’s expectations.

     

    Q: Your stint at LinOpinion is one of the longest ever seen. How has the agency evolved under your leadership?

    LinOpinion has been a culmination of a dream. It has been a dream to have worked in a world-class institution that is respected for its values, work, ethics… this agency is bigger than just people. It was a dream to join the agency; more so, it was a dream to get an opportunity to be entrepreneurial within an agency system. When Prem Mehta hired me into the agency, I remember him telling me, “Listen, if you want to sell toothpaste and stuff like that then this is the wrong place for you, but if you want to create something out of ideas and build something really good and get exposed to all kinds of learnings in that journey then this is the space.” And the journey is by no means even close to getting boring or over.

     

    Q: The communications landscape is seeing a constant evolution in the way it functions as an industry. How in your experience has it changed over the past five years to what it is today?

    Not just five years, I see change in what we do five months from now and what we do five months from then. Though I would say that change is constantly happening in the way we think, the way we react, the way we structure, the way we benchmark and offer our services… The industry itself is in a phase of constant evolution itself. Anybody who tells you that we have got the systems and that these are the golden benchmarks is just bullshitting. At the end of the day, the PR agency business is constantly evolving itself across the globe. Every day is a day of learning for the PR industry. There are now centres and teams that are managing these kinds of developmental areas for us.

     

    Q: Has 2012 begun with a bang for the agency?

    Jan 2012 has been much more promising; we have shown good growth compared to January 2011. But there are signs that we may see less enthusiasm from clients where allocation of budgets towards PR is concerned. In terms of negotiations and new business, we actually get into high gear in the last quarter of the previous year. In that timeframe we talk to multiple clients across categories and segments and it is at that stage that you can actually gage the commitments that are happening for the new year. So we definitely see signs of a slight slowdown but I would say that in an evolving market and an evolving country, things are not going to slow down hugely.

     

    Q: How would you rate the growth story for LinOpinion in 2011?

    2011 has been a fantastic year for us because we did many things that stood out in the minds of our clients and the industry per se. We were even recognised for some of our achievements – we got recognised for several innovations that we brought to the table including Suzlon PR campaign for P.A.L.S where we worked in an integrated way with the entire group machinery and several other things. It was also a great year in terms of finance and business performance. We even bagged the best Marketing Services award within the group for business performance. So it was a fantastic year for us.

     

    As for the wins, a few notable ones include Tourism Victoria, Times Television Network, Polaris…then there was a consolidation of all the Starwood businesses where we now handle all of their mandates. We also managed to win clients like DHI, Siemens, and several others. To sum it up, we have had at least 40-45 retainer businesses added on. We also consolidated our teams; we launched training programmes and many other initiatives that we set out to do last year. And this year will see further change and evolution – more of a recasting exercise from our end. As for our growth last year, it would suffice to say that it has been over industry standard. Now we have to temper that growth with reality, we have to temper that growth with manageability… so anything is possible in this space. The criteria is to see what the industry is doing, what we need to do and how we can manage it best and then decide on throwing up numbers. But the numbers we achieve are good, and we achieve it on profit margins that are on par with advertising businesses.

     

    Q: How would you sum up your performance against other players from the industry?

    The thing is that we don’t like to benchmark ourselves against anyone because this industry has seen crazy growth. So for instance, you predict a growth of 50 per cent or more the question is whether you can sustain that kind of growth or no? That’s because the basic and fundamental fuel to that growth is talent – there are not enough talented people out there who stick to jobs. I have spent 17 years in this agency, which is huge, but I too in the early part of my career wanted to keep on jumping for better opportunities. So Ii do not blame people who want to move but when you move at that early stage so often it doesn’t reflect well on your career prospects.

     

    Having said that, we too have faced talent issues and we continue to do that. There is enough business out there but to get the right kind of people to service the needs is a tough thing. The other thing is when you get the talent in, you expect them to hone in skills much faster. We as an agency imbibe a lot of values and would never be found doing things that are unethical. We would rather give up a business but we won’t take the wrong path to appease a client. Our core competence is understanding where the brand needs to be and getting you there. And that can happen with sensible strategy and creative. The other challenge is in making the clients believe that there is a value in what you do more than what they are willing to pay for. There are still some clients who perceive PR to occupy the lower part of the communications chain; but that’s changing. While there are a few clients at the top who don’t mind paying a premium for your services, a majority of the clients in the middle of the pyramid still want to settle the deal for less. And with that kind of income you cannot deliver the quality of work that is desired. So people have to understand that the more you invest the better the returns.

     

    Q: Domain wise, how have each of the units contributed to the growth of the agency?

    We are not a lifestyle-only PR agency as some claim us to be. There are other domains that we cater to. We have a well-rounded portfolio; we have FMCG, brands, financial, power, etc. In fact we are not in the lifestyle space in a big way as before. May be we are not promoting ourselves well enough but that will change. We now offer well-rounded services across sectors. Where our thrust is concerned, one part of it will be in the area of where PR as an industry is headed towards – which, for us, would be helping clients around business issues. So we would be defining areas and how PR can fit in to help with those business issues for clients. The second is in the area of where media is headed. These two would be the main areas where our strategy for moving forward is concerned.

     

    Q: How do you view digital as a practice for the industry today?

    Digital is an extremely complex and badly understood medium, but is extremely powerful. I think the power of the medium is yet being defined. Even if you look at mobile you are looking at a completely different paradigm. It is so mind-boggling that even agency folks don’t have a command on it. The kind of communication that works on that space sometimes doesn’t work anywhere else. What is really interesting about this medium is the possibilities it offers. The dynamics of me sitting in India and doing a campaign for a client in Africa – why not? I can come out with a brilliant creative and I can tell you that the ability for our thinking as Indians is pretty damn good. We can be thrown into any situation and we can come out shining. That is the kind of innovation that works on the digital medium. I do foresee a future where a PR guy sitting here would be creating a campaign for a client in some other corner of the world. Creative is not the domain of just one or two people any more.

     

    Q: What are your expectations from 2012?

    We expect 2012 to be a great year again. We believe in being steady with everything that we do. As I said earlier, it would be a year where we would be recasting our offerings a bit. It would mean a couple of more interesting developments from our end. To put it mildly, it is going to be about growth for us in 2012.

