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Tag: Amith Prabhu

  • India is seeing a greater demand for good talent than ever before. We need to see good institutes for Public Relations education in India, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: 15 things we need to see in a PR Institute in 2015

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    The Public Relations business in India is really coming of age. But the education for Public Relations professionals at the entry level has not seen significant evolution. This could be due to a variety of factors. There are a couple of institutes offering integrated courses. But India is seeing a greater demand for good talent than ever before. We need to see good institutes for Public Relations education in India. Here’s my list of 15 things we need to see in a PR institute in 2015

     

    1. A dedicated academy – India does not have an institute that teaches only Public Relations like it has for law, technology and medicine. PR is an art and a science and needs a dedicated environment for a focused evolution.

     

    2. An option for mid-level professionals to do refreshers – No institute offers consistent and affordable career development programmes for mid-level to senior level professionals. This is the need of the hour.

     

    3. Practising professionals as Faculty – Very few PR institutes of repute are located in Mumbai and Gurgaon which is where the best professionals in the business live and work. Hence getting them as visiting faculty to other locations is never easy.

     

    4. Affordable fees – Any course that costs more than Rs 5 lakh immediately makes students assume that their starting annual salary will be on similar lines. We need more affordable courses because salaries will not rise drastically for freshers.

     

    5. Smarter curriculum – In an age of unconferences, we need to have two types of curriculum running simultaneously. One that is fixed and the other that the students evolve in the first week of the course based on global trends that are constantly shaping.

     

    6. A better selection process – Gone are the days of group discussions and written tests held for the masses. The entrance procedure needs to find the best of the best. This needs a contest like approach to attract the finest for the future of PR.

     

    7. Lesser focus on placements – Students should worry less about placements as good courses and good students will find jobs. The focus needs to be on getting well trained for a bright future.

     

    8. Radical internships – PR is not an easy career to progress in. A good grounding should include internships in restaurants, news outlets and more out of the box places.

     

    9. Quality over quantity – Faculty needs to be full-time and fully equipped. A few who teach a lot. Rather than a lot who teach little.

     

    10.   An international outlook – Programmes need to have international collaborations in terms of exchange programmes, faculty visits and wherever possible internships as well. Eight of the Top 10 PR firms in India are headquartered in USA or France.

     

    11.   Undoing the factory mentality – Media schools have become factories. Hundreds of students graduate and several are half-baked. The focus should be on high quality rather than high quantity.

     

    12.   Creating realistic salary expectations – This is the big one. Unless students are sensitized about salaries from the time of admissions they will build unrealistic expectations and won’t want to join PR firms after all the training because the salaries do not match up

     

    13.   Emphasis on research – An eye for detail and a passion for research must be the be all and end all of good Public Relations. The initial training needs to set groundwork for this

     

    14.   5 C concentration (Corporate responsibility, Crisis management, Content creation, Communication packaging, Creative thinking) – These need to be taught in theory and practice. These are the future of the profession. These are pivotal for successful career growth

     

    15.   Making students realize the importance of  Focus, Commitment, Knowledge – From Day one the cornerstone of student achievement needs to be set around Focus on the task at hand, commitment to the profession and knowledge of various domains.

     

  • Starting now on, more CEOs will embrace social media to use it as a tool to communicate with stakeholders with Twitter being the preferred social network of corporate leaders, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Public Communications and Public Reputation – Perspectives for 2015

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    The two links pasted below are from archives, interestingly written in 2011 about the profession of Public Relations and the PR professional as the authors visualized it would be in 2015:

    http://is.gd/nzkLPy and http://is.gd/fPKtCY

     

    As we start off a new year here are a few thoughts on what will work and what will not in the year ahead. But before we crystal-gaze, it’s important to look back on the most eyecatching event of the last week of 2014 and how the leader of the organisation led from the front by doing three things most important in a crisis. Hats off to Tony Fernandes of Air Asia who rushed to the site of the incident, who communicated through every step of the way and showed genuine empathy.

     

    Leading from the front – leaders of organisations prone to risk and crisis need to learn how to lead from the front from this incident and be better prepared when crisis strikes. So starting now on, more CEOs will embrace social media to use it as a tool to communicate with stakeholders. Twitter will remain the preferred social network of corporate leaders.

