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Lithuanian PR Association Joins ICCO

KIA, the PR association for Lithuania, has joined ICCO as the 42nd PR association member, bringing an 82nd country into membership.

KIA is an established PR association with an excellent tradition of industry development, codes of ethics and an active membership base. Arturas Jonkus, Partner at Agency 1323, and President of KIA will join the ICCO Board of Management to represent the interests of Lithuanian members.

 

ICCO Chief Executive Francis Ingham commented:

“I am delighted to be welcoming KIA and their members in Lithuania into ICCO. At such a turbulent time in Europe, it is vital that the international PR community works together for the collective benefit of the industry and stands up for our shared belief in the critical importance of free speech. Our growth during this period is testament to the growing confidence in the value of global membership bodies like ICCO”.

Arturas Jonkus said:

“We are very pleased KIA has joined ICCO. To gain access to international services and networks will be invaluable for our members. We also look forward to contributing insight, ideas and intelligence from Lithuania into the international industry dialogue and to working with other ICCO members to improve global standards. It is a vital time for the PR industry to pull together and collaborate on ethics, standards, and other critical issues ”.

CMS More Accessible with 5 New Auditors Added to Roster

For more than 20 years, PRCA and ICCO have offered CMS audits framework for independent certifications to help agencies be accountable and to improve their business processes. Customers’ growing demand for trust and accountability is fuelling a desire from clients to work with more quality certified agencies.

The growing international demand for certifications has, in turn required ICCO to actively grow its pool of approved auditors, making the standard more globally acknowledged and accessible in alternative languages. The most recent a CMS auditor development course took place in Vienna from 16th to 18th February, hosted at the premises of The Skills Group. Organised by ICCO’s audit partner organisation AgencyExperts.org

Five distinguished PR experts and ICCO board members have successfully passed a state-accredited auditor exam under the auspices of the inspection organisation TÜV, comparable to BSI or ISO.

Now AgencyExperts has a growing pool of international CMS auditors who can be booked to run quality certifications in communications agencies and in in-house comms departments. The newly certified CMS auditors are all in the leadership teams of their national PR associations and experienced agency managers:

Alexander Dourchev, Bulgaria
Dimitris Roulias, Greece
Patrik Schober, Czech Republic
Andras Sztaniszlav, Hungary

(Photo: from left to right, incl. Anita Mohl, CEO AgencyExperts, Juergen H. Gangoly)

The new auditors are enlarging ICCO’s and AgencyExperts existing auditor team with experts from 11 different countries, additionally including Austria, Germany, Egypt, Switzerland, and the UK. With the PR associations of Ireland and Turkey also processing audits.

The next CMS auditor development course shall take place in autumn 2022. If you would like more information about gaining CMS accreditations or becoming a certified auditor, contact rob.morbin@iccopr.com

Stats show almost half of PR professionals to resume international business travel

Almost half (44%) of PR professionals around the world plan to resume international business travel in the next six months, according to new research published by the Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA) and the International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO).

168 CEOs, Directors, and Department Heads took part in the latest PRCA and ICCO quarterly Confidence Tracker, which assesses market confidence in public relations around the world.

The study – conducted by Question & Retain – evidences a strong appetite for the resumption of international travel, with just under a third (29%) of senior professionals planning to travel internationally for business within the next three months.

Market confidence holds firm

The study also reveals impressive levels of confidence amongst PR and communications leaders. More than eight out of ten (84%) respondents said they were ‘confident’ or ‘very confident’ in the future of their organisation. This represents a 20% year-on-year increase; the same study carried out in October 2020 revealed 64% felt they were ‘confident’ or ‘very confident’. The figure was as low as 38% in April 2020 at the outset of the pandemic.

PRCA Director General and ICCO Chief Executive Francis Ingham MPRCA said:

“Confidence across every global region is high. Many of our members have fared exceptionally well – new businesses is being driven by a growing demand for a diverse range of retained and project-based communication services. It’s also very encouraging to see so many of our members expecting to travel again in the near future.”

ICCO announces new Regional Presidents

ICCO is pleased to announce that five Regional Presidents have been appointed, who will represent the recently formed Regional Boards covering Europe, Americas, Middle East, Africa and Asia.
 