     

    Q: How would you react to claims of the industry being largely disorganised? What would you estimate the industry size to be?

    According to my estimates, the industry size hovers around US 100-150 million dollars. There’s no way that Assocham’s figure of some billions is true at all. In terms of the industry being disorganised, I totally agree with that view. Do the senior PR industry folks even meet each other? We don’t. I am not interested in being in a coterie, to be part of something; I will run my business the way I want. Yes, there are common issues that would make sense for people to deal with commonly but we need to have the right forums to deal with it. When there is an appropriate forum, we will definitely be a part of it. I would be happy to be supporting a professional body which has teeth. But for that we all will have to get together and it is the agency heads that need to take that lead.

     

    Q: Have you contemplated turning an entrepreneur or is this where you will continue to exist?

    As of now, I am very happy being here in this agency. I have spent 17 years out here and that would make me a loyalist. The agency has given me the kind of growth that I require for my career. I sit at the top management today and have multiple responsibilities to look after. This is the thing I started with and I do want to see it go to great heights.

     

  • Having been involved with Madison PR since its inception, Veena Gidwani today is singularly responsible for the peak status that it has attained over the years

    [PR Channel] Our approach has been very focused & niche: Veena Gidwani

    It’s been a fulfilling and boisterous ride, to say the least, for one of the most prominent names in the domain of PR – Madison PR. Having made a modest start about a decade ago, the agency today has a roster of clients that most would die to have a hold on. Not to forget the healthy growth numbers that the agency has been posting year-on-year, which have been in double digits for long. None of this would have been possible without the guidance and leadership capabilities displayed by the face of the agency – Veena Gidwani.

     

    Having been involved with the agency since its inception, Gidwani today is singularly responsible for the peak status that it has attained over the years. In conversation with Johnson Napier of MxMIndia, Veena Gidwani discusses her foray into the space; shares her secret to bagging top-notch clients and has a word of advice to the industry so as to get it to be in a more orderly state in the future. Excerpts:

     

    Your career spans an illustrious three decades, straddling the domains of advertising and marketing. Though your love for the medium is known, what is it about Public Relations that made you take up the profession as a career path?

    My foray into Public Relations happened in 1995. At that point in time, I was employed with the Tatas for their design and creative services company when I was advised by a friend to head a joint venture in the PR and investor relations space. That was when I set up Prima Communications – the corporate image building venture that I was instrumental in setting up and was responsible for delivering growth for the unit.

     

    During that phase, it was observed that a lot of Indian companies were not communicating effectively with their stake-holders. There was a need felt for them to have a professional service which understands how to communicate and how to do it on a sustained basis. So I was involved with that for some time till 2000 when Sam Balsara (CMD, Madison World) offered me a role at Madison PR and that’s how my journey began over here.

     

    It’s been 12 years now for me atMadisonand we have grown from a small and limited team to a team that is very cohesive and spread out across four cities. Today we service clients across industry verticals – we focus largely around clients in lifestyle, FMCG, food and also other verticals like consumer durables, financial, hospitality, healthcare and so on. This has enabled the team to have a lot more exposure and experience in handling all kinds of situations and industry and client needs.

     

    How has Madison PR delivered on the growth front in 2011? How has the start been in 2012?

    We have had a good start in 2012. Most clients have outlined plans for good growth and plans for having new products being launched and so on. Though, of course, in the last quarter some clients have been a little careful in terms of committing a budget, preferring to play a wait-and-watch game. But as the year has begun, the start has been positive so far.

     

    As for 2011, the year was good for us; we have witnessed double-digit growth. All our offices have added businesses. In Mumbai we added Godrej Tyson and Godrej Locks; inDelhiwe added JK Cement and Ricoh andApolloHospitalsinBangalore… so there have been additions and growth in all offices.

     

    While on 2011, I would like to share an important thing that happened to me which was my travel to Cannes. Being on the jury, it gave me an opportunity to see PR campaigns from across the world that were submitted. I’d like to add that a lot of good work also happens inIndiabut unfortunately not too much of it is entered. It was a great experience to interact with many agency heads from across the globe and I think that some of the issue that all of us are battling are almost the same across the world. Also, the other interesting thing out there was that there was not a single category that did not have digital as an entry. So it was a great learning experience at Cannes.

     

    Your client roster boasts an impressive line-up including the likes of P&G, Parle Agro, Britannia, etc. What is it about Madison PR that gets such top marketers to cling on for a long time?

    As an agency, our philosophy has been to work with a limited number of clients but work very closely with them. That’s because PR is such a business that you need to have close interaction with your clients. Unlike advertising, where you create a plan and that plan holds still for the next three months or so, PR is a very dynamic medium- the plan keeps on changing. We may have developed a strategy for this month but if some development happens then we need to incorporate such changes. Also, most often the Marketing people at the client’s end are so busy with their everyday goals, meetings that they do not have the time to share with the media when they have some important developments. As we believe in the proactive approach of being in regular touch with the clients, it becomes easier for us to strategise and execute ideas for them. So that’s one area that we are constantly looking to delight clients in.

     

    The other important thing is that we believe we have to be creative in our approach. The media landscape today is so competitive that everyone wants a slice of the information that is going out. So how do you stand out and make your communication interesting? You need to be creative in your approach; you need to customise the content to suit the medium. So that’s another value-addition that we offer to our clients.

     

    How would you rate Madison PR on the parameter of client retention?

    We’ve had clients who have been with us for several years, like P&G, which is our oldest client and continues to work with us. Having said that, we do have clients who work with us for a year or two, and that happens because if the companies are small or privately held and if they feel that do not have much to communicate then they break away from the association. But I can say with certainty that we command a high loyalty rate amongst our clients.

     

    How do you review your practices each year so as to stay ahead of the curve on a consistent basis?

    We do not work having a delineated or watertight practice. For example, you may have a group that may be working for two separate practices but what we try to do is analyse what are the trends, in which direction is the industry progressing and what is it that we can provide that nobody else is providing and do that more efficiently.

     

    What is the shift you observe in the way PR as an industry functions today to what it did, say, about a decade ago?

