From increased communication budgets to higher salaries, the PR industry continues to enjoy a boom market. And now the Foundation for Public Affairs releases a study that reconfirms this: heads of corporate public affairs departments in the U.S. are reeling in average compensation packages of $230,000-plus.
Most professionals specializing in public affairs or other disciplines (for instance, community relations or state government liaisons) are landing compensation packages that are between 4 and 7 percent higher than their base salaries, according to survey results.
Overall, compensation continues to provide a window into the value being attached to the communicator's role. In fact, the foundation's conclusions are consistent with PR NEWS' 1998 annual salary survey which shows that compensation benefits had jumped about 7 percent over last year. (That figure includes both corporate and agency salaries, while the foundation's study includes only corporate slots.)
Foundation questionnaires were mailed in May to 1,107 U.S. companies, with 122 returning the forms. The study focuses on a laundry list of criteria, but mostly indicates noticeable surges between base salaries and overall compensation.
This is the first year the foundation has requested increases over base salaries to benchmark what public affairs professionals and other similarly-ranked communicators make, says Leslie Swift-Rosenzweig, executive director.
The survey also indicates that communicators operating in public affairs and related disciplines are, overall, earning heftier incomes for the 1998-1999 period, but three areas are driving those numbers when compared to last year's (1996-1997) compensation packages. They are federal government relations, community relations and state government relations.
Ironically, a decline was noted in several areas. One of those was the top corporate contributions position, a statistic that rivals what another recent study indicates about the importance of corporate contributions.
We're chalking that difference up to the wide gap that exists between those who actually are given the title of corporate contributions manager and those with variant titles under which these responsibilities fall. (PAG, 202/872-1750)
| Looking Back: Public Affairs Compensation Packages... Now Vs. Then | |||
| Positions | 1996-1997 Survey Cash Compensation | 1998-1999 Survey Cash Compensation | % Change |
| Top Public Affairs Position | $230,993 | $230,686 | -0.1% |
| Fed. Gov. Relations Pos. | $173,725 | $194,587 | 12% |
| Community Relations Pos. | $129,919 | $134,615 | 4% |
| Corporate Contributions Pos. | $120,407 | $110,583 | -8% |
| State Gov. Relations Pos. | $130,280 | $138,580 | 6% |
| Regional Manager of State Gov. Relations | $116,302 | $115,316 | -1% |
| State Gov. Relations Rep. | $99,922 | $93,672 | -6% |
| Source: Foundation for Public Affairs, 202/872-1750 | |||
| Corporate Public Affairs Compensation Results of New Survey | |||
| Positions | Base Salary (Mean) | Base Salary + Short-Term Bonus (Mean) | Percent Base Salary Increase in 1997 (Mean) |
| Top Public Affairs Position | $160,388 | $230,686 | 6.4% |
| Top Federal Government Relations Position( non- Washington office) | $138,963 | $194,587 | 5.6% |
| Top Community Relations Position | $103,496 | $134,615 | 5.4% |
| Top Corporate Contributions Position | $88,557 | $110,583 | 6.7% |
| Top State Government Relations Position | $113,388 | $138,580 | 6.5% |
| Regional Mgr. of State Government Relations | $100,600 | $115,316 | 6.6% |
| State Government Relations Representative | $82,643 | $93,672 | 4.9% |
| Source: The 1998-1999 Corporate Public Affairs Compensation Survey, conducted for the Foundation for Public Affairs by Hay Management Consultants. | |||