     

    Content, content, content – storytelling and content creation will continue to rule the roost. There will be a rising demand for specialist writers who can write on healthcare, finance and technology. Writing skills will be the most important attribute that hiring managers will look for in candidates.

     

    Stability and longevity in organisations – PR firms will want to hire talent that has spent a good number of years in the previous organisation. People who jump the ship often will find it hard to get well-paying jobs as the strength of the workforce increases.

     

    School for PR – There may emerge newer academies that teach the art and science of Public Relations, as good talent that is affordable is the need of the hour. This also means retainers are not going to change dramatically, the only exceptions being the Top 20 organisations paying the Top 5 PR firms top dollars.

     

    High profile movements – Both within consultancies and in corporate communications there will be people movement at the highest level. 2014 saw some interesting changes at two of the leading firms. The trend will continue.

     

    Events on the rise – High quality events that offer great speaking opportunities will evolve. This will not only offer opportunities to speak but to sponsor and partner as well. Keeping an eye for the right events will be key.

     

    Feel free to add to this list of trends and share your feedback on this list of perspectives on PR in 2015.

     

     

     

  • A list of fourteen articles published in the last twelve months in various portals relevant to the profession, compiled by Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Fourteen must reads in 2014

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    As the year comes to an end, I have compiled a list of fourteen articles that are worth saving and reading that were published in the last twelve months in various portals that are relevant to the profession. Make sure you read them during the next long weekend and share them with fellow practcioners.

     

    1. 5 PR trends that are going to be making an impact in 2014 -https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/openforum/articles/5-must-know-public-relations-trends-for-2014/

    2. PR’s Battle For Marketing Relevance – http://www.holmesreport.com/long-reads/article/cannes-2014-pr’s-battle-for-marketing-relevance

    3. Why the Future of Digital Marketing Is Pure PR – http://www.marketingprofs.com/articles/2014/24859/why-the-future-of-digital-marketing-is-pure-pr#ixzz3L0C4tIs6

    4. The One Lie That Brought Down Walmart’s PR Chief – http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-09-16/the-one-lie-that-brought-down-walmarts-pr-chief

    5. 5 Measurements for PR ROI – http://www.forbes.com/sites/ilyapozin/2014/05/29/5-measurements-for-pr-roi/

    6. Social Media, Marketing and PR: Who’s Responsible for What? – http://mashable.com/2014/03/26/social-media-marketing-responsibilities/

    7. 8 Ways Public Relations Can Fuel Successful Content Marketing – http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2014/06/public-relations-successful-content-marketing/

    8. The Real Difference Between PR And Advertising – http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwynne/2014/07/08/the-real-difference-between-pr-and-advertising-credibility/

    9. Edelman P.R. Firm Acts to Correct Faux Pas – http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/18/business/media/edelman-pr-firm-is-taking-steps-to-address-faux-pas-.html?_r=0

    10. Why Are There So Many Women in Public Relations? – http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/08/why-are-there-so-many-women-in-pr/375693/

    11. Public Relations Has a PR Problem – http://www.huffingtonpost.com/molly-borchers/public-relations-has-a-pr_b_5942660.html

    12. Goodbye, SEO: PR is the new king – http://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/17726.aspx

    13. The communications industry needs great storytellers – https://www.facebook.com/SachinKalbag/posts/10152882797843013?fref=nf

    14. Time for communicators to build brands by giving proper consideration to the ‘hopeful’ consumer – http://www.ipra.org/itl/12/2014/i-love-advertising-because-i-love-lying-seinfeld-s-barbs-point-the-way-to-consumer-happiness

     

    And here’s a bonus for 2015: Free articles to read at leisure http://www.cuttingedgepr.com/free_articles.asp

     

  • Aptly titled PRactice what you PReach, Vikram Kharvi's book is a peek into the intriguing world of public relations by a young professional who has worked both in-house and in a consultancy

    Amith Prabhu: A book to remember because the PRactice of PR in India has so few

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    Fellow public reputation management practitioner Vikram Kharvi has self-published his first book which is commendable. If I ran a reputation management school, I would prescribe it as a text book. The book is indeed a labour of love for the profession that the author displays by the loads.

     

    The book is a collection of twenty essays and each one ends with an interesting quote by a prominent author or thinker. Aptly titled PRactice what you PReach, the book is a peek into the intriguing world of public relations by a young professional who has worked both in-house and in a consultancy.