The following candidates were elected by the ICCO Global Board of Management:
 
Europe: Juergen H. Gangoly, Managing Partner, The Skills Group; Vice President, Public Relations Verband Austria (PRVA)
 
Americas: Aaron Kwittken, Global Chairman & CEO, Kwittken; Board Director, PR Council
 
Middle East: Loretta Ahmed, CEO, Middle East, Africa & Turkey, Grayling; Chairman, PRCA MENA
 
Africa: Bridget Von Holdt, Executive Director, Glasshouse Communication Management; representative of the Public Relations Institute of Southern Africa (PRISA)
 
Asia Pacific: Nitin Mantri, CEO, Avian Media; President, Public Relations Consultants Association of India (PRCAI)
 
The Regional Presidents will join the Global Executive Committee, comprised of the Global President, Vice President, Treasurer, immediate Past President, the Regional Presidents, and the Chief Executive.
 
The new structure, announced at the Global ICCO PR Summit in Oxford in September, aims to ensure that all regionals, organisations and individuals represented by ICCO can create and develop their own voice for the benefit of the regional and global PR and communications industry.
 
Commenting on the new structure, ICCO President Maxim Behar said: “All regions from now on will be represented in the ICCO Global Executive Committee. But not only that; elected Regional Presidents are great professional colleagues and widely known PR experts and we do believe that their input into ICCO’s management will be significant. We all look forward to working together to strengthen ICCO’s position as the largest global PR community.”
 
Juergen H. Gangoly, newly appointed Regional President – Europe said: “With ICCO’s new regional structure in Europe, we have the goal to further grow the organisation and make the voice of Europe’s PR industry even more heard by the public. We will intensify ICCO’s relations to European institutions and to partner organisations in the wider communications industry all over Europe. Supporting cross-border co-operation amongst our members from training and educational activities to business and information services will be part of ICCO’s working programme in Europe for the coming years.”
 
Aaron Kwittken, ICCO Regional President – Americas said: “I am looking forward to working with my colleagues around the world to better promote cross-border collaboration and conversation around a compelling point of view on our role in an increasingly digital world without agency borders.”
 
Loretta Ahmed, ICCO Regional President – Middle East said: ““As we continue to evolve our agencies and what we do on behalf of our clients, we must also do so with one eye on the rest of the world. That connection, especially for a region emerging as fast as the Middle East is critical. I’m honoured to be elected President for ICCO in the Middle East. Having lived in the region for four years I continue to see communications consultancies delivering world class campaigns and ICCO provides another platform for recognition on all that the Middle East PR sector is achieving.”
 
Bridget Von Holdt, ICCO Regional President – Africa said: “Africa tends to be the forgotten continent, yet is identified as a focal growth point for so many international companies. As the Regional President, I will use the ICCO platform to position Africa and the agencies represented on the continent as strategic partners, as innovative and of course as the experts within the region.”
 
Nitin Mantri, representing Asia Pacific as Regional President, said: “ICCO has been making giant strides in elevating the public relations profession, and now with the regional bodies there will be greater consistency in communications standards across the world. The aim would be to encourage discussions on the issues facing the industry and sharing the best practices across this region to elevate ICCO’s role in Global public relations.”
 
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, agencies and networks in 48 countries across the globe in Europe, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, the Americas and Australia. Collectively, these associations represent some 2,500 PR firms.

www.iccopr.com

ICCO President in Oslo: PR is the most challenging business in the world

“Public relations has been turned on its head, only in the past couple of years and has became the most challenging business in the world”, ICCO President Maxim Behar said at the recent international conference “Oslo PR Talks”. Behar was a keynote speaker at the conference, officially supported by ICCO and PRCA.

“These days to practice public relations is a great challenge and it requires very special qualities from our teams – fast decision making, story telling in a very short and catchy way, but also vision to the future and predictions of what will be the next means of communication. The challenges come mainly from the fact also that the three main elements of public communications – advertising, public relations and digital – are merging very fast and we must prove our place as leaders in the future joint business”, Behar said.

“Oslo PR Talks” is the first conference of its kind organised by the The P World. “We were happy to cooperate with ICCO on this significant project, as we also did earlier this year in Reykjavik, Iceland. Our Oslo participants were very pleased by the motivating keynote speech of Mr. Behar”, said Kosta Petrov, CEO of The PR World.

More than 200 participants joined the event, including speakers Mary Jo Jacoby, US Presidential Adviser; Malena Cutuli, Global Head of Brand of Communications for Shell; Donald Steel, former spokesperson of BBC; John Shields, current Director of Communications of BBC and many others.

