The Indispensable Role of Today's Public Relations Pro

As we enter 2015, the importance of public relations today can not be underestimated. And for aspiring PR pros this is especially relevant to keep in mind.   Public relations is essential to a functioning of society and its enterprises. Public relations is crucial in building trust with people who have a vital stake in an organization’s operations and success. And public relations is an important mechanism in helping organizations, including governments, effectively carry out their missions and responsibilities.

Fasten your seatbelts. As the next generation of public relations professionals proceed with their academic studies in public relations, it is useful to consider these facts about the role of today’s practitioners.

• PR practitioners are no longer gatekeepers between their companies and the media. PR professionals are activists seeking to engage, enlighten, and energize an organization’s many stakeholders.

• PR professionals advocate not just for their organizations but also for their organization’s constituents and stakeholders, which adds the important role of presenting the stakeholders interests and views to management.

• PR practitioners also serve as strategic content developers and storytellers, helping their organizations formulate key messages that are resonant with the corporate culture and nature of the organization.

• PR practitioners help an organization build mutual trust by encouraging transparency and integrity throughout the organization.

• PR practitioners are counselors who actively advise and guide organizations in honestly communicating and behaving in the best interests of society and constituents such as customers, employees, shareholders, and the communities in which they operate.

• PR professionals are enablers and connectors, helping organizations stay grounded, stay human, and stay sensitive to the needs and desires of their communities. In essence, the role of today’s public relations practitioner is akin to being the conscience of the organization, being ever vigilant to ensuring that the organization is “doing the right thing.”

Looking for your dream PR job? Five ways to become the right candidate today.

Everyone dreams of that PR job - The One. Just imagine taking an elevator to your office where you fully immerse yourself in the brands, products or services you personally believe in. It doesn’t get any better than that.  But how do you work on getting there? Not only will the right preparation help you land the right job, you’ll also discover what that dream job truly is. 

After I finished my BA in Public Relations, I was sure I would work at a public relations agency.  That’s exactly what I did, but I soon realized that agency life just wasn’t for me. There were many other opportunities I hadn’t even considered because I was set on agency from the start. I finally found my fit as manager of the University Program at Cision, where I now help students uncover what they love most about PR.

Here are five ways you can start to prepare for your dream PR job:

1. Create an ePortfolio. 

Scrambling to assemble a perfect portfolio the night before an interview is the last thing you’ll want to do, not to mention juggling the demands of your current job.  Make sure your best work is within arm’s reach, so you can focus your pre-interview prep on learning more about the industry, the organization and the interviewer you will need to know about tomorrow.  

About.me is a non-traditional take on a bio. Platforms like Wordpress and Wix (which I use personally) also provide turnkey site templates where you can share portfolio items.

2. Update your LinkedIn profile - often.  

A burst of activity on your LinkedIn page shouldn’t send your current colleagues into a tailspin wondering why you’re suddenly “linking in” so much. Maintain a consistent presence on the site; doing so will not only increase the likelihood of showing up in the right person’s feed, but also shows how much you’re continuing to develop yourself professionally. And especially if you’re in – or think you’ll be in – the job market soon, don’t forget to ensure your profile is accessible.


3. Keep up with your network. 

Engaging with others in the industry is the best way to stay on top of trends. This isn’t about having three references “on request,” but about knowing what skills you’ll need to add value years from now.  

If creating a network from scratch is intimidating, start small. Attend alumni events where you can connect with peers, as well as more seasoned alums. Industry organizations like PRSA regularly host events where you can meet peers, potential mentors and future employers.

Many professionals forget that networking is about maintaining the relationships you already have. You wouldn’t want someone to reach out to you only on occasions when they need a favor, so don’t be that person yourself. Remember to drop a note to say hello, ask about their current work or find opportunities to simply shoot the breeze. If you stay plugged in to your network, when an opportunity comes up, you will be top-of-mind.

4. Challenge yourself to develop expertise. 

Ongoing professional development is vital to excelling in the field.  Look for avenues to enhance your expertise.  For example, Cision offers free CisionPoint access to universities. As a result, grads say their employers are impressed when they hit the ground running. But this isn’t so much about learning to use a tool of the trade – which is always good – but the demonstrated interest and commitment to PR as a practice. 