    A decade ago, PR largely meant media exposure and media relations, whereas today it is more holistic communications counsel with specialized services like influencer marketing, word of mouth, events, research and overall strategic planning and execution. Also if you observe, there has been a significant shift in the way the professionally managed clients avail the services of PR agencies. They understand the value of a big and creative idea and they support it. They are willing to give it all the support that it needs in terms of implementation and cost. At the same time they expect us to deliver good outcome and results out of the exercise. However there are several organisations which are not that clued in on the value or merit that PR brings to the table. They fail to look at PR as an area that needs sustained investment or something that needs an ongoing boardroom thought.

     

    But I would say that there has been a major shift and most professionally managed companies are realising the value of PR. In fact, PR is becoming an integral component of their media plan and very often many of clients invite us to the pitch alongside the other disciplines. We are briefed at the same time as the others so that we can think creatively and come up with ideas and have a concerted and synergised plan for that particular initiative.

     

    Where do you see Madison PR placed in the PR pecking order amongst its contemporaries?

    We wouldn’t want to rate ourselves amongst the other players based on our size; we are not a big agency. We are a relatively small agency but as I said our approach is very focussed and niche; we want to work with a very limited number of clients and work in a manner where we come up with innovative ideas to build brands.

     

    What are some of the challenges facing the PR industry in India?

    Talent has been one of the biggest problems facing us and the industry as a whole. Especially the senior staff – it is extremely difficult to find a good fit. One of the biggest problems that we face is that most people want to move on to the corporate side of the business.

     

    Though I must say that there is a lot of excitement when you work on the agency side of the business as you get to work with multiple brands, you get to see what the other groups are doing on other brands, you get to work with new brands as well as old and reputed brands or somebody who wants to deal with a crisis situation, and so on. There are many such situations that take place here and therefore I would say that the PR agency life is very vibrant.

     

    Also, it is essential that agencies impart training to its workforce. We do provide in-house as well as external training and workshops for our staff. It goes a long way in preparing them to face the challenges that the business demands.

     

    Any other challenges apart from talent?

    The other big challenge facing the industry is the way clients want to remunerate agencies. With so many players out there offering their services, people are willing to undercut price for the same. PR, as such, is a very qualitative service; you cannot exactly say that someone has quoted me this rate and why are you quoting me something else? One must understand that there are various elements to this service. Over here, one idea or not missing an opportunity can make a huge difference to a campaign. So proactiveness from the agency and the way they deal with you, all add up to the sum total of value or service that the agency is giving to you. So two agencies of the same size may be offering the same service at varying rates and it is up to the client to take a call on who is the right partner.

     

    The other element here is that it is a very people-intensive business. Because, besides people and the intellect what else are you really using? So an agency’s idea, people skills and your interaction with people are the key skills that one uses. Also, people costs are going up and clients have to realise that to get good service you have to pay good money – which some clients do. But by and large, most people think that they can negotiate fees and make us work for less and this perception needs to be changed.

     

    You’ve been involved with PRCAI and have served as president in the past. How do you see the association casting an impact on the industry in a large way?

    I really do not know what is going on over there now but I guess as an industry we need to come together and do more. If everybody gets together we can hope for a smooth running of the industry. We are operating at several levels. At one level we have internationally-affiliated global agencies, then you have the Indian independent agencies, then you have agencies likeMadison, which are part of agency network, you have individually-owned agencies, smaller agencies, etc so the canvas is very vast. This makes it difficult to have standardised norms and practices that each one may follow.

     

    Have you been approached by an international agency for a joint venture?

    As and when there is some venture to look up to we would consider it but we are happy being as we are right now.

     

    What is the road ahead for Madison PR in 2012?

    For us to put up a good growth, churn out good campaigns and help clients to get better market shares and enhance the equity of his brands with consumers and stakeholders. Also, we see big opportunities in lifestyle, personal consumption, retail and healthcare sectors with many new entrants and aggressive expansion plans of existing players.

     

    For us, digital is now becoming important and more and more brands are now going online to communicate with consumers but I think that in 2012 there will be a lot of activity around this arena.

     

    Finally, will Madison PR be the place you retire at or will you contemplate another career opportunity in the future?

    I haven’t thought about leaving this place; it has been an interesting and exciting journey over here. There are always newer things that come up and one thinks of it but it’s been very exciting and I am looking forward to more excitement in the time to come.

     

  • We do not want our employees to grow up with just pure PR; we make them meet other experts too as it is important that they understand communication in its totality, feels Rahat Beri

    [PR Channel] The focus will be to add value and get more volumes: Rahat Beri

    In between the extreme attention that a big PR organisation gets or the undue fanfare that follows a small PR firm as it straddles a difficult path down the fierce PR road, it is the mid-sized agencies that often get lost in this gratuitous display of affection and are often left on their own to walk the talk. But one cannot downplay the efficacy and value that mid-sized agencies manage to bring to the table – attributes that even clients will readily agree upon. Like for instance, Percept Profile, an agency that has managed to deliver impressive services and value to its clients and has managed to outperform industry expectations by delivering robust growth numbers year after year.

     

    As the agency gets ready to battle new frontiers in the PR and communications space, Rahat Beri, COO – Percept Profile & COO-Digital Media, Buzzinga, opens up with Johnson Napier on the measures that the agency has in place to keep delivering exemplary services to its clients, on the need to foray into new verticals with the passage of time and how digital and social media would be an integral element for the agency so as to deliver 360-degree solutions that are ahead of time.

     

    How would you assess the growth of Percept Profile in FY 2011-12?

    FY 2011-12 has been a good year for us. We have witnessed a lot of growth in terms of new business. Also, there were several new initiatives that we started this year, like the launch of an IR division, a social media division. We have also added new branches to our existing fleet. We have also handled several projects across categories like the IFFI inGoa, which was a total integrated marketing communication approach that we delivered to the client in a short period of time.

     

    The year also saw us gain businesses within the telecom, retail and other categories. So it was a more marketing communication-led year for us and it definitely grew more than the average industry growth rate. We need to understand that it is not just pure PR that can make you grow – you can’t have those 2-3 lakh retainer accounts that can give you numbers. There is a need to expand horizontally in terms of the services that you provide and how effectively you provide them. That’s what is important and that’s what’s going to help you grow.

     

    Given the need for PR agencies of today to keep evolving themselves to stay ahead of the curve, how, according to you, has Percept Profile evolved as a full-service PR agency of today?