     

    It is a great read for professionals of all ages, from the student to the CEO of a PR firm, from an intern at a corporate communications department to the one heading it. There is something for everyone. The inaugural chapter on comparing our profession to the various facets of Lord Ganesha is very innovative.

     

    The book acts as a ready reckoner of tips and tricks for the profession. I like the fact that Vikram refers to PR companies as consultancies and not as agencies, which they are not. I also like the focus on PR as a practice rather than a mere profession. A practice makes it both an art and a science.

     

    The book shows that PR professionals can be creative if they apply their mind to being so. The 20 chapters are in an easy to ride format of seven to eight pages each on an average. I read the book in one go two consecutive flights and would recommend this to every professional as a must read.

     

    The book could have done with some more focus on editing to make it crisper but as a debut it is worthy of praise nevertheless.  Hats off to Vikram on this effort. May there be more books authored by you.

     

    The 160-page book is priced at Rs 300 and is available online at a discount. I wish more professionals attempt to write a book. After having compiled my columns into one earlier this year I don’t think it is a hard task. Go write yours!

     

  • Here's an eight-step guide to dealing with a crisis with maturity: Be Alert, Admit mistake, Apologise genuinely, Act fair, shun Arrogance, Advertise remedies, Accept criticism, Allow questions

    Amith Prabhu: What to do when hit by a Reputation Crisis

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    There are at least 100 rapes taking place in a nation of 1.3 billion people every day. That is four an hour or one every 15 minutes. It is more like an epidemic and there seems to be no cure in sight. When a corporate oragnisation is involved or when a political organisation chooses to get involved in a big way, one out of 10000 rapes (that is once a quarter) gains national prominence. We saw this during the HP employee’s case in 2005 in Bengaluru and we saw it during the Nirbhaya incident in 2012 in Delhi.

     

    This week there has been outrage against Uber because the aggregator company did not do a police verification of drivers on its rolls and one of them from among 3000 was a rotten egg. He picked up a passenger and on the way to the destination raped her. What happened after that has really brought the company to its knees. A reputational crisis is not easy to deal with but it is possible to do the right things. A crisis is the final stage when a risk becomes an issue and then the issue becomes a crisis. Most organisations in India including international organisations operating in India do not invest in a playbook for RIC (risk, issue, crisis) management.

     

    While the flow is not rocket science the important part is in the activation. Here’s an eight-step guide to dealing with a crisis with maturity.

     

    Be Alert, Admit mistake, Apologise genuinely, Act fair, shun Arrogance, Advertise remedies, Accept criticism, Allow questions.

     

    Let me explain each of these:

    Be Alert: This involves a lot of listening and customer relationship management. This crisis could have been averted if Uber had taken the complaint from another customer a week earlier regarding the same criminal driver.

     

    Admit Mistake: As soon as the crisis got full blown the company should have admitted to its mistake rather than sharing a random statement which was full of legal language.

     

    Apologise genuinely: The apology that Uber gave did not seem like it cared. It was neither properly drafted nor well intentioned. Mentioning financial help in a statement of apology is never a good idea.

     

    Act fair: This is about not taking sides and calling a spade a spade. While Uber immediately delisted the driver they should have withdrawn the service till they could promise a deadline by which they would offer verified drivers. But before they could delay, the government decided to ban them.

     

    Shun Arrogance: The company has been in the news for wrong reasons internationally for the last few weeks and it has projected an image of being arrogant. Just the way Richard Branson rushed to the site of the crash of Virgin Galactic, the Uber CEO should have rushed to India

     

    Advertise Remedies: As a company with deep pockets the company should have released front page ads within 48 hours of the incident reassuring its customers about the steps it is taking to ensure safety.

     

    Accept criticism: There has been severe criticism but not a word to assuage feelings that have been hurt. This could have happened to anyone.

     

    Allow questions: Uber should have scheduled a press conference to address queries and answer doubts in people’s minds. But it has lost an opportunity unless it plans to do one soon.

     

    These steps can be applied to any crisis. But behind all this there needs to be a robust communication plan and flow. Hope other companies learn from this incident to deal with eventualities that are unexpected but possible.

     

  • We are only as good as the people who come in to PR and make a difference. The better we are the more respect we will command, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: People make our business

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    The first week of the final month of the year was significant in more ways than one. I was saddened and humbled about the two events. It is important to devote half my column to both these for the sake of history.

