This week in PR (23 September)

Author: Richard Bailey, Editor
23rd September 2022 12 min read

About the author

Richard Bailey Hon FCIPR is editor of PR Academy's PR Place Insights. He teaches and assesses undergraduate, postgraduate and professional students.

Royal funeral

  • Fraser Raleigh: Tributes to HM The Queen (20 September)
    ‘Each nation took centre stage over the past ten days, but it was London that served as the fulcrum of national mourning as years of meticulous planning clicked into gear and Operation London Bridge became a reality.’
  • Steph Gray: A few lessons learned from tracking The Queue (20 September)
    ‘In what became a bit of a whirlwind week, it was a privilege to be able to support the creative, ambitious and dedicated team  at DCMS delivering what turned out to be a fast-moving digital service with even bigger global reach than we’d imagined.’

Purpose, climate and ESG

  • Allister Hayman: What might the M&S retrofit row mean for the race to net zero? (22 September)
    ‘According to Arup’s WLC report on the project, new build – not retrofit – was the most sustainable approach. This is because over the life span of a building the highly sustainable energy efficient new build will save significantly more carbon when compared to the inefficient older structure.’

Consulting, skills and careers

  • Emma Drake: Why we need reflection time in order to be productive [podcast] (22 September)
    ‘Reflection time can help our wellbeing by allowing us to reflect on our thoughts and our actions and on the actions we’ve taken; it can also help us identify areas where we can improve.’
  • Son Pham: The Nomad S3E6 – Julian Obubo (22 September)
    ‘To be an effective communicator today, you have to be aware of cultural nuances especially when the work involves imagery.’
  • Ben Smith with Emily Morgan: What does innovation look like for PR firms in 2022? [podcast] (16 September)
    ‘There may be a perception that PR agencies are all the same, all offering the same thing. So there is a real requirement on us not only to innovate but to show people how we’re innovating, how we’re doing things differently.’

Gender, diversity and wellbeing 

https://twitter.com/ccgroup/status/1572898085763780608

  • Sarah Waddington: Toby Mildon: You can become a diversity and inclusivity architect too (20 September)
    ‘Toby’s book includes a full seven step process that leaders can follow to make a meaningful difference in their organisations.’
  • Laura Kolb: Being a parent at ccgroup (no date)
    ‘We eat breakfast together as a family every day, I get to take my daughter to school every day, I’m part of the school community which I thought I would never be able to do as a working mum. I get to have a fulfilling career in a place that doesn’t penalise me for being a parent, yet I also don’t miss out on my daughter.’

Public and third sectors

https://twitter.com/Jenny_Bee_/status/1572287469260881922

  • Darren Caveney: The #unawards22 are OPEN (19 September)
    ‘As summer turns to autumn, it’s time to launch the UnAwards and get you, your teams and the industry proudly entering and showcasing your best work.’

Politics, public affairs and public sphere 

https://twitter.com/iain_w_anderson/status/1572265869627236359

  • Phil Briscoe: Don’t mention the “B” word, unless you’re talking about building! (22 September)
    ‘The housing sector is inextricably linked to GDP, both as a catalyst and as a contributor to the data. Historically, the housing sector makes up somewhere between 15% and 18% of the overall GDP number, and this includes the construction of new build homes, renovation of existing properties and the rental and professional activity that surrounds the sector.’
  • Thea Southwell Reeves: What does the Truss Premiership mean for private equity investment in football? (21 September)
    ‘Private equity has gradually been gaining a foothold in the world’s most popular sport and will be a keen spectator to Truss’ next move. Taking a lead from the billionaire soccer fans, Middle East petrodollars, and the spate of Chinese purchases which have dominated football investment over the past two decades, private equity, credit vehicles and hedge funds now represent the latest wave of investors.’
  • Tom Haynes: #TradeTuesday: Truss Talking Trade… Again (20 September)
    ‘One of the major post Brexit wins for the UK was going to be a bespoke trade deal with the USA, but speaking to journalists on her flight over last night, the PM made it very clear that such a trade deal had been kicked into the long grass and there was no expectation of talks starting soon.’

Crisis, risk and reputation

  • Alan S. Morrison: How to avoid the PR mistakes Center Parcs made (21 September)
    ‘Public relations is, in the strategic view, about managing relationships with stakeholders. What Center Parcs faced was a decision in which it had to balance the competing interests of several key stakeholder groups – customers, staff and its owners (because closing would have revenue and profit consequences).’

Behaviour and influence

Internal communication

  • Martin Flegg: The servant leader (22 September)
    ‘The best leaders I have worked with have allowed me to go beyond just providing them with slick presentations and stage-managed leadership events to help them build a real relationship with employees, using internal communication, to establish their authority rather than by just issuing edicts to enforce it.’
  • Jenni Field: Chaos to calm: How to rebuild trust [podcast] (21 September)
    ‘You can rebuild trust. The need for leaders to embody the values, the purpose, the culture of the organisation is really important when it comes to trust. Being congruent to those values in an organisation is so important.’
  • Rachel Miller: What is internal communication? [podcast] (20 September)
    ‘At the outset I described myself as an internal journalist. I wouldn’t say that today. I believe the purpose of internal communication is to create a shared understanding and a shared meaning.’

Media, digital and technology

  • Dan Slee: LONG READ: News written by robot is already here shock (22 September)
    ‘If I was to ask a comms team how they’d been impacted by robots, I’d get blank looks and maybe quite right too. How could anyone quote the number of press enquiries that didn’t happen, for example?’
  • Stuart Bruce: What is the metaverse, why does it matter and how does it work? (22 September)
    ‘Today, the popular virtual worlds are to be found in gaming. Fortnite, Roblox, Minecraft, Final Fantasy and World of Warcraft are just some of the massive online games where players interact with other players in 3D virtual worlds.’
  • Steffan Williams: Tech IPOs have led the listings charge (no date)
    ‘The London Stock Exchange now has more tech and consumer internet companies in the FTSE 350 than at any point since the dot com boom year of 2000.’
  • Ann Wright and Georgia Anderson: How to pitch: top tips from an ex-journalist (20 September)
    ‘As PRs, we should be avid news consumers and if there’s major national or international news, you might want to refrain from sending your pitch or follow up email on that particular day, unless it fits in with the event.’

Academic, education and training

Related topics

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