This applies no matter where you are in your career. You could be getting your accreditation (APR,) launching your organization’s first measurement dashboard or live-tweeting every free webinar you come across. There’s got to be something about your current job that you absolutely love, so dive right into it. 

Dedication to being personally exceptional in the industry makes a difference to future employers. 

5. Test the waters


If you’re looking for another job while employed, take advantage of your situation to develop new skills. If your current role is too prescriptive, branch out of your comfort zone and simply ask for different tasks. It’s the best way to enhance your skills and open new doors.

If you’re not given new or exciting projects, create something for yourself that will impress. That’s how Cision’s University Program came to be.  Hard work and extra hours created a brand new program that now introduces newcomers to public relations to one of the industry’s most widely-used and popular platforms (granted, I’m biased!), and an essential skillset. 

Taking the initiative on new projects proves to a future employer that you’re innovative and, most importantly, that you’re a self-starter. 

Even if you love your job, it’s worth starting to develop these habits. Consider what you hear again and again when you ask someone how they landed their current job – it happened before they knew it, when they weren’t even looking, when they least expected it. (And that’s no surprise - no one wants to leave a position after it has been “a long time coming!”)

If you love what you do, success and opportunities will follow. And, if you keep acquiring more and more experience along the way, before you know it, your dream job will have found you.

By Sonal Moraes, Product Specialist at Cision and manager of Cision’s University Program

How to Work Well With Others in the Workplace

From time to time the PR Job Coach invites guest posts from colleagues on related career management topics.  This guest post come from Tori R. Terhune and Betsy A. Hays, APR, Fellow PRSA, authors of the new book, “Life After College: 10 Steps to Build a Life You Love,”  Read it and leap!

As a young professional in the workplace, it can be difficult to know how best to deal with all the different personalities surrounding you. You’ve probably had plenty of experience with group projects and challenging professors, but at the end of the semester you get to leave, and – sometimes – never work with those people again. But in the working world, teams usually aren’t temporary.

So how do you best work with others and put your best foot forward? In Life After College: 10 Steps to Build a Life You Love, we outline many ways to work well with others in the workplace, and we wanted to share a few with you here.

Watch how you communicate: How you say something is just as important as what you say. Pay attention to your body language and tone when you speak with others to make your meaning and sentiment clear. And be careful when using written communication – nonverbal communication (a smile, wink or chuckle), isn’t easily transferrable into the written word, so you want to be sure they don’t misinterpret your words.

Under promise and over deliver: This is a fantastic rule of thumb in the workplace, as you never want to be the person who is behind deadline. You want to be ahead of your deadline with extra projects completed to beef up the overall product! For example, say you will complete A, B and C, and then work hard to make progress on D. When you are actually able to complete everything, you’ll look like a hero!

Be kind and positive: People love happy people, and when you are nice to others, they will want to be around you even more! This can do a lot for your career, as these folks will want to collaborate on projects with you and champion you to others in your company. Make it a priority to give a compliment or two daily, and you will influence others to help you on your path to your goals.

Don’t worry about credit or affirmation: While you are making the effort to compliment and affirm others, you may not receive the same courtesy. Do your best because you want to produce excellent work, not because you are looking for credit. If you constantly expect validation (which you may not receive), you will stress yourself out looking for value from others. Be secure in yourself and your abilities, and thrive off the few compliments and kudos you do receive.

With these few tips, you will be on your way toward working with others successfully! For more tips on managing your workplace, and many other strategies to thriving in post college life, pick up a copy of Life After College: 10 Steps to Build a Life You Love. If you have more tips to share, or if any of these have worked for you, let us know in the comments below!