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 48 countries across the globe in Europe, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, the Americas and Australia. Collectively, these associations represent some 2,500 PR firms.
www.iccopr.com

International judging panel announced for ICCO Global Awards

ICCO is proud to announce the judges for the ICCO Global Awards 2016; the global showcase for the most effective PR from the world’s most talented practitioners.

The awards are the only internationally recognised awards programme purely based on effectiveness, measurement, results and impact for the global PR industry, and supported by PR trade associations representing 48 countries worldwide.

Entries are judged by an elite international panel of top PR practitioners who will consider excellence and effectiveness of PR work submitted from across the world.

David Gallagher, co-President of the jury said: “Much of the discussion in PR about earned, paid or owned media, or the changing nature of social media, or the importance of creative storytelling, or any of the other myriad topics we discuss, are largely academic. The thing that matters: results. What happened as a result of our activity in terms of behaviour, attitude or ideas? That’s what the ICCO awards emphasize – and that’s what makes them unique.”

 

ICCO Global Awards International Jury:

Co-President: Renee Wilson, President, PR Council (USA)

Co-President: David Gallagher, President, Growth and Development, International, Omnicom Public Relations Group (Global)

Poli Stuart-Lacey, Head of Communications, UK Government (UK)

Michael Schröder, Global President, IPREX (Global)

Michael Frohlich, CEO, EMEA, Ogilvy Public Relations (EMEA)

Victoria Wagner, CEO, Ketchum Germany (Germany)

Denise Kaufmann, CEO, Ketchum London (UK)

Lucio Bergamaschi, Director General, Below Communications and Media Relations (Italy)

Jean-Leopold Schuybroek, Chairman, Interel Belgium (Belgium)

Andrey Barannikov, CEO, SPN Communications (Russia)

John Ehiguese, Founder & CEO, Mediacraft Associates (Nigeria)

Dimitris Roulias, CEO, Out of the Box PR (Greece)

Sharon Murphy, Deputy CEO, Wilson Hartnell (Ireland)

Jürgen Gangoly, Managing Partner, The Skills Group (Austria)

Emine Cubukcu, Managing Director, Ogilvy Public Relations Istanbul (Turkey)

Kresten Schultz Jorgensen, Managing Partner, LEAD Agency (Denmark)

Bridget von Holdt, Executive Director, Glasshouse Communication Management (South Africa)

Grzegorz Szczepanski, CEO, Hill+Knowlton Strategies Poland (Poland)

Andras Sztaniszlav, Senior Consultant & Communications Strategist, PersonaR (Hungary)

Jelena Sarenac, Director of Corporate Communications, Henkel (Serbia)

Michaela Benedigova, Director and Partner, SEESAME Communication Experts, (Slovakia)

Katya Dimitrova, Managing Partner, Interpartners (Bulgaria)

Stian Lyberg, Consultant & Founder Partner, PR-operatørene (Norway)

Marina Haluzan, Information and PR Adviser, Croatia Control (Croatia)

Tatevik Pirumyan, Founder, Managing Director, Communication Management Group (Armenia)

Sari-Liia Tonttila, Managing Director, Ahjo Communications (Finland)

Gary Muddyman, Managing Director and CEO, Conversis (UK)

Aaron Kwittken, CEO, Kwittken Communications (USA)

Sconaid McGeachin, President & CEO, Africa, Middle East & Turkey, Hill+Knowlton Strategies (MENA)

Tanya Hughes, President, SERMO Communications (Global)

Isabelle Wolf, CEO & Founder, Kingcom (France)

Loretta Ahmed, CEO Middle East, Turkey & Africa, Grayling (MENA)

Barry Leggetter, CEO, AMEC (Global)

George McGregor, Managing Partner, Interel UK (UK)

Aye Verckens, Managing Director, Recognition PR (Australia)

Rakesh Thukral, Managing Director, Edelman India (India)

 

KEY DATES:

Final entry deadline: 02 November 2016

Shortlist Announced: 17 November 2016

Awards Night (St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel, London): 01 December 2016

 

For more information on entries the awards or attending the awards night, visit awards.iccopr.com.