    I would say that we are still a mid-sized agency but very niche in our focus in terms of the kind of services that we offer. We’ve expanded in recent times and have offices across Mumbai,Delhi, Chennai,Bangalore, Kolkata and Pune. We have added a lot more people in our team; we have a language media team which is independent because we realise that is an important space to be in. That’s because we are dealing with language newspapers, which is different from dealing with English language newspapers. Also, as an agency, our goal is to grow in areas that the others are not present in. Though I am not as large as the other agencies, but I am growing in services which will help me build better businesses. I could get my volumes out of it.

     

    What are the benefits from synergising services of group companies to foster your offerings towards clients?

    We use a lot of the services from several divisions at Percept like Rural, Outdoor, Media, Creative, and others, while servicing our clients. Our internal companies help us in terms of the information and research, which is essential. While earlier research was crucial only for advertising I believe it is going to play a critical role in PR going forward. That’s because it is important for us to understand the perceptions of people. Ultimately, PR is about changing perceptions and building an image. So I need to know where I am and I need the client to tell me where he wants to be. If I am in the know of that, then I can bridge the gap and help him with the communication strategy.

     

    Most big agencies brag about the evaluation measures that they have but seriously, it beats me as to how can one evaluate a pure PR strategy. You can probably evaluate in terms of messaging or column centimetres, but can you evaluate on the basis of how the campaign has been successful? One cannot. There has to be a mix of tools to achieve that objective. So there is a complete approach to the way we engage ourselves with our clients.

     

    The agency’s client roster boasts an impressive line-up. How have the several specialty domains performed for you over the past year?

    We’ve handled a lot of real estate clients last year and also clients from sectors such as auto, telecom and educational sector. One of the sectors that we are looking at going after are the PSUs. That’s because a lot of these PSU companies are looking at opening up and communicating their offering to the masses at large. There are a few other clients as well, but I cannot disclose that information as of now.

     

    How have the various centres contributed to the agency’s overall growth in India?

    Mumbai has been the best region for us;Delhihas been supportive and managed to get good business growth last year.Bangaloreis growing but is yet to get there. Though a small market, our focus this year would be on Kolkata. We believe that there is business in that market. Also, Pune is another market that has grown well last year. We are also going to a lot of Japanese clients, as we have the Hakuhodo lineage to bank on. We helped a lot of Japanese agencies launch their products last year.

     

    Talent seems to be the biggest impediment hindering the growth of PR in India. How is Percept Profile coping with this inevitable conundrum?

    The problem is that we do not have institutes that churn out good talent. While there are institutes that provide training in advertising and other domains, there is nothing as such for the PR industry. It, therefore, becomes important for a PR agency to conduct regular training programmes for the employees so that they stay updated on the developments in the industry. Like we encourage people to go and attend forums if they feel it is going to be of help to them or we have internal heads of other Percept agencies, who come and discuss and train our staff on a related field of interest. We co-share a lot of knowledge as a group which helps us to learn.

     

    The focus for us is that we do not want our employees to grow up with just pure PR; we make them meet other experts too as it is important that they understand communication in its totality. So there is a lot of learning that happens on an open level of communication and not just pure PR.

     

    There is a general perception in the industry that clients are hesitant to pay a premium for services sought. Your comments.

    I don’t think that the clients underpay, it’s the agencies that undercut. The thing is that every agency has a cost that it has to bear and the bigger the agency the larger the cost it has to incur. But if you are a smaller agency and doing a volume-driven business then you can go ahead and undercut your rates as you have smaller costs to bear and that’s where the problem lies.

     

    Also, the thing is that one has to analyse every client and understand what he wants. They could be big multinationals or small players but they are very clear as to what they want from their PR agency. What is important for the agency is to say whether can I do it or can I not do it? Also, cost-wise there are a few agencies that have very large networks, otherwise we all use stringers. And the cost of a stringer is very high, how do we make so much money to pay them? Also, it is not a viable option to open offices at 100 different locations. So how does one manage itself given such constraints; it’s really a catch-22 situation.

     

    Is the client partly to blamed for failing to see the value, and hence the premium, that agencies bring to the table?

    I do not blame the clients and I do not blame the agencies either, but I think that it is a phenomenon that one needs to understand and do a reality check – can I do it or not do it? The agencies have to be honest with their client. We tell our clients honestly that this is what we can deliver and this is where I’ll need help from stringers and therefore this will be the cost that it will come up to. The last thing an agency would want is for the business to be unviable; at the end we are all here to do business.

     

    What would you attribute the highly disorganised state of the industry towards?

    I feel there are a lot of these small agencies that have cropped up lately. You see people quitting an agency and starting their own venture but I do not know how long they last? I am sure that what these small agencies do is good but they undercharging because of other business wins. I am of the firm belief that pricing should have a standardisation.

     

    Your digital offering Buzzinga was floated a few months ago. What are your plans for the space in 2012?

    Digital media is important to any company that wants to grow and the quickest way to get their name out there to the masses. Buzzinga aims to provide the best online solution to clients with an objective to creating a strong and highly recalled brand in the real and virtual world. What Buzzinga does is it utilizes several different mediums effectively to highlight a brand and create a direct line of communication with clients and customers. Buzzinga caters to clients’ needs right from creating an online identity, strategizing the online communication, creating content, executing the strategy and finally monitoring the activities in the social media space. Buzzinga also designs Facebook and Smartphone applications for brands. It already has a huge roster of clients that it caters to in the digital space. The start has been good so far, the team is young and growing and I see a brilliant future for Buzzinga.

     

    How do you view the entry of multinational agencies in India? Have you been approached for a takeover from an interested suitor?

    We work with a lot of multinational agencies across the world. We have tie-ups with agencies in Malaysia, Dubai, Singapore, Europe, and so on. The thing is that we use the skill-sets of different agencies in different markets to do our work. To enter other markets, it would make sense to enter as per the specialty that each market is able to offer which differs from region to region. So right now we are content working with different agencies across markets.

     

    While there have been multinational agencies who have come here inIndia, we are yet to see the impact that they manage to create in terms of getting in systems and processes in place. Having said that we are open to a partnership as and when we feel we are ready for it.

