One of the PR industry's most chronic problems is the old bait and switch. To wit, PR agency heads meet the potential client and, after a successful dog-and-pony show, get the
business. But when it comes time to execute the campaign the agency assigns the account to the junior-level executives, who are unprepared and fail to deliver. The client ends up
firing the agency and (often) the junior-level executives opt for a career change.
But when you consider the entire employment picture of the PR profession, the bait and switch may be the least of it for PR managers and directors.
For starters, there is a woeful lack of training among entry-level employees (which puts many of them on the defensive and, eventually, out the door). There's also a
significant gap throughout the middle-manager level, which compounds the difficulty of building a proper foundation for the future. And just as businesses are boosting their
demand for more specialized professional PR services, like healthcare and finance, the profession is failing to cultivate such practices.
Toss in a woeful lack of diversity in the business and you get a 40% churn rate on the PR agency side, according to Mike Marino, a New York-based human resources consultant
whose clients include PR firms throughout the U.S. and Canada. "When I ask clients what their 'People Plan' is, they turn to me and say, 'What do you mean?'" Marino says. For many
PR departments, "people are off the radar."
Putting people first was the overriding theme of a PR News-sponsored Webinar last week titled, "Training and Retaining Talent in PR." Although hiring has been picking
up on both the corporate and agency sides of the business, the rub in PR has never been hiring but keeping employees, particularly at the agency level.
"I wouldn't say it's a luxury but the corporate side has a better infrastructure to train people and develop the talent," says Maryanne Rainone, senior vp/managing director
of Heyman Associates (New York), one of the largest executive search firms specializing in corporate communications.
"On the agency side, the marketing holding companies are squeezing their PR agency execs who are busting their behinds just trying to make their numbers. It's a lot tougher,"
Rainone adds. And with demand increasing for "billable" hours, younger PR execs who can't handle the pressure are simply burning out.
During the Webinar, speakers from the corporate, agency and human resources fields chimed in on how PR execs can improve job retention.
Cheryl Procter-Rogers, corporate affairs director for HBO in 11 states in the Midwest (and president-elect of the PRSA), says one of the most pressing
challenges for PR pros is finding people who are truly passionate about PR. "Managers have to enhance their interviewing techniques," she says. One way of doing that is making
sure that the people doing the hiring look outside of themselves. As Marino put it, "make sure you don't replace Mary with another Mary."
Beyond that, the profession has to fuel the appeal for younger executives by, for example, integrating them into the process at the earliest possible time, having a better
appreciation for the life-work balance and developing a timeline for job growth (see table).
Ian Lipner, who manages the Washington, D.C. office of LEWIS PR and is the founder of YoungPRPros.com, said PR departments "should make their candidates jump
through rings of fire to get the job and not just answer an ad."
Lipner, who is well patched into the younger PR scene, says PR departments have to engage newbies and establish firm mentoring relationships if they are to succeed. Reducing
probationary periods and making benefits available immediately can also go a long way.
On the other hand, "you have to build-in expectations for people who want to be there rather than people seeing what they're going to get out of" the experience and decide to
move on.
Contacts: Ian Lipner; 202.349.3866, [email protected]; Mike Marino, 212.980.1859, [email protected]; Maryanne Rainone, 212.784.2717, [email protected];
Cheryl Proctor-Rogers, 847.318.5156, [email protected].
Separating The Wheat From The Chaff
Here are a few exercises to get a fix on whether the newbies you're interviewing are prepared for a career in PR.
- Make them write for you on the spot.
- Make them pitch for you on the spot.
- Ask them about the initiative that went wrong.
- Inquire about your company.
- Get a read on their sense of entitlement.
- Find out what they're doing to hone their craft.