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Tag: Pitchfork Partners

  • Our homegrown lists are too skewed towards the following types: Advertising CEOs, Men, Old men, writes Jaideep Shergill in a new weekly column

    Devil’s Advocate: Introducing a new no-holds-barred column by Jaideep Shergill

    By Jaideep Shergill

     

    This is what Umberto Eco (who sadly passed away recently) had to say about lists:

    The list is the origin of culture. It’s part of the history of art and literature. What does culture want? To make infinity comprehensible. It also wants to create order — not always, but often. And how, as a human being, does one face infinity? How does one attempt to grasp the incomprehensible? Through lists, through catalogs, through collections in museums and through encyclopedias and dictionaries. There is an allure to enumerating how many women Don Giovanni slept with: It was 2,063, at least according to Mozart’s librettist, Lorenzo da Ponte. We also have completely practical lists — the shopping list, the will, the menu — that are also cultural achievements in their own right.

     

    AdWeek recently released the ubiquitous Power List 2016: The Top 100 Leaders in Marketing, Media and Tech. What a great list. Such depth and insightful commentary and more importantly covering a broad spectrum of leaders, ranging from tech CEOs to media moguls to CEOs of Fortune 500 companies to Marketing Directors and head honchos of large marketing services (ouch, was I supposed to say advertising) holding companies. Sadly, like we do every year when such lists get released, we scour every listing only to see the disappointment grow manifold by the time we reach #100 and as always the predestined result follows our disappointment. We never (rarely ever) have any leaders directly representing the PR/communication fraternity.

     

    I did notice one “outlier”, Harris Diamond, CEO, chairman, McCannWorld group who comes in at #76 on the list. Having said this, the last time Mr Diamond was in a role in the PR industry was back in 2012. So that’s that as far as the PR and communication industry goes. Nada, zilch, Zero!

     

    Of course the holding company chiefs on the list can also claim to have something to do with the PR business but we all know how little they care or mean to do for the PR fraternity barring the lip service of course.

     

    A completely different list, the GQ magazine 100 most connected men in Britain 2016 has a great list with very different criterion for one to appear on it, however, this list at least has a handful of leaders from the PR industry on it including Matthew Freud, Chairman, Freud Communications, Paddy Harverson and DJ Collins, Co-founders, Milltown Partners, Simon Kelner, Chief executive, Seven Dials PR, Benjamin Webb, Founder, Deliberate PR and James Chapman, Director of communications for George Osborne. More importantly I didn’t see many of those “lip-service” folks listed!

     

    Looking at the latter, there is hope yet!

     

    Now coming to some of our very own homegrown lists which I have been reading with a great amount of amazement and consternation.  Invariably, we end up with list which are too skewed towards the following types:

    1. Advertising CEOs

    2. Men

    3. Old men

     

    While this applies to some of the large marketing media and so-called industry leading titles who create these lists, the PR-specific lists are equally lopsided and represent “the old school” definition of Public Relations and Communication. Unusually, only those from the “establishment” make it to these lists.

     

    I personally believe that these lists need to be expounded a lot more and comprise a much wider constitution and deeper thinking needs to go into curating them rather than providing the standard, dull fare to readers. Let’s give our brothers and sisters more credit for their intellect.

     

    Within the world of lists, the PR industry and our representation on these lists is like the innermost and smallest doll of the Matryoshka doll (Russian doll)

     

    Sorry, Mr. Eco, we have a long way to go yet!

     

    Jaideep Shergill, Co-Founder, Pitchfork Partners Strategic Consulting LLP is a PR and communicationas veteran and has always been contrarian about most things, drawing extraordinary amounts of irk and ire from industry peers. He can be reached at jaideep.shergill@pitchforkpartners.com.