Executive Summary – World PR Report 2016

Article by Francis Ingham, Chief Executive of ICCO

The ICCO & PRWeek World PR Report is the definitive analysis of where the global PR and comms industry stands today; how it has been performing over the past year; and what it predicts will happen in the next few. Drawing on the breadth and depth of ICCO’s membership – 37 national associations, operating in 48 countries, and representing more than 2,500 agencies – it is a vital tool in understanding our industry.

What are the headlines?

Agency heads are optimistic. On a scale of 1-10, there is a global average of exactly 7. The most optimistic markets are the UK (8.1), and the Middle East (8.0); the least are Latin America (5.9), and Africa (6.0).

And they are expecting an increase in profitability, with a score of 6.2. Leading the pack is North America (7.2), followed by the UK at precisely 7. At the other end, we have Latin America again (5.2), and Western Europe (5.7).

Both of those findings deserve celebration, given the at times tempestuous and uncertain state of the world economy. What is driving this performance? I would highlight three factors, which we have seen for the past few years now, and which are remarkably constant region-by-region.

The first is chief executives taking corporate reputation seriously. Quite simply, the business community around the world is more aware than ever before of the fact that their most important asset is their reputation.

The second is that marketers are taking their spend away from other disciplines, and diverting it into more effective mediums of PR and comms. And the third is that clients are increasingly asking public relations firms to provide non-traditional services.

Those last two points amount to one incontrovertible trend – in an increasingly integrated marketing world, PR’s nimbleness, insight, and creativity is beating the competition.

What have been the main practice areas of growth?

Four stand out head and shoulders above the rest – digital comms; corporate reputation; marcomms; and public affairs. And when agency heads are asked to predict which sectors will drive growth over the coming years, they name exactly those four again.

Obviously, there are variations by region, reflecting different local priorities, and different levels of market maturity. But the message is clear – those areas have driven growth in the past, and are set to do so again in the future. Looked at by sector, we again see four key areas of growth now and in the future – technology; consumer; healthcare; and financial and professional services. And underpinning all of this behaviour is the crucial role PR and comms agencies now play in social media and community management, and in creating content across the whole range of media – areas where wise agencies are making significant investment. So far, so encouraging.

But what of the challenges faced by the industry?

It will come as no surprise that two perennial ones are right up there – meeting profit margins, and handling general economic conditions. The first is a symptom of PR’s inability to charge appropriately for the value it delivers – former ICCO chairman Richard Houghton’s regular lament that ‘Fridays are free’; the second is something over which we have no control.

The area where we certainly have the ability to make a difference is talent. In six of the nine world regions, it tops the bill as the key challenge. In fact, only in Asia does talent not rank in the top three. Although our industry continues to power ahead, its growth is being hindered by our failure to attract and then to retain the very best.

Within that challenge are two specific areas of concern: hiring senior staff, and attracting people from non-traditional background. The latter is of particular concern to ICCO. If agencies keep on recruiting the same type of person, with the same type of background, they are automatically excluding themselves from large parts of the market. The more varied teams are, the abler they are to deliver excellent services to the widest possible range of clients.

I would make two final observations: First, and it is a point made by several contributors from different regions, the industry has reached a happy place of maturity. Social media and content may be the biggest areas of growth, but there is still room for the older skills of PR and comms, such as media relations. And that place exists in established and developing markets.

There is, quite simply, a home for all branches of our profession.

Second, what a brilliant time to be in this industry. Even in difficult economic circumstances, PR and comms agencies are profitable, growing, and optimistic.

How would I sum up the future? Bright. And getting brighter.

Download a free copy of the ICCO & PRWeek World PR Report 2016 here

 

Trends transforming global PR

Article by Tanya Hughes, President, SERMO Communications

This summer, we locked SERMO’s 15 lifestyle PR agencies from all over the world in a conference room in Milan for three days to talk about transformation.  Transformation of clients’ and brands’ needs, of our services, of digital influence, of retail and technology, of our staff makeup. There was plenty of inspiration and plenty of handwringing. In the end we agreed that ‘only the paranoid survive’ and that that’s a good thing. Here are outtakes from the conference – the trends we think are transforming global PR:

  1. Every company is a digital company

Generalist PR skills such as writing, media relations, event management and strategic planning are still core competencies. But now that digital content is the new ‘me time’, every agency is piling in to fill the space. Specialist skills in multimedia content development, SEO, social and digital and analytics are now critical ingredients in the arsenal of progressive PR agencies. To find these digital experts, SERMO agencies are recruiting from media, advertising and production agencies. Nota Bene in Spain have recruited Art Directors, Online Marketing Managers and IT/Programming Managers and Mojo PR in Dubai have a new Head of Creative Content who’s highly connected to filmmakers and other producers, training agency staff in video production and editing.

