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Agency vs in-house
It’s common to hear people vigorously outline the benefits of either in-house or agency roles as THE answer to junior career development. Having experienced both sides of the fence, I would recommend both. The balance of the experience may vary, with agency giving breadth, and in-house depth, but both experiences will ultimately rest on the attitude of the person going into the role. How committed are you to seeking out the views of a wide range of direct and indirect colleagues? How much effort are you going to put into developing your skills beyond that your employer provides? How much, at the end of the day, do you want it?Alex Pearmain, Director, Digital&Social, Brands2Life, @AlexPearmain
Do I need a PR degree?
I’ve been teaching public relations in universities for ten years, yet even I’ll admit that a degree is not enough (and a PR degree is still not essential). A degree indicates something. It should indicate curiosity and an ability to learn, and this is easily assessed at interview by asking about current affairs (or sport or popular culture). Good candidates should also have gained some work experience. They will also have the right attitude and have something to show for their time outside the classroom. Have they written for online magazines? Do they have their own blog? What about their presence on social networks?Richard Bailey, PR Lecturer and Editor of Behind the Spin Magazine. @behindthespin
Skills PR employers value
The smart students that quickly find jobs are the ones that start thinking about their future employment long before they leave college or graduate. The Internet has given rise to a huge variety of publishing tools and sharing platforms that anyone can use to develop an online network and profile. I’d urge you to find a media format and platform that you’re comfort with and start creating and sharing content about your future profession. That might be a WordPress blog, images on Flickr, or video on YouTube. S econd start building a network. LinkedIn and Twitter are a good place to start.Social networks are democratic and enable anyone to follow conversations taking place online. That’s a short step to creating content and engaging with people throughout the industry. Start with me. I’m @wadds on Twitter. We get people walking through the door at Ketchum all the time that claim to be socially and digitally savvy yet they’ve never blogged and they aren’t on Twitter. Do yourself a favour and get a ahead of the game. It’ll pay dividends personally as these skills are much in demand and it will help you understand the challenges that brands face in engaging with audiences in the modem media environment.Stephen Waddington, European Digital & Social Media Director, Ketchum & President, CIPR 2014, @wadds I was humbled to be asked by Sarah to give a quote or two as well, which are as follows:
Tips on how to stay motivated when working from home
Maintaining focus while working from home can be a hard task. Getting up to make yet another cup of tea disrupts this focus and stops you getting the important work done. To help keep that focus, make a to do list of the 3 most important tasks you need to finish that day – and make sure you finish them. Then even if you do nothing else, you’ll have completed the most important work. Other tips include turing off email and social networks for an hour, so you can concentrate on actually getting work done. Also, leave the TV switched off as it’s too attention grabbing, but radio can be nice as background noise. Make sure you finish work at an appointed time in the evening, no matter what. Not only will you be more focussed in order to get finished on time, but you’ll also be able to relax in the evening and get a better night’s sleep. You can always get up early the next day to finish off anything urgent, but your mind will be more refreshed and you’ll finish the task quicker than if you plow on into the night.
What are PR degrees?
PR Degrees equip you with both the theory and practical skills required to get a job and then build a successful career in the PR industry. The best PR degrees have a strong practical element and good links with the PR industry, so you can start building your industry contacts while still studying. Your tutors should be experts with significant industry experience, supported by visiting lecturers who can give you an insight into the day-to-day workings of the industry. Digital and social media is more important than ever, so if you choose a PR degree then make sure this part of the programme is strong.