     

    What is the road ahead for the agency in 2012?

    Growth, growth and more growth. We want to grow multi-dimensionally and grow in areas of business that will add value and help in getting volumes for the agency. We want to be seen as a full-service agency offering every service within our reach.

     

  • As Chief Marketing Officer, Judith Ostronic will serve as the head of both marketing and new business development for Genesis Burson-Marsteller.

    What’s a PR agency doing with a marketing head? Quick chat with Genesis CMO Judith Ostronic

    By Johnson Napier

     

    For many professionals from the PR and communications industry, having a CMO as a regular fixture in the leadership team may well be a distant dream. But that’s a role that has been integral in the functioning of leading PR agency in India, Genesis Burson-Marsteller. That’s one of the many ways the agency plays the game of differentiation. In keeping with its focus, Genesis recently appointed Judith Ostronic as its CMO in India.

     

    As Chief Marketing Officer, Ms Ostronic will serve as the head of both marketing and new business development for Genesis B-M. In addition to new business, Ms Ostronic will focus on further expanding Genesis B-M’s visibility and leveraging its position as India’s leading integrated communications firm, she tells MxM India in an email interaction.

     

    The immediate goal for Ms Ostronic would be to work alongside other strategists from the team in realizing a well mapped plan for 2012. It is something that has already got her excited as she looks forward to doing her bit in implementing the 2012 plan and working with her colleagues in ensuring that they are prepared to deliver quality counsel and services to its clients under any and all circumstances.

     

    Q: Congratulations on being appointed the CMO at Genesis. On a professional note, what would be your key responsibilities at Genesis?

    As Chief Marketing Officer, I serve as the head of both marketing and new business development for Genesis B-M. I’ll be working closely with Prema Sagar, Founder and Principal of Genesis B-M, as well as the practice chairs to incorporate a targeted strategy that ensures we are maximizing every opportunity and converting the best leads into actual business.

     

    In addition to new business, I’ll focus on further expanding Genesis B-M’s visibility and leveraging our position as India’s leading integrated communications firm. India’s public relations industry is experiencing a surge as more multinational corporations expand their operations here, so the field is more competitive than it was just five or ten years ago. Genesis B-M is an industry leader – with a proven track record – and it’s essential we maintain our visibility and reputation as the communications industry begins to keep pace with India’s overall growth.

     

    Q: Having a CMO in a PR firm is an unexplored practice as yet, so to speak. What is the differentiation that a CMO can bring within a PR firm?

    The CMO position is not new to Genesis B-M and has been in place for over ten years. Prema Sagar founded Genesis in 1992 and once the firm started to grow, she quickly understood the value of dedicating key personnel to driving new business with a steady eye on marketing and improving brand awareness. With a CMO in place, you have a leadership role dedicated to working across practices and leveraging the necessary media to communicate the value of our services to an increasingly diverse universe of potential clients.

     

    Q: What are the learnings from Direct Impact that you plan to incorporate at Genesis?

    Direct Impact specializes in targeted communications across multiple industries and geographies. There is no one-size-fits-all approach when developing a communications strategy for a client, and the same will be true for marketing Genesis B-M’s services. We have the resources to meet the unique needs of a diverse range of clients looking to do business here in India, and therefore we must continuously customize our approach to reaching these clients when marketing our own services.

     

    Q: What is your assessment of the Indian PR and communications market? How does it stack up against the PR model being practised by developed countries, say for example, the US?

    The Indian PR market is still relatively new when you compare it to the US, but there is a high volume of multinational corporations here. While these companies may be new to India, their needs in this market aren’t entirely different from the US or elsewhere. Naturally there are nuances to every market but the needs of the clients, and the challenges we in the industry face in meeting those needs, are universal.

     

    Q: What is it about the India offer that made you shift base over here?

    India is a fascinating place. Living in the US, I would see daily news reports about India, its people, and of course the economy. India is the world’s second largest population and growing. It’s also a global player commanding international attention and I really wanted to see and experience it first-hand. I am stationed here for two years and will be looking to make the most of every day spent in India.

     

    Q: As the CMO, what would be your contribution in getting more revenue for the company?

    There is tremendous revenue opportunity and it is growing. I’ll be working closely with my colleagues at Genesis B-M identifying and converting the best of these opportunities. A sound marketing strategy that highlights our position as an industry leader with a solid talent base will lend to our ability of continuing to attract new business.

     

    Q: Also, will you be possessing authoritative powers to drive change, make investment decisions, media decisions, etc?

    There is a shared responsibility for that. The value I hope to bring to Genesis B-M in the near term is that of someone who is new to this market and can view and assess current operations with a fresh perspective. Genesis B-M provides an environment that fosters new ideas and continued growth which ultimately are the drivers of change.

     

    Q: How can a CMO help in addressing impending challenges like that of talent, measurement etc in a PR firm?

    As more PR firms enter the market, we are not only competing for clients but also for talent. In my role as CMO I will dedicate much of my focus to building and maintaining our reputation as a respected firm that operates under strict ethical standards. This will be integral to attracting the best clients and make this a place where experienced and qualified communications professionals want to work.

     

    Q: Do you feel other PR firms need to consider hiring CMOs as a routine exercise?

    Of course I think there is tremendous value in having a CMO here at Genesis B-M. Every firm is structured differently, however, so it’s difficult to say if it should be an industry standard.

     

    Q: Have you chalked out a marketing plan for Genesis India for 2012?

    Prema and her team have a well mapped plan for 2012 that was already in place when I arrived. Genesis B-M has a strong team of talented strategists who have applied their knowledge and experience in putting this plan together. Key to the success of any plan, however, is having the flexibility to adjust to whatever comes your way. I look forward to doing my part implementing the 2012 plan and working with my colleagues to ensure we are prepared to deliver quality counsel and services to our clients under any and all circumstances.

     

  • In conversation with MxM India, Dilip Cherian, Consulting Partner, Perfect Relations talks about the talent crunch turning into a big area of concern, something he regards as India's huge pitfall in coming years.

