This week in PR (11 December)

Purpose and professionalism

• Danny Rogers: From the editor-in-chief: A review of 2020 – painful lessons in business, purpose and kindness (10 December)
  ‘As well as growing in importance corporate comms was having to change too, as a result of the increasingly enlightened conversation taking place around corporate ethics and purpose.’
• Maja Pawinska Sims: UK PR Census Reveals Impact Of 2020 On Gender & Racial Equity (8 December)
  ‘Women in PR president Bibi Hilton said the pandemic had “disproportionately impacted women in our industry”, reflecting the picture across the workforce globally where the burden of unpaid care and home schooling has had a significant impact on female employment levels.’

https://twitter.com/readwriteshare/status/1337016209720668160

Consulting, teams and careers

Happy launch day to us! Thrilled to be introducing @inflectpartners alongside my brilliant business partners @shack_harry and @emilywallace25.
We want to help responsible business thrive in the post-pandemic world. Give us a follow, and come and say hi if we can help. https://t.co/RD2rufIn33

— Carli Harper-Penman (@carli_hp) December 8, 2020

• Dom Burch: How coaching someone this week reminded me what I’ve been missing (10 December)
  ‘Following a great catch up with a former colleague from the high flying agency world, who has jacked it all in to follow her coaching passion, I’m going to sign up next year to do a formal qualification.’
• Amanda Coleman: An unusual Christmas tradition (10 December)
  ‘This is going to be a festive season like no other. Contact with relatives will be limited, friends will be available online, there have been no Christmas parties or nights out. But we all need to have a break from the pressure of a tough year as long as we do it safely.’
• Naomi Goodman: 2020 twins… Where was that on my to-do list? (9 December)
  ‘The two big ticket items at the top of my 2020 list were, do a meaningful training course and decide your next career move. So how did, have babies, sneak in?’

So I’ve sold up. Everything I own is in a shipping container and today it sets sail for Australia. I’ll fly out in March, buy a Ute and an old caravan, hit the road and work out what to do next. No direction known. Terrified? Yes. Exhilarated? Yes.

— Hamish Thompson (@HamishMThompson) December 10, 2020

Wellbeing, gender and diversity

• Gavin Bostock: Emotional and focused (10 December)
  ‘Research by psychologist Dr Elaine Aron found that of the 20% of the population that is ‘highly sensitive’ the trait was evenly divided between males and females.’

Public and third sectors

Oooph – excited/emotional today- advance copies of the book arrived. Serious #narrative change work about true grit of people working in/with #localgov – totally compelling. Massive thks everyone – @darrencaveney @InterimBoy @GeorgiaTurner @LouisaDean23 @bencapper @jambodaveyk pic.twitter.com/cYMRowjfJv

— Dawn Reeves (@Futuredawn) December 8, 2020

• Ian Curwen: Unawards unevent (7 December)
  ‘It really is important to recognise success. In the public sector, or a charity, or other organisation with a miniscule budget, the chance to enter awards can be slim. The chance to attend an awards ceremony is often even slimmer.’
• Ben Greenwood: What communicators can learn from the beautiful game – 5 top tips (5 December)
  ‘As anyone who has worked with me will know, I am partial to using a football analogy to describe the complex situations we, as comms professionals, sometimes find ourselves in.’

 

Politics, public affairs and public sphere

Exclusive: Harassment, racism, unfair pay: Women working in public affairs reveal serious concerns to industry survey by @WomenInPA | PR Week https://t.co/9LE6mpKjSd via @prweekuknews

— Ian Griggs (@ProseFactory) December 10, 2020

• Aidan Muller: The Think Tank Storytelling Series – Part 2 (no date)
  ‘Those think tanks who are open about what they stand for, find it significantly easier to tell their stories. Why? Because storytelling is inherent in their positioning. They already have a framework within which to tell their stories – which makes it easier for them to make the case for the funding to tell these stories.’
• Stuart Thomson: Beware Changing Communications (7 December)
  ‘Communications will continue to develop, so we in public affairs need to as well if we are to remain relevant and deliver effective engagement.’

Brands, storytelling, and influence 

• Scott Guthrie: Profile of Dr Sevil Yesiloglu and new influencer marketing book [podcast] (no date)
  ‘There’s still a lack of understanding in this field. We wanted to highlight the importance of third party endorsers for brands.’
• Sophie Moore: How to understand and leverage the effectiveness of influencer marketing today (9 December)
  ‘Influencer marketing sits quite nicely between earned PR and paid for social advertising. This means the metrics we look at for these digital PR tactics are not dissimilar to those we like to look at for Influencer Marketing.’

