This week in PR (5 November)
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.
It happened this week
The car crash that is the way the government handled the Paterson case is a shocking insight into the lack of political craftsmanship in Downing Street. The Tories are very exposed when it comes to allegations of sleaze. They need to get their act together, and fast.
— Simon Gentry (@Simon_Gentry) November 4, 2021
Yorkshire County Cricket Club has turned a crisis into a PR disaster #pr #comms @PeterJEastwood @ThePHAGroup https://t.co/wJr2Z6udir pic.twitter.com/w1Ofv2lOcW
— PRWeek UK (@prweekuknews) November 4, 2021
Climate and COP26
Think tanks and #COP26Glasgow, cont…@Policy_Exchange hosted an interview with Bill Gates @BillGates, led by Jeremy Hunt @Jeremy_Hunt, to discuss climate change. Gates thinks we may struggle to meet the 1.5 degree target.https://t.co/fZJOk2Aq4o
— Cast From Clay (@castfromclay) November 4, 2021
- Andrew Adie and Dafydd Rees: Insights from COP26: Day 4 – Energy Day and the demise of coal (4 November)
‘Alok Sharma, President of COP26, started Day 4 (Energy Day) by declaring that ‘the end of coal is in sight’ as more than 40 countries signed up to pledge that they would phase out the use of coal fired power generation.’
- Claire Foster: Who’s Missing? (no date)
‘We need more women in the room. But who else is missing? These gatherings should not just involve the green elite. True representation is needed to collaborate, innovate and overcome climate challenges together.’ - Emma Miyo: With time running out on climate change, we need a 21st Century equivalent of ‘Dig For Victory’ (3 November)
‘Could a return to rationing save the planet? Joanna Lumley made an impassioned case for it on BBC Breakfast last week, calling the climate crisis ‘a different kind of wartime’ and proposing a system of tradeable vouchers to help Brits curb their consumption.’ - Adam Short: COP26: Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, global health leaders confront the climate crisis (1 November)
‘While the stakes are high at COP26, it is just the beginning of the work to cut global emissions, strengthen health systems and ensure they are climate-resilient.’
- Stephen Waddington: Carbon bandwagon (1 November)
‘The Companies Act, the law that sets out corporate governance for the directors of UK companies, requires they be held accountable to shareholders for financial performance. There’s no mention of the environment, or indeed any other form of stakeholder.’
- Maja Pawinska Sims with Omar Mockbil and Tatu Liimatainen: Podcast: COP26, Climate & Corporate Communications (1 November)
‘Sustainability may be new to boardroom discussions but if we look at public sentiment it’s been there for a while. The private sector has been a bit absent until recently, I’d say.’
Introducing #CopingwithCOP
100+ climate change lessons in 30 seconds or lessIt’s not exhaustive – more Yoda’s little finger than Yoda. But it is, we hope, a semi-useful guide to the story and context around COP26 + what matters in the coming years…
— Lansons (@LansonsLatest) October 28, 2021
Wellbeing, gender and diversity
- Paul Gerrard: I’m a senior public affairs professional and I stammer (4 November)
‘I’ve spoken at the UN and to audiences of 500 and more. I’ve been live on BBC, ITV and Sky and appeared in Parliament to give evidence. For someone with a stammer, every single one is nerve-wracking and, frankly, terrifying.’ - Deepa Thomas-Sutcliffe: How to run a truly inclusive meeting (1 November)
‘Do not let a few confident people dominate a meeting, invite a broader range of inputs. Make it a safe place for everyone to share their views. As a leader, do not play favourites. Listen patiently to all views. Never shoot down or belittle any contributions. Role model the behaviours you expect your team to demonstrate.’
ESG, corporate and financial
- Emma Drake with Andrea Cockerton: Ep 47. How to talk to investors [podcast] (4 November)
‘I left a dot com and then worked with entrepreneurs helping them get their pitches right for investors. I’ve broadened out into working on crisis comms and investor relations.’ - Tim Bailey: Future of corporate communications research with 10 notable insights (1 November)
‘The Edelman Future of Corporate Communications study looks at many aspects of the future of corporate communications, but I want to focus on some of the insights around the use and adoption of technology.’
Consulting, teams and careers
Ten years ago I was recovering from surgery, looking at months of chemo & radiotherapy.
Today I sit in the sun with my coffee before work & savour every moment.
Be kind people you never know what others are dealing with. pic.twitter.com/EP6Z4nHkyb
— Mandy Pearse (@MandyPearse) November 3, 2021
- Emily Dutton: Meet the Team: From Government Comms to B2B Tech PR (28 October)
‘After three years of working at The National Archives, I decided that it was time to return to ‘agency life’ and I applied for a role at Neo PR. I missed the buzz of working at an agency, the variety of different clients and I felt ready for a new challenge.’