     

    First, I woke up to the sad news of the passing away one of the senior most PR professionals in the country on December 2. Allwyn Fernandes was no ordinary professional. He was a professional par excellence. In a career spanning 44 years, he had worked in two organisations. The first 25 years as a journalist with The Times of India Group and from 1994 until his death for 20 years with Edelman Public Relations India which was formerly Roger Pereira Communications.

     

    The fact that he made the transition from journalism to PR consulting when the profession was taking birth is one aspect. The element of stability is another. In a day and age when people consider changing jobs every 20 months here was a man who had stayed put for 20 years.

     

    I have known Allwyn for over 10 years given a few shared interests we had outside of Public Relations. He was an activist in the Catholic Church and did a fabulous job of pointing out wrongdoings in the church through an email group that reached the leaders of the church. More importantly, he was an amazing husband to Enid and a proud father to Rohan and Rohini.

     

    I was delighted to spend some time with him at the second edition of Praxis in Lavasa about 14 months ago. We interacted regularly on email and then a few months ago he stopped communicating. Little did I realise he was battling cancer and was deteriorating.

     

    In Allwyn’s death not only has Edelman India lost a great asset but the PR fraternity will miss a person that is a rare to find. He never minced words, called a spade a spade and never harmed anyone. May he rest in peace.

     

    The second event that took place on December 4 was historical too. Twenty leaders of PR firms and measurement companies spent three hours over lunch in Gurgaon talking about the future of PR consulting in the country leaving all professional rivalries aside. As the custodian of the PRomise Foundation I was honoured to moderate this session. And make it possible to get some of the finest brains in reputation management inside the room.

     

    Among other things that were discussed was how to make Praxis better in its fourth edition. It was a great way to ideate and have a consultation to better plan the event that is now becoming a fixture on the annual calendar of professionals from both sides – consulting and in-house. The next session of PRime Time will take place in Mumbai focusing on senior in-house professionals.

     

    The takeaway for me was straightforward. That we are a People Business. We are only as good as the people who come in to PR and make a difference. The better we are the more respect we will command. The more united we are the better we will get.

     

  • The way Narendra Modi has managed the perception of his six months in power is a case study as much as his campaign is a case study, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: My PR Person of the Year

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    I said it earlier and I say it in a different context again. United Kingdom has a former PR professional as its Prime Minister and India has a Prime Minister who is a PR man as well. The way Narendra Modi has managed the perception of his six months in power is a case study as much as his campaign is a case study. For this reason he is my PR person of 2014.

     

    I have had strong views against him being the PM probable of the country. However, now that the 30 percent vote share catapulted him to the position we have to accept the reality and move on. I have been branded a Communist and a Congress sympathizer. That is far from the truth. I have had professional linkages with individuals from different parties and ideologies. I am neither pro-Congress nor am I anti-BJP.

     

    There are individuals who come across as good and many of them genuinely are. I support them. If the PM really walks the talk and brings about a change in the remainder of his five-year term without allowing a communal riot to erupt, I may vote for him in 2019.

     

    What are the three areas we need to see change at least in the next one year? For me it would be reduction of corruption and poverty – these are interlinked. A safer and secure nation – safe for its citizens especially women and children and security at the borders. And lastly, an equal society where people play fair. Too much to ask for but possible if the Good Days are to see the light.

     

    Well, the Prime Minister has shown that you do not need to engage journalists to do some great PR. I’m hoping there is a lot of learning here for professionals. He uses the radio for live broadcasts. He uses events to create hype and he uses digital like it will go out of fashion. He has put the public back into Public Relations. And he is not giving journalists too much of a chance to cover him in a poor light.

     

    One is not sure as to how long the shine will last. People also say that all that glitters is not gold. But for now a large number of India – and I’m not yet part of the bandwagon – are letting him enjoy the honeymoon in power. He has managed to convert several who were against him to be a favorably disposed towards him. For the above reasons he is my PR Person of the Year but, no, at the ballot box he is not getting my vote yet until he proves to be a real change maker in reducing corruption and poverty which are India’s biggest albatrosses.

     

  • If Indian PR firms need to rise higher they need to be compensated better by the clients they work for, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: The Rise of PR firms in India over the last two decades

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    As we come to the end of the calendar year, it is important to note that this year several PR firms celebrated milestones. Some turned 25, some turned 20, some 15 and some 10. Here’s a quick round up of the history of Indian PR firms for the record.