Author bios:

Tori Randolph Terhune is an award-winning author, speaker, coach and public relations and social media professional. She is CEO of Brand Chicks (www.BrandChicks.com), an online branding consulting firm, and her experience varies from career coaching for recent college graduates to website and social media search engine optimization practices. She is a popular speaker to college groups and women’s conferences, as well as serving as a guest lecturer for many college courses over the last five years. She was recognized as the Outstanding PR Graduate by Fresno State in 2009 and as Rookie of the Year by PRSA Central California in 2008. You can reach Tori on Twitter @ToriRTerhune.

Betsy A. Hays, APR, Fellow PRSA, is an author, keynote speaker, and workshop presenter whose topics include personal and professional success, public relations excellence, effective communication, and landing your dream career. She is also the lead Public Relations Professor for the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism at California State University, Fresno -- a post she has held since 1999. Betsy is the faculty adviser for the Public Relations Student Society of America and Fresno State's student-run PR firm, Talk. Active in the PR world’s premiere professional organization (Public Relations Society of America) since 1998, she is currently the president-elect for the North Pacific District. You can reach Betsy at www.BetsyHaysPR.com or @BetsyHays (Twitter). 

Tori and Betsy's first book, “Land Your Dream Career: 11 Steps to Take in College," (http://amzn.to/1f7UPsF)  was listed in the American Library Association's Bests of 2013. Their second book, "Life After College: 10 Steps to Build A Life You Love" (http://amzn.to/1f7UV3L) was published in early May 2014. 

Advice for Newly and Soon-to-be Minted PR Pros - How to Thrive and Survive in PR

On Saturday, March 18, 2010, I had the honor and pleasure of speaking to about 80 newly and soon-to-be minted public relations professionals at a regional PR student conference at San Jose State University The theme of the conference was "Surviving in the Public Relations Industry." These energetic students, all members of the Public Relations Student Society of America, from San Jose State, Sacramento State and Cal Poly Pomona were eager to pick every morsel of wisdom from all who spoke. 

Upon the gracious invitation of Matt Malone, I agreed to speak about both Thriving and Surviving Public Relations. I spoke about the State of the PR Job Market, How you distinguish yourself, what are Characteristics and Skills of a PR Pro, Managing your online brand, and How best to approach a job search.

State of the PR Job Market  

• Still in the hole
• Be patient, it is a virtue
• The Market is starting to open up
• Locals have the advantage
• Social media an absolute  

How to distinguish yourself   

• The resume, it’s about accomplishments
• Can you be found in cyberspace?
• It’s the network – “Got network”?
• A Great Portfolio in Cyberspace (the evidence)
• What's your brand!  

Characteristics of a PR Pro

• Adept communicator
• Good writer
• Diplomatic
• Grace under pressure
• Jack of all trades
• Patient
• Presentation skills
• Short learning curve
• Team player
• Trend/Industry follower
• Solid understanding of business 

PR Pro Hard Skills  

• Corporate finance
• Economics
• Marketing
• Media relations
• Public relations
• Strategic planning
• Statistics
• Writing  
  

PR Pro Soft Skills 

• Credibility and integrity
• Flexibility
• Persuasiveness
• Articulate
• Analytical
• Team player
• Organized
• Objective
• Diplomatic
• Selling ability
• Think strategically  

Managing your online brand  

• Do you have brand?
• Do you appear on Google?
• Is your Facebook profile “pro”?
• Are your tweets instructive or destructive?
• Is your Linkedin Profile compelling
• Take ownership of your brand at sites like http://www.zoominfo.com/, www.spoke.com, www.linkedin.com,  www.google.com/profile , etc.
• Well craft your content
• If you blog, be passionate
• If you tweet, be smart   

How best to approach a job search  

• Job search is a job, treat it that way
• Use the available resources: e.g. http://prjobcoach.com  
• Have a compelling resume and cover letter
• Customize the resume and letter to the spec
• Be found on Google
• Network like crazy, but don’t ask for a job
• Pay it back and pay it forward
• Go Pro bono and build your portfolio and resume – Just Do It
• Thank everyone regardless of how large or small the help!

In thinking about your career in public relations and how to thrive consider these realities: 

• You are a product of your education
• You are a product of your environment
• You are the sum of your experiences

So carefully craft your experiences and make the best of the opportunities before you!