- Nik Govier: The lows and highs of three years of Blurred (2 November)
‘Superficial work for companies not wanting to genuinely improve wasn’t good enough for us. We’d work with them if they wanted to have a positive impact or they could, frankly, just go elsewhere.’
Public and third sectors
Some personal job news: On Monday I’ll be taking over as Director of Communications at the Department of Health. Looking forward to leading the absolutely brilliant communications team @DHSCgovuk
— James Sorene (@Jsorene) October 30, 2021
Risk, crisis and reputation
- Amanda Coleman: Deny everything (3 November)
‘Managing issues, incidents and problems effectively needs honesty, transparency and empathy at its heart. There are more questions that arise from a denial of the reality of the situation.’
Campaigns, creativity and behaviour
The incredible results Shayoni's @LynnPRLtd was able to offer its clients by simply applying BS principles were astounding!
We learnt a lot last night, and the key takeaway for me was how much influence BS research and analysis can have on the results of any campaign.— Ella Minty (@EllaMinty) November 4, 2021
Content, storytelling and influence
https://twitter.com/PRisUs/status/1456243766562537475
- Bogdan Marinescu: Eleven ways to make the most of video in PR (28 October)
‘Just like a movie, give thought to the music/soundtrack which creates energy and atmosphere. For example, the This Girl Can advert by Sport England using Missy Elliott’s ‘Get Your Freak On’ creates energy really well.’
Planning, insight, measurement and evaluation
https://twitter.com/richardbagnall/status/1455490324025991174
Internal communication
'Until all employers are prepared to pay workers a living wage, ensure working conditions are safe & hours humane, there is no point in focus groups to discuss
employees preferences for meditation classes & sandwiches' #GreatResignation #internalcomms https://t.co/zPHboJAAJO— Martin Flegg, The IC Citizen (@martinflegg) November 4, 2021
- Vicki Marinker: S2 Episode 2: The unique challenge of working in retail communications, with Sam Bleazard [podcast] (no date)
‘You find yourself working with people at all levels of organisations… Working in communication seems to speed up incrementally over time – retail is very fast.’ - Katy Howell with Malin Liden, Anita Veszeli and Tim Williams: Employee advocacy: Overcoming hurdles
(no date)
‘Employee advocacy seems such a simple concept, but actually it can be quite difficult.’
Technology, media and digital
This year’s #WebSummit saw the Ukrainian #tech ecosystem come together in a joint promotional effort for the first time ever.
Our client @ParimatchTech did a great job representing the #gaming sector within the country, with Co-CEO Maksym Liashko speaking to a packed workshop! pic.twitter.com/8LbFUqKmlL
— The PR Office (@ThePROffice) November 4, 2021
- Celia Cox: Could digital finance be the much-needed route to financial inclusion? (no date)
‘One of the most pressing issues for financial services providers is innovating to effectively reach the billions of people around the world who live ‘unbanked’.’ - Paul Sutton: Maybe it’s time to quit Facebook? [podcast] (3 November)
‘The timing of the [Facebook] rebranding exercise was tone deaf… By fronting the launch, Zuckerberg has saddled Meta with the same baggage as Facebiook.’ - Drew Benvie: The Social Media Report #28: what Meta means for the future of social media (1 November)
‘Compare Meta the company and Facebook the app, and you get chalk and cheese.’
Academic and education
International History of Public Relations Conference (IHPRC) will be held in Bournemouth in hybrid format on 6-8 July 2022. The call for papers requests two page abstracts by 21 January 2022.
#prstudent #CreatorAwards22
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- Julie Mari (Solent):
@juliemariA day in a PR student life ##Southampton ##solentuniversity ##PRStudent ##CreatorAwards22♬ STAY – The Kid LAROI & Justin Bieber
- Jasmine Dennike (LCC/UAL):
@jazzdenikeAlan in Spy Kids was elite prove me wrong ##fyp ##london ##grahamnorton ##barbican ##londontok ##minivlog ##prstudent ##ual ##ualstudent ##autumninlondon♬ original sound – carneyval - Bethany Gough (Solent): Is extreme protesting the best PR plan for Insulate Britain? (2 November)
‘I’ve seen videos of people unable to get their children to school, unable to get back to university, ambulances unable to take patients to hospitals and even claims of people being unable to take sick and dying relatives to get treatment.’ - Elena Niculescu (Solent): Should brands take a stand for social issues? (2 November)
‘Yes, brands should take a stand for social issues, but it is more important to choose an issue relevant to the brand and to mesh the issue into solutions, otherwise what point are they going to make?’ - Ellie Jones (Liverpool John Moores): Balance (30 October)
‘In between your goals and ambitions, there is something called LIFE that has to be lived!’ - Martin Agunwa (Leeds Beckett):