     

  • As strategic advisors, the duo will not only audit the agency’s performance from time to time but will also play a vital role in advising on issues related to key business areas

    Sunil Gautam and Jaideep Shergill join Metieta’s Advisory board

    By A Correspondent

     

    Sunil Gautam (right) with Jaideep Shergill

    Metieta Advertising, a boutique branding, creative and media agency, recently announced that the founders of strategic consulting firm, Pitchfork Partners, Sunil Gautam and Jaideep Shergill have joined their Advisory Board. As strategic advisors, the duo will not only audit the agency’s performance from time to time but will also play a vital role in advising on issues related to key business areas, formulating growth strategies and monitoring the implementation of these strategies.

     

    Speaking about the new association, Amit Desai, Founder and Managing Director at Metieta Advertising said, “Sunil and Jaideep have been at the very genesis of our organization since the year 2000 and it is only apt to have them on board to give us a trusted and experienced introspection and at the same time have a truthful advice on the way forward.” He further said that the advisory board has been created to provide renewed vision, growth and strategic directions, and corporate governance to the organization. With these eminent professionals from the communications industry on-board, Metieta looks forward to a new chapter of growth and excellence.

     

    Sharing their excitement at joining the advisory board of Metieta, Sunil Gautam and Jaideep Shergill said “We are honored to have been asked by Amit to join the board. Amit and his team have been doing a stellar job in building a solid body of work and credibility for the firm in recent years and we would like to support them to be able to take the firm to the next level. We are both looking forward to being a part of the next phase of the journey which promises to be very exciting indeed”.

     

  • The worst thing corporations can do during a crisis is clam up as the golden rule of communicating even more during a crisis is usually forgotten, notes Jaideep Shergill

    Jaideep Shergill: Six ways companies can deal with a crisis

    Jaideep Shergill

    By Jaideep Shergill

     

    Of the various corporations that can be hit by crises, food, pharma and energy majors are the most vulnerable. Gargantuan brands, built over decades, can be reduced to a pile of rubble quickly; all it takes is one operational mistake or a quality slip-up.

     

    The worst thing corporations can do during a crisis is clam up. The golden rule of communicating even more during a crisis is usually forgotten. We’ve seen that during the recent storm around a noodles brand. When the management did decide to host a press conference, it was several days after the controversy broke.

     

    Here are a few things that I would keep in mind during a crisis —

    1. Choose the Right Spokesperson: The higher his/her rank, the greater the credibility of the message. Temperament is important. Your spokesperson will face hostility; s/he will need to keep his/her cool and stay on the message.

    2. Act Quickly: Recall the product if there’s a fault and fix the problem quickly. Initiate a fact-finding process and institutionalise the corrective measures. Your reputation is top priority; it’s the currency of business today. Owning up if you’re wrong and apologising is a virtue, and would go a long way in helping your brand claw back to the top.

    3. Get the Message Right: Remember, it’s not about the money or liability. You are accountable to your customers and other stakeholders, such as employees, vendors, the communities you serve and the government. Put people first. Also, ensure that your messaging is consistent.

    4. Be Open: Acknowledge the seriousness of the problem right away. Decide on the frequency of your updates and stick to it. Detail what you are doing and its progress. Put somebody in charge and designate points of contact for those affected and others, such as the media. Full disclosure never hurt anybody.

    5. Media as an Ally: Many corporations treat the media as adversaries. If you’re transparent and proactive, they can be your allies in communicating with key audiences. Be an advocate, not an adversary.

    6. Be Prepared: The best time to deal with a crisis is when it hasn’t yet hit. Anticipate and be prepared for all that can go wrong. Have response mechanisms in place and refresh them regularly. Many corporations insist that their top and middle management go through crisis communications training. This is smart thinking and money well invested.

     

    Never have brands been under greater scrutiny than now. All stakeholders – from customers to employees – are demanding more from businesses, not just in terms of value for their loyalty but also on the corporate responsibility front.

     

    Unfortunately, most brands turn a blind eye to it. Be part of the minority; you’ll be happier for it.

     

    Jaideep Shergill is co-founder of Pitchfork Partners, a strategy consulting firm. Previously, he was India CEO of MSLGROUP, a strategic communications network. A slightly shorter version of this appeared in ‘dna of brands’ dated June 8, 2015