     

    Indian PR evolved in the late 1980s and early 1990s with Indian and international ad agencies opening a department to take care of media relations needs of clients. Most pioneers moved from other professionals like advertising and journalism to start PR firms. Some of the oldest PR firms are IPAN (27 years) 20 20 Media (25 years), Perfect Relations (22 years), Genesis (22 years), Sampark (20 years), Clea (19 years), MSL (15 years).

     

    Roger Pereira started Roger Pereira Communications which was later renamed R&P Communications which Edelman went on to acquire. Dilip Cherian, then the Editor of Business India and Bobby Kewalramani started Perfect Relations in 1992.  That year Prema Sagar who was a printer and publisher (of tourist guides) started Genesis PR which is now known as Genesis Burson Marsteller. N S Rajan joined his wife Bela’s start-up after quitting his full time corporate communications job in 1994 to set up Sampark. Madan Bahal who was part of Adfactors Advertising started the PR division in 1997 and today is India’s biggest firm in revenues. Sunil Gautam moved on from Clea PR to set-up Hanmer & Partners in 1999.

     

    Then a variety of professionals who either worked in these companies or elsewhere started their PR firms. Nandita Lakshmanan (The Practice) and Archana Jain (PR Pundit) left Genesis to start their firms which are still independent. Nikhil Khanna moved on Good Relations to be joined by Nitin Mantri (the first male employee at genesis) who moved back from Ketchum-Pleon, London to start Avian Media. Blue Lotus was started by Chandramouli after moving on from an Adfactors group company.

     

    In 2001, Vaishnavi Corporate communications was started by Niira Radia, a publicist who knew her way around the media, government and corporate establishment. The firm wound up on its 10th birthday due to the involvement of its founder in India’s telecom scam. There was considerable damage done to the profession but thanks to the solid foundations of the other firms the community of professionals moved on from this incident.

     

    Acquisitions have taken place in the last decade starting with Burson Marsteller acquiring Genesis, followed by MSLGROUP acquiring Hanmer & Partners and later 20:20 Media. This was followed by Edelman acquiring R&P Communications.Weber Shandwick taking over Corporate Voice, Hill & Knowlton taking IPAN into its fold, Golin taking charge of LINopinion and Ketchum making Sampark its own.

     

    Several firms opened shop without acquisitions. These include: Fleishman Hillard, Ruder Finn, APCO Worldwide and very early in the game Text 100.

     

    Getting the right work force has been a challenge. Companies with good HR practices have managed to battle this out better. More importantly, institutes offering a robust PR programme are far and dew. Genesis created an Associate Learning Programme in 2004 where they hire 10 to 15 young post-graduates every year from campuses and put them on a fast track which involves rigorous training and challenging assignments.

     

    Some other firms have great in-house training initiatives including exchange programmes and internationals exposures. International firms have training programmes at a regional and global level where they make huge investments.

     

    The need of the hour in India is an accreditation system that ensures quality talent remains a constant. Academia, corporates and consultancies need to work out a model to ensure there is parity in retainers paid, salaries offered and fees charged to ensure there is no anomaly in this area. Currently the better PR training institutes charge close to a million rupees for a two year programme, the starting annual salaries at PR firms are just 30% of this. How will students repay their education loans? They, then prefer to join a corporate organisation where the learning curve is different but salaries are better.

     

    If Indian PR firms need to rise higher they need to be compensated better by the clients they work for. Meagre $3000 monthly retainers will not do any good. A standard needs to be created to prevent undercutting and ensure quality work comes out of a quality retainer. Firms need to showcase their work at international award shows, win them and command both respect and money they deserve.

     

    The PR business in India is on the upswing and there is no looking back. The day is not far when the few Indian firms will acquire smaller international firms to expand their footprint. More importantly the number of Indians getting transferred abroad within organisations and the rise of expatriates working in the sub-continent speaks volumes of where we have reached in less than two decades

     

  • There is no school for reputation management – one of the few subjects that is both a science and an art, rues Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: How about a dedicated school for Reputation Management?

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    There is a school for every subject, almost but for a subject that can be helpful for every sector there is none. We have a school for fisheries, for petroleum, for design, for architecture, for journalism, for ‘you name it’ and you will find it. But there is no school for reputation management – one of the few subjects that is both a science and an art.

