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What's Keeping PR Agency Bosses Awake At Night? #agencypublisher

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dgPrint@TBoneGallagher Last week’s annual summit of the International Communications Consultancy Organization (ICCO) drew PR agency heads from nearly 40 countries to discuss the opportunities and challenges in front of the industry. This meeting is particularly known for its candour; the fact there are no clients in attendance reduces the showboating we’re famously fond of, and the speakers (from independents and the big networks alike) are especially generous and open with their insights. The good news: PR consulting continues to grow worldwide.   This is partly from new markets joining the global pool.  Partly from new clients adding PR for the first time to their wider business consulting and marketing communications investment.  Partly from agencies adding new services to their proposition, particularly in digital and social media. And partly, I think, from clients shifting a (small) share of their large ad budgets to PR. The bad news: well, there’s not much bad news, but there are a number of challenges keeping agency chiefs from feeling complacent.  Specifics vary by market, but the main anxieties follow common themes. Here’s a quick look:

  • Talent:  How do we attract talent from ‘non-traditional’ backgrounds to manage the new services and technologies our evolvling propositions require? How do we keep, develop and inspire our established talent – especially ‘millennials’?  And how do we leverage our senior talent in a fast-changing market?
  • Business models: How do we move from hourly rates and retainers to value-based service propositions (payment for business results)?  How do we structure teams to include more flexible solutions?  How can we integrate with ad agencies and other consultancies to meet complex client problems, without giving the farm away?
  • Competition: How do we manage in an environment in which we compete with each other on some engagements, while working as partners on others?  Are ad agencies our friends (for leads), competitors (for budget) or somewhere in between – frenemies?  Are digital and social media agencies potential poachers? Or acquisition candidates?  And how many unseen / disruptive competitors are there beyond our line of sight, waiting to Uberize our industry with wholly new approaches?  Does “PR” have value with the client community as a description of our proposition? Or is it need of modernization?
  • Creativity:  Are we sufficiently creative compared to other disciplines and channels?  Is it something we can teach, or is it found in talent to hire?  Are awards good indications you have it? How do you measure it?
Obviously a lot of the discussion revolved around what’s changing in our business, and how to address these developments in ways that make sense for our people, clients and shareholders.  Some of it focused on where – with a strong delegation from Africa discussing the remarkable growth and opportunity for PR consultancy there. But maybe it was the theme of why PR advice is now more needed than ever that offered participants the greatest comfort.  Knowing that you play a role in connecting people – helping them understand each other and the world around them – can be a strong incentive to work through the operational challenges. I’ll share some of the solutions and experiments presented in future posts, but for now, it’s good to know that as diverse as our industry is, we’re all worried about similar things. See you in Istanbul for the ICCO Global Summit 2016!

The Death of the PR Pantologist? Hiring for the future of our industry – from the ICCO 2015 Global Summit in Milan

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Written by: Aaron Kwittken

Print@AKwittken

The Death of the PR Pantologist? Hiring for the future of our industry -- from the ICCO 2015 Global Summit in Milan

Last week, I traveled to Milan, Italy to participate in the ICCO Global Summit to moderate a panel called, “The Talent Integration Game, Decoded.”

ICCO is a gathering of some of the best and brightest in the global PR community so I was thrilled to take on the job – plus, how bad could a few days of work in Italy (and the inevitable extra pasta) be?

The panel I moderated explored the implications on hiring talent for an industry that is shifting toward a more integrated and omni-channel approach. I was joined by Maxim Behar, CEO of M3 Communications Group, and Rachel Bell, CEO and founder of Shine Communications. In our discussion, we explored how the historical sentiment that PR agency talent should be “jacks of all trades” fits in with today’s omni-channel environment. Social strategy, community management, content creation, experiential and data analytics skills are all par for the course in today’s world of PR agencies.

One of the major takeaways from the conversation came in the staunch agreement that PR agencies, globally, must start changing their internal culture to be more inclusive of specialist talents and non-traditional backgrounds. Agencies need to start integrating team members who understand a multi-disciplinary approach in order to form inter-disciplinary teams that are focused on building data-driven programs that are social and digital by design. There has been an increasing amount of comfort and credibility in the minds of CMOs, but we need to change the hearts and minds through procurement practices as well. Finally, we need to navigate meeting the “old-school” earned media needs of certain clients with the more “modern” demands of clients who favor an omni-channel approach and understand the value of a creating for them a broader message and brand awareness.