  1. Keep millennials happy

How to keep our people happy, especially ‘millennials’, was a hot topic this year. Millennials (those born between the 1980s and 2000s) need targeted attention. They have grown up in a society thriving on rapid technological advancement. They expect to be able to access the latest technology at work. Upgrade or die! For them, change is the constant, and they demand this from an employer – they want their careers to progress quickly. According to a report produced by PwC Australia, 71% of millennials are dis-engaged at their jobs as a result of this sense of entitlement. SERMO agencies know that human capital is their biggest asset so they’re investing in training, tailored benefits and new perks to help recruit and retain the very best talent. Talk PR in the UK have introduced a mentoring programme, RSVP in Singapore hold weekly yoga classes in the office to improve staff’s health and wellbeing and Tomorrowland Group in Australia have introduced a quarterly reset day (extra holiday day every quarter) to help their people maintain a work/life balance. All report improved retention and productivity.

  1. The seismic shift in retail

Retail, and fashion retail in particular, is going through enormous structural change. From the push for change in the now outdated two season fashion calendar, to the shift in consumer buying habits facilitated by digital and mobile technology. We heard from expert e-commerce speakers. POPSUGAR talked about the challenges of co-creating content for brands that will grab the eight second attention span of Gen Z, the domination of mobile and the holy grail of marketplace sites – seamless check out. While Yoox said their customers know what they want and come to them to shop, not for content! At the sharp end of technology, Metail are creating virtual fitting rooms that will improve and personalise service and cut returns. In the real world, bricks and mortar retail is moving toward creating experiences that can’t be replicated online.

All of which has implications for PR – the lifecycle of fashion/lifestyle stories is shorter and requires an integrated approach across content and channels, from influencer marketing to creative execution. It’s all about driving sales across all consumer touchpoints. Working with digital influencers, in particular, now drives huge sales for brands and retailers, often resulting in completely sold-out pieces.

  1. Redefining influence

Influence is not what it used to be. It’s more complex and dynamic and, above all, digital. But the digitisation of influence, doesn’t diminish PR’s core competence – harnessing influence through relationships. What it does mean is that working with digital influencers and KOLs and creating compelling digital content requires constant innovation – Negri Firman in Italy has set up a creative content arm called NFLAB, Flare in Hong Kong set-up a social and digital PR Hub in summer 2015 which now contributes over 33% of their total revenue, Tomorrowland Group in Australia and RSVP in Singapore have launched Talentland and RSVP@Talent (respectively) to manage the profiles of experts, digital influencers and creators. SERMO agencies like Adventi in China are also offering integration of paid, owned, shared and earned media and broadening their portfolio from working with digital influencers and paid amplification to programmatic advertising.

  1. Global media vacuum

Condé Nast Italia impressed us all with their innovative work with brands and co-created, extraordinary content. But what they can’t do, and what no major publishing house can do, is press a ‘button’ for global reach. There’s really no such thing as truly global media. We know this from our work with global clients such as Pernod Ricard and Procter & Gamble. It occurred to us that we could bring each of our market’s local influencers together, connected by the network partners, to create tangible global online reach for our clients’ brands. And at the same time, help influencers extend their global reach. So our next step is to make the SERMO Digital Influencer Index interactive, live and a service for clients and influencers – watch this space.

The ICCO Global Award Entries: The Quest To Demonstrate True Effectiveness

Article by Renee Wilson, president, PR Council; co-chair of ICCO Global Awards jury

Another awards program? Oh my…….but wait! – here is a chance to get some deserved recognition for your team’s stellar work, while helping educate the global marketing communications community on the power of public relations.

Our industry is going through somewhat of an identity crisis redefining who we are, and what we do, at an incredible pace.  There are many types of different discipline agencies that claim to know how to ‘earn influence’ or ‘earn media’ in a way that public relations can, with credibility and relevance.  However, our discipline is truly an art and a science, and operates in some similar ways but in a lot of unique ways too.

The ICCO Global Awards is a great opportunity for our industry to showcase the way in which public relations campaigns achieve real results, through powerful outcomes.  It is the measurement of changes in attitudes, opinions, and behavior (eg,votes, shares, sales etc.) that truly helps underscore the effectiveness of our campaigns, and what the ICCO Global Awards are all about.