    [PR Channel] We are producing pathetic people for almost every kind of task: Dilip Cherian

    Text and Videos by Shruti Pushkarna

     

    He is one of the first names that crosses anyone’s mind when speaking of public affairs management or image management. Addressed by many as an ‘influencer’, he is known for his roles as an image manager and a policy advisor. Dilip Cherian, Consulting Partner at Perfect Relations started the company in the early nineties and now the firm is South Asia’s largest communications consultancy with 14 offices and 550 professionals on the team. Mr Cherian has also been the editor of the business magazine, Business India and the Observer before he entered the communications business. His work goes well beyond public relations and media. Mr Cherian is the member of the Board of Advertising Standards Council of India and on the Governing Council of the National Institute of Design. He has also been a member of the Censor Board.

     

    In this conversation with MxM India’s Shruti Pushkarna, Mr Cherian confesses to being an ‘image guru’ and shares his views on various subjects like managing public affairs in the PR space, lobbying, policy making, PR in a social/digital world and the biggest challenge he thinks the PR industry is facing today. While many in the communications business have admitted to the challenge of attracting talent into the business in the past, Mr Cherian goes a step further when he says, “I think talent is going to be India’s huge pitfall in the coming years. We are producing pathetic people for almost every kind of task.”

     

    Dilip Cherian Interview Part 1
    [youtube width=”400″ height=”200″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Z4b_10_GWk[/youtube]

    Q: You are often referred to as the ‘image guru of India’. And a lot of people address you as an ‘influencer who opens the right doors for his clients’. How do you react to that?

    A: The image guru part I confess to, the opening doors part… I don’t do that. What I do however is, as an image guru, I try and help my clients to focus on what are the issues they should be communicating about. I also help them understand what are the implications of what they are doing and whom they are communicating to. So what I am good at is, pointing in a direction and also very often enhancing their skills in being able to project themselves correctly. This kind of situation requires knowledge of who they are communicating to, so it’s not that I open a door, it’s just that I tell them when they walk through the door, what should they say and how would that impact their image.

     

    Q: So you do confess to being an ‘image guru’?

    A: It’s both the kind of appellation which works in a positive sense for the company because I only work through Perfect Relations and through the five group companies that we have. I think that the designation, as it were, helped me focus on what my real work is. My real work is more in the nature of someone who provides coaching to my own people, or to the people we work with, to enhance their skill sets in being able to better manage their image. So the ‘guru’ part is about the teaching part and that really is about helping others enhance whatever skills they may have, or to reduce sometimes, and this is equally important in my view, to reduce the aberrations which prevent them from having the image which they desire.

     

    Q: You have done an extensive amount of work in public affairs management. Tell us a bit about your experience of work in this area of PR. Also, how critical do you think is public affairs management to the communications business?

    A: Public affairs management is a relatively new science as far as India is concerned, and that’s because of the fact that public affairs used to be, the way it was practiced, largely a dirty word because it had nuances of ‘off-the-balance sheet’ activity. Where we have come in and over the last ten years what Perfect Relations has done is that in the public affairs space, we have created space for a new kind of activity. And that is, helping to communicate with policy makers to influence the direction of policy; policy when it’s wrong or policy when it is being created or policy as it’s being created. In the public affairs area, the relationship with the client is that of the guru kind but also of a confidential advisor, telling them what are the aspects of decision-making they need to focus on rather than the people. Because what’s happened over the past is that too much enthusiasm has been expended on people. It’s not about people, policy making is about a process, and that’s the first skill set we have managed to bring into this area of public affairs. The second thing that we do in public affairs is we help global companies understand that decision-making in India is not uniquely different from anywhere else. So Perfect Relations is the only company which has had experience and skills set in working at a panchayat level, at a district level, at a state level and at the central level. The decision-making vectors and the parameters in each of these spaces is different. Global companies don’t necessarily have somebody who can lead them through this; this is not about market entry strategy, this is about understanding the policy landscape of the country.

     

    Dilip Cherian Interview Part 2
    [youtube width=”400″ height=”200″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDi643AWsD4[/youtube]

    Q: How critical is the function of crisis management in PR?

    A: Over the last 25 years of existence if there were one function for which we’ve been called in at the highest level, whether it’s in the public sector when for example there was a fire on an oil rig, or whether it’s in the case of a global company when there was a firing in faraway Goa, or whether it’s in the case of an Indian company whose licence got cancelled, Perfect Relations has always been the first port of call for somebody who is in really deep trouble. So crisis management is something that happens as a plug-on rather than as part of a process. Largely we have come in when the agency that was currently handling a client was seen as not geared to have the bandwidth, the experience, the specialized people and the local teams available on the ground; and that’s the reason why we get called in. Over the last 25 years of doing this in India we also realized some years ago that crisis preparedness as a module needs to be put into companies. So for some of the clients who have the budgets to be able to do this because this is expensive, today we have teams that go in and train top management in the five life-saving skills, life-saving in terms of corporate life of a company, that are needed to ensure that crisis preparedness is at a higher level than it ever was before.

     

    Q: What are your views on lobbying? Do you think past controversy has tainted the image of PR as an industry?

    A: Lobbying is a dirty word in terms of the kind of nuances and practices that a large number of players have indulged in. Is this a result of the way our democracy functions? I don’t quite know. But is it possible to function differently? The answer is, absolutely yes. It takes more patience, it takes much deeper skills and it takes a lot more of focused attention of top management. The problem with ‘bad lobbying’ as I call it, is because sometimes CEOs or owners want to outsource it, saying, we are not doing this. Let somebody else take care of the dirty work. And then it becomes a dirty job. So where we are concerned, what we advise our clients and owners of companies who work with us is, that this is something that you need to integrate yourself into because when the mud starts getting splattered it’s bound to hit you; so rather than outsource it, be part of the process and ensure that you take liability and responsibility for what goes into it. We find that kind of lobbying does not have a bad name, whether it’s a government department, whether it’s a minister, whether it’s a panchayat, everybody is willing to talk to the person who is actually the ownership person in terms of what he or she is planning to do on the ground. Very often they get heard and very often the problems get sorted out. So lobbying of the kind that we call ‘ethical lobbying’ is something we are quite happy to say that we do, and we’ve had no problem dealing with multiple organizations using these techniques.

     

    Q: How do you think PR can be more than just mere press relations?

