Survival of the Fittest: PROs at the limit of Endurance
With the corporate lifespan of a CEO reduced to 3.5 years, the pressure is on for close advisors to demonstrate worth beyond the cloistered confines of the Board room and into the darker recesses of the business. For decades, communication and PR professionals have fought for their place at the Board, garnering trust and necessarily close rapport with their CEOs. Rightly so. It is a place I defended rigorously during my career as a Fortune 500 and FTSE 100 corporate communications director.
However, a precarious situation arises in that intimate rapport between a senior communicator and their CEO as career fortunes become intertwined; the term departure of a CEO can mean the shunning and corporate isolation, if not sometimes dismissal, of a communications chief for no apparent reason other than their perceived over-association with the 'ancien régime'. Unfair, yes. But internal perception often prevails over business logic.
Yet bright prospects beckon. With PR professionals placed fortuitously at the ever-narrowing intersection between traditional and emergent social media, and with an increasingly volatile issues and advocacy environment that business must contend with, stars in the communications industry may be re-aligning.
In true Darwinian style, those PR agencies and individuals who flex, who broaden their skills, who actively apply their accumulated past wisdom and sate their knowledge are those most likely to outlive the short CEO life-cycle; those least disposed to change simply risk dropping out of the PR gene pool altogether.
So, with market turbulence still in prospect, what are the key attributes that will determine survival of the fittest among in-house PR executives - and agencies?
This summer, we advised Dr. John A. Caslione on the launch of his business book, 'Chaotics', written in association with global marketing guru Philip Kotler. Their case study based premise is that an era of turbulence, with chaos, risk and uncertainty, will characterize the future business landscape. Corporate communicators will correspondingly need to fine-tune their agility, composure and strength in handling the 'material' issues facing industry. Acquisitions, divestments, increased activism and the need for ever broader community engagement will test the commercial, leadership and predictive strengths of the communicator charged with bringing the outside world in to corporate strategy.
A contributive understanding of what constitutes good corporate governance, an acquired intuitive sense of consequences of corporate action, of the process and rules of engagement in exchanging meaningful dialogue with mobilising influencers are essential in this recession and post-recession environment. It will force supreme skills in building collaborative networks, in leadership and tactical diplomacy.
Communicators will need to emerge as a new breed of innovator, leading organisations through new social pathways.Too many still underestimate the need to upskill beyond their traditional media understanding. But arguably the train is already leaving the station: Twitter is establishing itself as potent social media platform among Fortune 100s and over 61 Fortune 500 CEOs are penning blogs.
Attributes such as penetrative media contacts, razor-sharp written and verbal communication skills, a motivational presence and an aesthetic eye will no longer stand out as key differentiators. In Maslow's terms, these once-lauded skills have become simple hygiene factors, though they certainly credit the evolution of the PR industry thus far. Foresight and ongoing evolution are necessary here.
For communication agencies, acquiring in-house levels of client and commercial insight will be essential. It is where I have found my reverse transition from in-house to consultancy extremely valuable. De-layering, driving economy, transparency and accountability will remain essential in these straitened times. Breaking down protectionism and forging strategic partnerships with social media, marketing and technology companies will drive integrated client solutions. Out-sourcing specialist skills and improving the short-term project offering will enhance agility.
For organisations, only those willing to attract and empower strong communications talent will see their own prospects transform, whilst resistant ones will certainly continue to require application of the communicator's more traditional powers; those of persuasion, endurance - and staunch optimism!
However, a precarious situation arises in that intimate rapport between a senior communicator and their CEO as career fortunes become intertwined; the term departure of a CEO can mean the shunning and corporate isolation, if not sometimes dismissal, of a communications chief for no apparent reason other than their perceived over-association with the 'ancien régime'. Unfair, yes. But internal perception often prevails over business logic.
Yet bright prospects beckon. With PR professionals placed fortuitously at the ever-narrowing intersection between traditional and emergent social media, and with an increasingly volatile issues and advocacy environment that business must contend with, stars in the communications industry may be re-aligning.
In true Darwinian style, those PR agencies and individuals who flex, who broaden their skills, who actively apply their accumulated past wisdom and sate their knowledge are those most likely to outlive the short CEO life-cycle; those least disposed to change simply risk dropping out of the PR gene pool altogether.
So, with market turbulence still in prospect, what are the key attributes that will determine survival of the fittest among in-house PR executives - and agencies?
This summer, we advised Dr. John A. Caslione on the launch of his business book, 'Chaotics', written in association with global marketing guru Philip Kotler. Their case study based premise is that an era of turbulence, with chaos, risk and uncertainty, will characterize the future business landscape. Corporate communicators will correspondingly need to fine-tune their agility, composure and strength in handling the 'material' issues facing industry. Acquisitions, divestments, increased activism and the need for ever broader community engagement will test the commercial, leadership and predictive strengths of the communicator charged with bringing the outside world in to corporate strategy.
A contributive understanding of what constitutes good corporate governance, an acquired intuitive sense of consequences of corporate action, of the process and rules of engagement in exchanging meaningful dialogue with mobilising influencers are essential in this recession and post-recession environment. It will force supreme skills in building collaborative networks, in leadership and tactical diplomacy.
Communicators will need to emerge as a new breed of innovator, leading organisations through new social pathways.Too many still underestimate the need to upskill beyond their traditional media understanding. But arguably the train is already leaving the station: Twitter is establishing itself as potent social media platform among Fortune 100s and over 61 Fortune 500 CEOs are penning blogs.
Attributes such as penetrative media contacts, razor-sharp written and verbal communication skills, a motivational presence and an aesthetic eye will no longer stand out as key differentiators. In Maslow's terms, these once-lauded skills have become simple hygiene factors, though they certainly credit the evolution of the PR industry thus far. Foresight and ongoing evolution are necessary here.
For communication agencies, acquiring in-house levels of client and commercial insight will be essential. It is where I have found my reverse transition from in-house to consultancy extremely valuable. De-layering, driving economy, transparency and accountability will remain essential in these straitened times. Breaking down protectionism and forging strategic partnerships with social media, marketing and technology companies will drive integrated client solutions. Out-sourcing specialist skills and improving the short-term project offering will enhance agility.
For organisations, only those willing to attract and empower strong communications talent will see their own prospects transform, whilst resistant ones will certainly continue to require application of the communicator's more traditional powers; those of persuasion, endurance - and staunch optimism!
Labels: business, Change management, Chaotics, John A. Caslione, management, Maslow, Philip Kotler, PR, reputation, Twitter
posted by Joanna Lund
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