The Cannes Lions Festival and Awards is very much rooted in creativity, and we love it for that, while the ICCO Global Awards punctuates the campaign “effectiveness.” That’s not to say that you don’t need a creative entry to win the ICCO Global Awards too, but proving how you help achieve your clients’ objectives with something measureable and tangible, not just opinion, is where your focus should be when entering for an ICCO Global Award.

Additionally, could this be the year we come up with the best collection of global campaign entries that demonstrate the powerful effectiveness that public relations offers?  I think it could.  Let’s challenge ourselves and our industry to do it!  Then, let’s use these ICCO Global Award winning campaign entries as calling cards to clients all over the world to better demonstrate what our discipline is capable of when it comes to effectiveness.

In my role as president of the PR Council, I talk to many leaders from CMOs and marketing clients, to communication directors, about the power of PR.  In order for them to continue to prioritize PR within their organizations with supporting resource, and in some cases, start to prioritize, we need to do a better job of explaining our effectiveness.  It’s that simple.  And, it’s that complex.

If you listen to the trade media that cover our industry and the industry pundits, some feel that we are moving too slowly in doing this.  The observation – (whether you agree or not) – is perhaps we are not retooling as quickly as other disciplines in terms of our talent, infrastructure and campaign thinking.  Let’s prove them wrong!  Let’s show the remarkable work our teams produce.  Let’s enter the ICCO Global Awards and use these entries as our industry calling cards.

For more information on the ICCO Global Awards visit: awards.iccopr.com

Global Women in PR Gender Pay Gap Survey

Thursday September 29th 2016 – Leading international networking group GWPR (Global Women in PR) revealed today at the ICCO Global Summit, the results from their very first gender pay gap survey of men and women working in the Global PR industry. Data collected from 12 countries worldwide revealed a staggering £12,600 pay gap between the salaries of men and women.

The survey also provided an important insight into work/life balance and working practices, that might provide a clue as to why more women are not better represented at the top of a profession where they make up the majority of the workforce.

The survey, conducted by leading research company OnePoll on behalf of GWPR, revealed an average global PR salary of £57,200, with men earning on average 19% more at £67,600 compared to women at £55,000. Whilst salaries are very similar at a junior level in PR; when it comes to more senior roles it is a very different picture. For example, a male in-house Board PR Director earns an average salary of £110,000, compared to his female equivalent on £97,000 – a £13,000 pay gap.

The survey also showed that more than a third of men (36%) working in PR agencies are at board director level, compared to only 16% of women who have broken through the glass ceiling.

When considering asking for a promotion or pay rise, 21% of men were very confident in doing so, unlike women (10%). Further gender differences surrounded balancing childcare and work commitments. This was described as more challenging by women (78%) than men (58%). The sharing of domestic chores was fairly evenly split with 47% claiming to divide the chores, although 41% of the women surveyed believed they did more than half.

In today’s connected world one of the most surprising facts to emerge was the lack of opportunity to work from home. 70% were not allowed to work from home on a weekly basis, with 15% never allowed to do this. The average working week for a PR is 45 hours and an encouraging two-thirds believe they have a good work-life balance.

Commenting on the survey findings GWPR Co-Founders Angela Oakes and Susan Hardwick said: “The findings revealed a much higher pay gap than perhaps anticipated and considering the world in which we now operate, with 24hour access to technology, it is hard to see why there cannot be more flexibility in the workplace.

“Flexibility is very important, but so too is looking at the skill sets that women need to help them reach the top. Business training and tackling confidence issues are two key areas worthy of attention. Retaining talented women so that the boardroom has a better gender balance makes sound business sense. As many studies have shown – a balanced boardroom improves business performance.

“Current working practices have not led to any significant changes in the gender pay gap over the past decade and Deloitte’s report revealed last week that if things continue on the current path ‘Women will not be earning the same as men until 2069!’ We don’t think we can wait that long…..we need to act now to make the necessary changes.”

Francis Ingham, Director General of the PRCA and CEO of ICCO announced an important initiative last month that includes gender pay gap reporting in its kitemark accreditation for UK consultancies for the first time – this should be a global initiative.

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 48 countries across the globe in Europe, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, the Americas and Australia. Collectively, these associations represent some 2,500 PR firms.
www.iccopr.com

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