     

    We keep hearing about the talent problem in every profession. Public Relations and Reputation Management – both inhouse and in consultancies do not have a talent problem but a problem of attracting and retaining good talent. If PR companies advise clients on employee engagement tactics and potential employee outreach programme why is it that PR companies are always struggling to find good people?

     

    I have said this in the past and the problem is about a vicious cycle. The only solution is to have a no=frills dedicated school that is affordable and teaches a small group of students the art and science of reputation management in the cost effective way. It is surprising that there is no school for the field.

     

    I’m not discounting the fact that there are communication institutes that offer a specialization but the good ones charge unrealistic fees and the not-so-good ones produce not-so-good talent. There needs to be a conscious effort of bridging this gap. PR firms and corporate communications professionals need to come together to jointly find a solution.

     

    The programme that is created needs to be world-class. The institute should have an offering that has to be rigorous yet smart in its methodology of teaching. Students need to do two out of the box internships and can choose to work in either a media house, a political party, a not-for-profit or a restaurant to learn the various facets of those organisations that come in handy in the world of reputation consulting. Taking up consulting projects during the programme is another important element that should not get missed out.

     

    Finding talent is never going to be hard because these days a lot of people without the right aptitude, attitude and qualification get into the profession and quickly realize the folly. But finding the right talent that makes an impact will always be hard unless they are caught young, moulded and inspired to approach the profession in a way that is rarely done.

     

    I’m sure people will come together to make this a possibility before it is too late. I’m already putting a blue print together to create one. I’m scouting for the right mentors, investors, partners to bring this alive. I’m sure well-intentioned veterans of the profession will put their best foot forward to make this happen.

     

    Amith Prabhu is a Public Reputation Management professional who focuses on communications for national politicians. In his free time, he plans and executes Praxis – the annual weekend summit for fellow professionals. He can be reached at @amithpr on Twitter

     

  • As media relations gets trickier each day a system needs to be in place for the way journalists and PR professions interact with each other, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Media relationships will get increasingly complex in a cluttered world

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    I had lunch with an interesting journalist who had no objection to be being named in this column but I will choose to let him be anonymous. A month the many things we talked about in the thirty minutes working lunch were two incidents he narrated that stand out. Both involve the Indian corporate communications and Public relations set-up of two US West Coast headquartered iconic companies.

     

    In both instances, the global CEOs were visiting India in quick succession, exactly a month ago. This journalist was asked by the corporate communications head of Company A to send a couple of questions that they would use in a transparent town hall where the corporate communications head would pick out a few questions from a fish bowl randomly for the global CEO to answer. But to the surprise of this journalist and others gathered the corporate communications chief had already made a list of questions and read them out from a sheet of newspaper thus putting transparency under the carpet in one push.

     

    In the other incident, the PR consultant called the journalist to invite him to interview the global CEO from Company B and insisted to know in advance what questions he planned to ask. To most journalists this can be annoying for multiple reasons. But the worse was yet to come. As his time to interview the global CEO came close, the journalist was advised to change the interview into more of a round up because he was the last in a series of nearly a dozen interviews. His bone of contention was that his ability to have absolutely different questions was being doubted.

     

    Now let’s move to the view from the other side. I have two stories to share from personal experience that I personally witnessed while dealing with a large global event last week. The event is managed by a mix of international professionals who are mostly American, British and Swiss and have been holding an average of 10 such events annually for the last three decades. Their media accreditation system is one of the strictest. On the morning of the event, a senior journalist who knows very well that he has not been nominated by his Editor to cover the event shows up at the venue claiming he has registered and wants entry. On being gently told that this is not possible he insists that he has covered the event in the past while working at another business daily and needs to be let in this time round. In the end he had to walk away disheartened but the sense of entitlement he was showing was unfortunate.

     

    In another instance, a specific media group known for masking brand names if there has been no payment made for the service, attends press conferences when they are invited and then in their city-specific supplement will only carry the photograph of the celebrity without mentioning the brand name of the product the celebrity is endorsing. To my mind and to that of several other marketers, this is outright unethical. You have a choice to not accept an invitation. You also have a choice to attend the press conference and not carry any part of it. But to selectively carry the image of the endorser from the event without giving it due credit is shameful.