    A: I think PR is already more than press relations. What is happening is that, like any industry, you follow the 80-20 rule – 80 percent of agencies in the business do what is easiest to do, which is, merely handing some pretty pathetic material to journalists who are absolutely uninformed. There’s a market there and so 80 percent of the companies like to do it. The 80-20 rule when flipped on its head, today we get 80 percent of our revenue not from our press relations work but from the advisory work where we talk to the brand managers and we talk to marketing directors, we talk to the people looking after the digital space. For example, digital – it’s a huge new way for corporations and companies to reach out to customers, it’s a one-to-one designed sort of communication. It’s difficult, it requires the same set of skills which PR people thought they used to have, which is communication. But it’s a whole new technology landscape and it’s a whole new idiom. So what we do now is to try and ensure that 80 percent of our revenue comes from the activities which are no longer those that 80 percent of the players in the industry try and do.

     

    Q: How do you think social media has impacted PR and its functioning?

    A: I think it’s important to distinguish two things. Social media is changing the way humans communicate with each other, that’s one. But digital media goes far beyond that. It’s also about ensuring that your reputation is intact in the vast new internet space. So the way we look at digital PR is probably along the same lines that we look at press relations. It’s not about putting one-to-one communications in a mass market, it’s about actually changing the platform from which you communicate so that you don’t need to say too much and you already are in a sense transmitting those values to everybody who reaches out to you. So you need to communicate less but you need to have much higher quality. So it’s strategic, it requires a vast volume of monitoring which our teams now have tech tools to help them do, and it’s about training – because like in the case of lobbying, in the digital PR space, we recognize it is the voice of the CEO, it is the voice of the brand, it is the voice of the marketing specialist that needs to be communicating directly to the customers who reach out to them.

     

    Q: Tell us a bit about your role as a policy advisor?

    A: I took a decision about ten years ago, which is about 15 years after running the company full time, that you need to put a certain part of your skills back into society. So whether it is working with the Censor Board, which is taking calls on which films could cause communal disharmony or relate in sexually inappropriate kind of behaviour being encouraged, I spend a certain part of my time in ensuring that I am available with my skills to organizations that in a sense implement policy. At the other end of the spectrum is the Advertising Standards Council, which helps corporations to figure out in a pure industry-based platform what is appropriate behaviour for advertising agencies and what is not. I am a great votary of self-regulation for some of these industries. If you want to prevent strangleholds of government, you’ve got to have powerful industry bodies that do self-regulation. So at the ASCI, my contribution is to ensure that as a PR person, I am able to look at advertising from a slightly different standpoint and provide guidance to the other advertising people about the way it would be looked at in government, by the media etc. So in the contribution to the debate, to the framing and the implementation of public policy, I hope that in the last ten years that I have spent, I am putting this contribution back in terms of the life skills I have built up.

     

    Q: How was the transition from a senior journalist to that of a PR practioneer, especially since, at the time when you moved to communications, PR was not taken very seriously?

    A: Whether it was working with an editorial position at Business India, or whether it was running a newspaper for the Ambanis called The Observer, or whether it was setting up a journal for parliamentarians, all the journalism that I used to do actually impinged on some of the areas which I today work on. So in Business India it was the element of business strategy, in the Observer it was the ability to understand how the government at the bureaucratic level functioned, and at the paper we were launching for parliamentarians, it was looking at policy-making inside the rotunda. So I thought with the skills I had, over a period of time, I was beginning to repeat myself and I felt that rather than repeat myself ad infinitum, I need to move to the other side, flip it over and become an advisor to corporations. So it was in a sense a random decision which was sprung up on by circumstances but also it was something I had prepared myself for. Was it for this, the answer is no; but was it for something else, the answer is yes. It just happened that this was the something else.

     

    Q: It is believed by some that PR professionals influence journalists and content is published in lieu of money. Do you think it’s a correct allegation?

    A: My read on paid content is that for a variety of reasons and not a small element to do with social media, I think it was an idea which came and it is an idea that’s not going to last because the piercing of that kind of pretended journalism veil is over. So today when there is paid content, it gets pilloried in a manner that social media alone can do. On the other hand, there is at a social level the whole issue of right to information. So between the right to information and social media, I think the days of conventional paid media is reaching its end already very fast.

     

    Q: What are the challenges that face the PR industry today? Do you think attracting talent to PR is one of them?

    A: I think talent is going to be India’s huge pitfall in the coming years. We are producing pathetic people for almost every kind of task. Also with this new urbanization that’s happened over the years, people have created a new generation of people with expectations that simply cannot be fulfilled in the workplace. So people are hopping around hoping that they can find someone who will recognize their talent. That’s not going to happen. The world over, today Spain has somewhere like 40 percent of the youth unemployed, the UK has 30 percent youth unemployed, I think unemployment is a result of not preparing a new generation for what a work field actually is. It’s not about jobs, it’s about talent and it’s about recognizing that talent needs to do it every day to become talent, it’s not talent because they think they have it. I think the PR industry has a huge talent problem. What are we doing to address our problem of talent as an industry? Eighteen years ago we set up an institute to work on training PR professionals. It didn’t work. But we have started one again because I think the time was too early then. I think now, seeing the demand there is for PR, the time has come, the industry is recognizing, also students are recognizing they don’t have the skills. So we are now beginning again the process of creating talent. And the first batch should be out in a few months.

     

    Q: Where do you think is the PR industry headed in the next five years?

    A: I think the industry is headed to greater growth without a doubt because industry will grow at at least twice the pace at which industrial growth happens, so that’s almost a given. The direction to go in the future is going to be specialization and specialization at all levels, press relations, strategic advice, digital advice. Another big change that’s going to happen is that you are going to probably have to bring back people from retirement to find jobs because I think you are not going to get the talent you are going to need for many of the things that the PR industry will need to do. So I see the age profile in the industry actually going up instead of going down as is the case with most service industries.

     

    Q: Who do you think does the best PR for himself or herself in the country today?

    A: I think the people who do PR for themselves perhaps do it unwittingly because they have natural skills at it. So I would say that if one looks at individuals who are doing a great job at portraying who they are, the one who is kind of a runaway success is Abdul Kalam. He has done a fabulous job as a President and he’s actually found an afterlife. In terms of stars, Amitabh is a shining example of PR and he is also one of those who have managed the transition to social media quite cleverly.