The discussion was an important and timely one, held among influential peers in the industry and around the world by whom I was honored to be surrounded. I look forward to continuing to explore and embrace the changing agency landscape, as Kwittken continues to build our specialist talent practice areas to enhance our client offerings. And meanwhile, I will continue to decompress from over indulging in gelato.

PR Agencies Are Changing – And Not A Moment Too Soon

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Written by: David Gallagher

dgPrint@TBoneGallagher

Senior Partner/CEO Ketchum Europe
President, ICCO

One of the benefits of volunteering time to be active in industry associations like ICCO is the opportunity to learn from colleagues, thought-leaders and even competitors on what’s going on outside your own agency, and in conversations with smart innovators from the world, there’s a consistent theme: change.

Few of the leaders in the PR business I’ve met over the past year doubt that the agency world is undergoing significant transformation, and most would agree these changes are coming just in the nick of time.  Our business is no less vulnerable to the disruption we’ve seen in other industries – music, travel or, of course, the media – and the best agencies have plenty to teach us all when it comes to providing better service, developing stronger talent and building more resilient business models.

A few of the ways they’re changing (and what we can learn):

  1. Media relations – part of what marketers might assign to the ‘earned’ component of their channel mix (paid, earned, shared/social and owned) – is as valuable as ever. It’s a true differentiator against others that might specialise in advertising or website development for example.  But to survive in an integrated world, the strongest agencies are building their own capabilities to amplify content through paid channels, develop social media strategies and produce content that works across all channels.
  1. Leveraged teams – led by senior (and expensive) experts and supported by less experienced (and less expensive) layers of juniors still has a place in procurement-driven engagements. But this place may be shrinking as clients look for new areas of specialist skill, new ways of pricing work and new expectations for the actual results of an agency engagement.  Some agencies are finding success with more ‘liquid’ teams and flexible structures to accommodate changing client expectations and budgets.
  1. The boundaries between ‘independent’ and ‘network’ offerings are blurring. There are advantages to both, but many independent agencies are building their own networks of like-minded consultancies to provide expertise and reach wherever their clients need it, while many network agencies are developing their own ‘boutique’ offers and specialist services to offer widely to clients of all sizes.
  1. The talent coming into PR is stronger than ever – we need to nurture it. Most markets report greater numbers of stronger applicants entering the agency business than ever before – welcome news for business models that rely almost entirely on human brain-power.  Once in, however, great hires are not always easy to hold, with many lured into corporate assignments or other industries.  Great agencies learn how to anticipate and meet the needs of the ‘millennial’ generation for more sustainable, dynamic teams.
  1. Data, analytics and measurement are finally here.  Really. One of the most discussed but least-realised topics in PR has been the need for stronger research and robust measurement.   We have all discussed, agreed and, mostly, ignored.  No longer.  The most innovative agencies see that easily accessible data, simple analytics and a client orientation to proven results can offer a competitive advantage, which they are putting to work.

Another great thing about being active in local, national or international industry organisations like ICCO is the opportunity to meet the people leading the way in these areas, and hearing first hand of their successes in ways you can apply to your agency and your own career.

I know – I have had the pleasure to meet and learn from the best, from my own agency and our fiercest competitors.

And now you can too – at the global ICCO summit in Milan this October. If any of these topics are vexing you and your teams (or if you have successful solution to share), you won’t have a better opportunity to interact with our industry’s leading thinkers and problem solvers than this one-of-a-kind conference.

ICCO Global Summit 2015: Click here to register today!

About ICCO

The International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO) is the voice of public relations consultancies around the world. The ICCO membership comprises national trade associations in 31 countries across the globe in Europe, Africa, Asia, the Americas and Australasia. Collectively, these associations represent over 2,000 PR firms.

Contact Binta Kristin Hammerich, ICCO Global General Manager

 

World PR Report: Global PR Industry Remains Bullish On Growth

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Research: Optimism & Attitudes

  • Global PR industry remains bullish on growth

  • Europe rebounds

  • Marketers continue to increase PR spend

Rankings: Top 10 | Top 250 | Fast Movers | Holding Groups/Networks
Analysis: Growth | Gender | CEO View

Public relations agency leaders from around the world remain generally bullish on the outlook for their business, with continuing optimism about the growth of the PR market in general and—to a slightly lesser extent—about their own agencies’ profitability.