     

    So there are four instances out of many that journalists and PR professionals face when encountering each other on a daily basis. These are not trivial problems. These need to be solved. As media relations gets trickier each day a system needs to be in place or the price will be too high to pay. There cannot be a free for all and there cannot be unfair PR professionals too.

     

  • I wish associations of PR consulting companies create a programme for journalists who switch jobs to get into the public relations business, writes Amith Prabhu

    Amith Prabhu: Hiring journalists without training them is unfair to the profession and unjust to the individual

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    PR firms have always had journalists as part of their hiring plan. However, PR firms have not crafted training programmes to convert journalists to become advisors. I spoke to a handful of PR professionals who were former journalists and they work in about five different firms. They all confirmed that they were asked to swim in the deep from the word go and learn on the job.

     

    This is not just unfair to the individual but a disservice to the profession. Journalists need to unlearn being reporters and editors and fit into the shoes of planners and executors. A consulting job is very different from a journalism job. Firms need to realise that and create specific onboarding programmes for these precious hires. Journalists cannot merely be used as the golden goose who come with those media contacts and the mindset to create content. A PR job is much more than that.

     

    I believe every PR professional should have had a stint as a journalist. If I ever open a school for Public Reputation Management I would ensure all trainees do a compulsory stint of one month at a media outlet interning as a journalist. I would also think the reverse will hold good. To get students of journalism intern in a PR firm to understand what goes on in the life of a PR professional.

     

    Well, getting back to the focus of this post I wish associations of PR consulting companies create a programme for journalists who switch jobs to get into the public relations business. It should ideally be a two-week workshop that covers understanding campaign planning, the key elements of consulting and the role of an advisor besides learning the basics of reputation management in theory including making plans, evaluating campaigns and the like.

     

    If some firms already have such programme in place, hats off to them but as far as I know a specific programme does not exist. As firms expand and hire more journalists to be in consulting an content creation jobs with client servicing as part being mainstay it will be imperative to teach the new professionals how to swim before pushing them into the deep end. If not, our profession will remain mediocre. This is not because the new professionals are no good. In fact they are generally very bright but an investment in giving them a solid foundation is not an option but should be mandatory

     

  • The brief should come to become a non-negotiable document in a client-agency relationship with PR firms refusing to work without one and clients ensuring the briefs are fool-proof and unambiguous,writes Amith Prabhu.

    Amith Prabhu: The Public Relations Campaign brief

    By Amith Prabhu

     

    This column is for in-house communications professionals. Also known as corporate communications or marketing communications or public relations or fill in the blank as various organisations call it by different names with slight differences in the job description. This column is for those who believe in a better way of planning, executing and measuring a campaign.

     

    This column is not for the corporate communications professional who has not worked in a PR firm prior to his or her in-house job. This is also definitely not for one who manages all external outreach internally without being the client of a PR firm. This column is about the client brief which barely exists in this day and age.

     

    I have been hearing several clients of PR firms complain that There Is No Alternative to the firm they are currently engaged with as all firms are almost the same especially when it comes to measurement. I also know several of the clients do not have a seat at the table and hence are unable to convince the high command in the organisation to look beyond advertising value equivalent more notoriously known as AVE. I think the only way to solve this problem is through a basic document that the consultancy and client create together which is the “Brief” that lists out the deliverables and measurable before each campaign.

     

    A Brief has to be written in a mutually agreed upon template. It has to be professional. It cannot be verbal and it needs to clearly have a measurement metrics that can change campaign to campaign.

     

    When clients and consultancies join forces to make this a mandatory practice which is not impossible more accountability will set in and better understanding and appreciation of the power of Public Relations will come to the fore. The brief should come to become a non-negotiable document. Teams at PR firms should insist on one and should refuse to work without one. Clients should ensure these briefs are fool-proof and unambiguous.

     

    Ultimately, a PR firm is made up of people who most often end up becoming clients of some other firms in the future. If this habit is not inculcated early on we are staring at troubled times. There will always be certain aspects of reputation management that will take place without a brief. Those are understandable.

     

    But what has to be measured should begin with a brief. It is pointless being part of a vicious circle. Maybe in 2015 a new era of briefs gathers support from the fraternity. If PRCAI can take the lead and create a template for all its member firms to follow we could see some hope on this front. We certainly need to move from return on investment to return on objective.

     

    Award organisers need to have a category for the best brief to drive home the point. Let’s hope this becomes an approach for the future. Here’s to the next Brief.