Internal communication

• Ross Wigham: The importance of internal comms to the NHS and social care system (10 December)
  ‘Internal comms can sometimes feel like the poor relation to PR in the public sector, but with the current workforce challenges coupled with the global pandemic it’s become more important than ever during the past eight months.’

• Lucy Eckley: Unleashing your inner rebel with Advita Patel [podcast] (no date)
  ‘I’m all about networking and building communities. A Leader Like Me offers a community for women of colour – but also for any individual who feels unrepresented in their organisation.’

• Rachel Miller: What does successful internal communication look like? (7 December)
  ‘In my experience and from advising brands around the world on their internal communication, successful internal communication only happens when you are intentional.’

• Martin Flegg: No strings attached (6 December)
  ‘As internal communicators draft their organisation’s end of year message from the leadership team, our guiding principle should be unconditional kindness.’

Technology, media and digital

In the age of fake news, our research shows radio most trusted source of news, informationand help – reaching audiences of all types #BeyondtheBubble @Radiocentre @Ebiquity pic.twitter.com/rLU2IL4qz5

— Sandra Macleod (@SandraDCMacleod) December 9, 2020

• Josh Cobb: Where do our devices go? Taking on the global e-waste crisis (no date)
  ‘How many electronic devices do you own? How many have you owned in your life? Where do your devices go when you no longer need them? Are you disposing of them correctly?’

Oh boy this year's Google Year In Search 2020 is quite something https://t.co/w39hRSqhr4

— Louise (@louisevparker) December 9, 2020

#PRstudent #bestPRblogs

Having been in a similar position myself (albeit a while ago now), I'm always happy to help people studying/in the early stages of their PR career if I can. Not just because it benefits the industry, but because it feels good too!

— Matt Silver (@MattSilverPR) December 8, 2020

• Ciara McCabe (Ulster): Boredom to Business (10 December)
  ‘I made the decision to start accepting commissions in June and I was overwhelmed with the response I got! I ordered some hardback envelopes, some packaging materials and a lot more paint on eBay and got started.’
• Eloise Newman (Solent): The Overlooked Ethical Issues of the Coronavirus Pandemic: Food Waste and Digital Disadvantage (10 December)
  ‘A rise in food waste has surfaced, as some pub-goers are ordering food alongside their drinks to comply with the new legislation, but order the food intentionally knowing that they will not eat it and will simply drink their drinks and leave.’

• Amy Hamilton (Ulster): Has PR tested positive during Covid-19? (9 December)
  ‘Luckily, those in PR can work wherever they need to, whenever they need to. Unlike many other industries, PR didn’t have a meltdown when going to the office seemed more and more dangerous, computers and laptops were just sat on kitchen tables instead of work desks.’

• Babett Kürschner (LCC/UAL): The great shift – Technology and democracy in the 21st century (no date)
  ‘Digital technology has transformed the workings of democracy in profound ways and plays a central role in how people engage politically.’
• Lucas Fitzsimmons (Ulster): Autism and PR: The Do’s and Don’ts (8 December)
  ‘Us autistic people have been going on about this one for years, we don’t like functioning labels! First of all, they cause an unnecessary division between autistic people, between those that would be called “high functioning” and those that would be “low functioning”.’

• Rachael Thompson (Sunderland): 5 Reasons Why You Should Get an Industry Mentor – My Experience as a Mentee (7 December)
  ‘The process of undertaking a degree gives you so much more than just knowledge and a certificate. But a degree doesn’t necessarily give you a true indication of what your career is really going to be like on a day to day basis.’
• Kayla Collins (Ulster): Marcus Rashford – Changing the game both on and off the pitch. (7 December)
  ‘With Marcus Rashford helping children across the UK and managing to keep his incredible form going with Manchester United, this should inspire fellow athletes and celebrities to help raise awareness and make a change to societal issues that are stopping our younger generations to flourish.’

• Lindelani Moyo (Birmingham City): The 101 Guide to surviving Christmas Break in a pandemic: PR Student Edition (4 December)
  ‘By building your personal brand now it will help you get your foot in the door when application time comes around and, also get your name in the mouths of the right people.’