The most significant shift saw less of a gap between the Americas and Asia (more optimistic in recent years) and Europe (where agency leaders have been inclined to pessimism).

Global optimism levels declined just a little from last year’s survey, with agency principals averaging a 7.62 (on a scale of one to 10) when asked whether they were optimistic about the future of public relations in their market (compared to 7.69 last year and 7.50 in 2013) and a 7.52 (down from 7.60) when asked whether they expected profits to increase this year.

12-OPTIMISMThe research—conducted by The Holmes Report and the International Communications Consultancies Organisation(ICCO) among nearly 500 PR agency principals as part of the World PR Report—found the gap between the Americas and Europe narrowing. Last year, North American agencies were considerably more optimistic than those in Western Europe (8.46 compared to 7.28) but this year optimism levels were more similar (7.89 for North America, 7.44 for Western Europe.

Once again, Latin America was the most optimistic region (7.90) and Eastern Europe the most pessimistic (7.16)—although again, the gap between the two narrowed significantly.

“For the past couple of years, Europe has lagged behind the rest of the world in part because of slower growth in the economy overall and in part because firms have not seen quite the same benefit from the social media revolution,” said Paul Holmes, founder and CEO of The Holmes Group. “But over the past 12 months, there has been an increase in optimism in Europe, in both the marketing and corporate communications realms.”

“Europe has undoubtedly been the most challenging region over the last few years. But from both this data, and what I see when visiting our European ICCO members, better times are definitely here, and growth and optimism are returning to European markets,” said David Gallagher, ICCO president and Ketchum EMEA CEO.

Globally, agencies are still broadly optimistic that marketers are increasing their spending on PR relative to other disciplines (6.05, down slightly from 6.19 the previous year). The biggest change was in Asia, which last year was most optimistic on this score (6.56) but this year was among the more pessimistic regions (5.76). North American agencies (6.33) remained the most optimistic about PR’s role in marketing.

16-MarketingSpend
Agencies are also optimistic about the willingness of clients to turn to PR for non-traditional services (a category that includes advertising, digital and social media support, and word-of-mouth marketing). Firms in the Americas and Asia (7.29) were most likely to report demand for such services, but Western European firms were significantly more optimistic on this score (6.95 compared to 6.65) than they were 12 months ago.

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Similarly, Western European firms were increasingly more optimistic about their ability to meet clients’ digital needs (6.47).

On the corporate front, there is still a gap between the Anglo-Saxon markets and Asia—all of which report that CEOs in their regions take corporate reputation seriously—and other regions. North American agency principals are most likely (7.69) to say CEOs take reputation seriously, while agency heads in Eastern Europe are less convinced (6.88).

“One of the great opportunities for PR practitioners is to convince clients of the direct impact corporate reputation has on corporate success”, said Francis Ingham, ICCO chief executive and PRCA director general.

Agency leaders in Asia, meanwhile, were most likely to agree that companies in their region take corporate social responsibility seriously (7.41) compared to those in Eastern Europe (6.32), who see companies as least interested in CSR.

 

Read more via Holmes Report 

TWO UK CONSULTANTS ARGUE THE CASE FOR A FRESH LOOK AT BUSINESS LEADERSHIP IN THE DECADER AHEAD

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BOOK TITLE: Reframing the Leadership Landscape: Creating a Culture of Collaboration.

In an uncertain and complex world leaders should not only respond to the speed of change but anticipate it. Sometimes it is unexpected, sometimes the signs are there but the dots are not joined.  Leaders need to adapt to a changing ecosystem in which the biggest challenges cross boundaries of the public, private and non-public sectors requiring closer collaboration.

Aggressive individualism is no longer a sustainable basis for companies needing to deliver social and economic value beyond narrow self-interest and short termism to balance shareholder stakeholder conflict.

Despite advances in business education in terms of supply and availability, organisational leaders cannot rest on their educational achievements they must become lifelong students.

Dr Roger Hayes (visiting fellow Greenwich University and fellow at Henley Business school) and Dr Reginald Watts onetime CEO of Burson Marsteller and who is a past chair of the PRCA and a Past President of CIPR:  LONDON, argue there are significant strands that need attention by ambitious managers  who seek the business heights. The tools are described in their book Reframing the Leadership Landscape: Creating a Culture of Collaboration in some detail and as they say “the tools are ready to be unpacked”. The only question is whether aspirant leaders are sensitive enough to read the signals and develop new skills to create the collaborative paradigm that will help them fill the leadership void.