     

  • John Zeigler, Chairman & CEO of DDB Group Asia Pacific, talks about India's role in APAC and how rival agencies are taking a cue or two from them

    Being the best is our trademark: John Ziegler

     

    After a three-month long restructuring and realigning exercise in India, DDB Mudra Group presented itself in a new and refined avatar to the world on Tuesday. Having found its saviour in Mudra to expand its foot print in to India, DDB Worldwide is ready with a formula and a team that it promises would shake up the Indian advertising and media market and make it a force to reckon with in the coming months.

     

    Representing the group to make this historic makeover, John Zeigler, Chairman and CEO of DDB Group, Asia Pacific, Japan & India was a picture of hope and accomplishment as he presented to the gathering his views and expectations from the alliance.

     

    As the leading voice, and overseeing markets that span 21 agencies in 16 countries, and more than 2,500 employees, Zeigler is a great believer in reinvention and what it implies for brands in this global, think local, market. In conversation with Johnson Napier of MxMIndia, Zeigler emphasises on India’s role in the APAC market for DDB Mudra Group, on how rival agencies like WPP are taking a cue or two from his agency and what the agencies of today need to know to stay ahead of the curve. Excerpts:

     

    Q: How would you assess DDB Worldwide’s growth story across the globe, especially in the Asia Pacific market led by India?

    Across our businesses worldwide, we are looking to achieve a growth rate of 15 per cent. With the kind of businesses we have in India, we should be able to achieve a growth rate of 25 per cent plus. As for our other agencies across Asia Pacific, we had a compounded growth rate in excess of 30 per cent year on year.

     

    Q: Having upped your stake in Mudra recently and post the overall restructuring exercise in India, it seems to be an affair that was heavy on the investment front. Your comments.

    I would say the investments have really been in terms of people, training, exposing them to the rest of the business operations that we have and we are doing that dynamically every day. From another investment point of view, we see the opportunity to jointly grow our businesses which doesn’t require any investment other than time, talent and people.

     

    Q: Do you see Omnicom further raising its stake in Mudra anytime soon?

    That is something that will be really dictated by the equity partners comprising of Reliance Group and Omnicom. It is something that will echo with the passing of time. From our point of view, it should happen as quickly as possible.

     

    Q: You have all along emphasised the importance of emerging markets for the DDB Group. Have you identified any new markets that you plan to tap in the near future?

    We are going to scale up our growth soon in the market of Vietnam. We have just wrapped up an acquisition deal there and will be starting a new business soon. And the other key country for us would be Indonesia. But we would be able to tell you more about these markets only later.

     

    Q: While the emphasis of the group is on providing 360-degree integrated solutions, it is creative that is stealing the thunder to a certain extent in India. What do you derive of this sentiment? Where does digital fit in this matrix for the group?

    In terms of social creativity, what we have learnt is that the connection of creativity across digital and traditional – there is no wall. We have to look at it as a complete communication opportunity to capture the consumers’ interest and intrigue, the ability to pass it on and for them to become the media. So we are going to be growing digital but not as an exclusive digital entity alone; we’ll be growing digital within the core business as well as specialty part of the business.

     

    Q: How would you assess Omnicom’s growth story against those of WPP and Publicis Groupe who have also heightened their interest around the Asia Pacific market? 

    Omnicom is very anxious to grow inAsia. We have demonstrated that already. If you look at the last five years, you will see Omnicom has had much greater organic growth than WPP. This organic growth has been complemented by some strategic acquisitions and you will see Omnicom continue to grow much faster than the other groups. Again, our goal is never to be the biggest, it is just to be the best. In fact, WPP has also now changed their slogan to say that being best is better than being the biggest. But that’s only because they have talked about being the biggest, that they are understanding the importance of being the best – like we always have; so they are trying to take an element of that positioning from us.

     

    Q: Though a sister agency, how has BBDO been growing in India and in Asia Pacific?

    We work differently and therefore I cannot comment as such, but I would say that they have been doing well in India. Obviously we would like to support them and help them sell their services to their clients through the existing base from the DDB Mudra Group. We do share some clients, like for instance we both service Johnson & Johnson, Mars, and others. So we compete and collaborate with BBDO where it is relevant for our client.

     

    Q: Though not as grave as its predecessor, the slowdown has impacted the growth of the industry to an extent, including in India. What are your views on the global media growth story going forward?

    Most of the agencies are trying to fix the economic crisis situation by leveraging money – making money spread thinner than it should. That’s one of the reasons why banks got in trouble because of bad business practices. I think a lot of people are struggling with the economic crisis because they have tried to cut their cost structures down so far that they have actually started to cut into the value of their corporations. I don’t believe that cost-cutting, mergers and acquisitions, and the availability of finance will help the rest of the world reinvent itself. But I do believe that creativity applied to a business will give any business that uses that well, a competitive advantage. I believe that those firms which access and leverage competitive advantage best will win. I think the countries that are leveraging competitive advantages are winning today. Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore are leveraging their strategic expertise, their positioning, their competitiveness and they are benefitting from other areas that aren’t doing so well. But all this has to be seen from a country and a geo-political level, and would, therefore, differ across markets.

     

    Q: Has this sentiment aroused the apprehensive levels of clients?

    They are very apprehensive as they often ask how we increase our share of returns to our shareholders. There comes a point where the only way to do that is to gain a point from the competitors. And you can only gain more points from your competitors if you are more creative.

     

    Q: Worldwide, there is a trend of companies opting for CMOs to drive the growth for the organisation. Should ad and media agencies look at this trend as a means to beating the recession blues?

    We don’t have a CMO as such at the top as we work in an executive committee collaborative fashion and we do not believe that one person can manage that through the complexities of all brands and offerings.

     

    One of the things that agencies have more trouble is that clients have more focus in cutting the cost of an agency then they have put in to understanding how to get best value out of the agency. Until that changes, we cannot reinvent ourselves because we are running on very thin margins, we are trying to be creative and inventive, but we are being constrained by financial controls.

     

    The first thing that many clients do when they come to an agency is, they say: we do not pay for senior management involvement; that is agency overheads… some clients even come and say: I want to know how much time of your senior management I’m going to get and then we’ll negotiate the rest… those clients are smart because they are buying the best expertise and not just buying heads to do functions and processes.