If you want to be thought of as more than person who does the company web site, then read this.
What do CEOs and organizational leaders really want from their public relations person?
James Lukaszewski, PRSA, recently shared the following with local Kansas City practitioners. If you really want to be viewed as a public relations strategist, embrace the following:
- Don’t waste time with chitchat. Make your case in three minutes. Always briefly recap the situation, its implications or the threats or opportunities it presents to the organization.
- Recap what you hope to accomplish.
- Offer at least three possible courses of action.
- Recommend the action you would take.
- Justify your suggestion.
It’s a good list and I’d like to add a few more, some of which Mr. Lukaszewski would agree with, I’m sure.
- Tell the boss when he is in the wrong. Don’t be afraid to say "The Emperor Has No Clothes" and ignore a problem because others do. You’ll earn the respect of your leadership.
- Know the environment. Lukaszewski calls this being able to tell the future. If you are an astute trendwatcher you can predict how a particular situation will turn out for your client.
- Don’t be afraid to speak up. When I was in the capacity to advise an internal client about a decision on whether to outsource work or keep it inhouse at about the same cost, I jumped on the opportunity to advise it be kept inhouse for the purposes of boosting employee morale. Other managers sat silent, intimidated by volatility of the leader and the situation. He took the advice.
- Don’t be enamored with yourself. This isn’t about you. A good public relations person offers suggestions implemented in the name of leadership. You are there to contribute to the success of the leadership and the organization’s goals not to make a name for yourself.
By following these tenets, you’ll find your reputation will builds itself and you’ll be the person people listen to when all the noise is over.