Dr Roger Barker, Director of Corporate Governance at the UK Institute of Directors says in his Forward “the book provides business leaders with guidance and inspiration on how to nurture a culture which can help build trust in business”.  John Board, Dean of Henley Business School says “this well written book leads the way in promoting the changes required to maintain business growth and profitability”.

The book in its global emphasis outlines a new face for capitalism and launched 1st June 2015.

 

ICCO members get a 35% discount on this book by using the discount code: G15JLD35 when buying the book directly from the publisher here.

ICCO Global Summit: Message from the President

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DG

 

Dear PR agency leader,

Running a successful PR consultancy is not getting any easier, is it?

Clients want more for less. Good people are hard to find and harder to keep. Competition is relentless, and from unexpected quarters.  And technology continues to disrupt business models for clients and agencies alike.

Which is why we are pleased to present the 2015 ICCO Global Summit, Food For Thought – A PR Perspective, in Milan, Italy, 8-9 October in conjunction with the Milan EXPO 2015. Unique among international conferences in our field, the ICCO Summit is designed by PR agency leaders, for PR agency leaders, with the sole purpose of advancing the world of PR consultancy through education, networking and collaboration.

Whether you run an independent agency you started yourself or have responsibility for part of a large global network, the ICCO Global Summit is the best opportunity on the calendar to exchange ideas, make new contacts and learn from your colleagues from around the rapidly changing nature of PR agency management.  We’ve arranged for top leaders to share their perspectives in an open forum, with a program designed for plenty of networking.  And of course, opportunities to enjoy the splendours of beautiful Milan, a global centre for business, fashion and design, and home of the extraordinary Milan EXPO 2015.

You’ll want to book early to avoid disappointment.

See you in Milan!

David Gallagher, Ketchum CEO & ICCO President

 

REGISTER HERE TODAY!

 

 

 

ICCO Board of Management Meeting in Vienna

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Last month, senior PR leaders from around the world met in beautiful Vienna, to discuss ICCO’s global development. The bi-annual ICCO Board of Management Meeting was kindly hosted by our Austrian members PRVA. The Board also attended PRVA’s 40th Anniversary where the Federal President of Austria, Heinz Fischer, attended as the guest of honour.
ICCO is proud to be the global voice for the PR industry and we are looking forward to seeing you again in Milan for our Global Summit 8th-9th October 2015.

World PR Report 2015: Interpublic Agencies Make Top 10 Inroads (via Holmes Report)

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Weber Shandwick narrows the gap on Edelman at the top of our global PR rankings, as the World PR Report gears up to launch.

World PR Report 2015: Interpublic Agencies Make Top 10 InroadsInterpublic PR agencies Weber Shandwick and Golin have made significant advances among the world’s ten largest public relations firms, according to the 2015 World PR Report.​
​Top10_tableWeber Shandwick has narrowed the gap on Edelman at the top of the global PR agency rankings, growing almost 15% (on a reported basis, including the acquisition of Swedish PR firm Prime) to reach $800m in fee income. Edelman, by comparison, grew almost 9% to $812m.Golin, meanwhile, enters the top 10 for the first time in the agency’s history, jumping from 12th position last year after growing by more than 8% in 2014, to take ninth position ahead of Havas PR and Brunswick, which drops out of the top 10.Also of note was FleishmanHillard’s performance. The Omnicom Group firm returned to significant growth in 2014, improving fee income by 8.5% to crack the $600m barrier and consolidate its hold on third spot.

FleishmanHillard sister agency Ketchum also grew, by 4.5%, enough to see the latter PR firm overtake MSLGroup and land fourth position. MSLGroup declined almost 7%, thanks in part to a significant foreign exchange impact, because of the high proportion of revenues that it earns in euros.

Overall, we estimate that the top 10 global PR firms generated fee income of almost $4.8bn, a 5.4% increase on 2013. A fuller picture of global PR industry size will emerge next month, when the World PR Report unveils the annual ranking of the 250 biggest PR firms in the world, along with results of the definitive global survey of attitudes and trends among PR agencies, based on submissions from almost 400 PR firms from across the world.

The global rankings form part of the World PR Report, conducted in conjunction with Holmes Report and powered by Newlio.

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