Working within a PR agency (consultancy)

In one form or another, the modern public relations agency has come a very long way since John D. Rockefeller retained Ivy Lee to get the oil tycoon a public hearing. At its essence, the business is still about getting a hearing for your point of view. But in virtually all other ways, the agency business has transformed and adapted itself as few businesses have. (Dilenschneider 1996:27)

In size, public relations firms range from one-or two-person operations to worldwide giants such as Burson-Marsteller that employs more than 2000 people. The scope of services provided to clients varies accordingly. Big or small, each has an identical purpose: to give counsel and, to the extent a client wishes, perform the technical services required to carry out an agreed-upon program. The counseling firm may operate as an adjunct to an organization's public relations department or, if no department exists, conduct the entire public relations effort.

These firms have proliferated in proportion to the growth of the global economy. As American companies expanded after World War II into booming domestic and worldwide markets, many corporations felt a need for public relations firms that could provide them with professional expertise in communications. PR specialist practitioners were needed to maintain lines of communication in an increasingly complicated world and to provide much of the material to be distributed.

Today public relations firms offer a wide range of services: marketing communications, research and evaluation, crisis communication, media analysis, community relations, events management, positioning a company or financial relations.

Increasingly, public relations firms emphasize the counseling aspect of their services, and number of executives object to the idea that they operate public relations “agencies”. They say that public relations is a management consulting function and cannot be delegated to others, as the term agent implies. Advertising firms are properly called agencies because they serve as agents buying time or space on behalf of a client. But, if we approach public relations as a management and counseling function, the term PR consultancy or firm is preferred. At the same time, we realize that a number of public relations “agencies” do exist because they simply act as agents preparing and distributing publicity materials on behalf of clients. (Wilcox and co. 1995:108)

A small public relations firm may consist only of the owner (president) and an assistant (vice president), supported by a secretary. Larger firms have a hierarchy: president, executive vice president, account supervisor, account executive and secretarial staff.

Firms frequently organize account teams, especially to serve a client whose program is multifaceted. One member of the team, for example, may set up a nationwide media tour in which an organization representative is booked on television talk shows. Another may supervise all materials going to the print media, including new stories, features articles and artwork. A third may concentrate on the trade press or perhaps arrange special events.

To many, working in a public relations firm sounds glamorous. A practitioner associates with a number of highly intelligent, creative people and there is the stimulation of working on several exciting projects at any one time. One day may found the account executive at the opening of a plush restaurant, while the next finds him flying to New York or London to set up a press conference. Of course, there are the proverbial cocktail parties and the pleasure of learning that a well-written article has been picked up by 180 daily newspapers. (Wilcox and co. 1995:111)

Although all these happenings do occur in PR, they are less routine than one would suspect. From another perspective, working for a public relations firm can be a source of frustrations. Practitioners often complain about the lack of privacy: “You have to think and work in a fishbowl.” an employee pointed out. An account executive usually works on several projects and it is difficult to give each client the undivided attention that is demanded. Then, few clients have a good understanding of what PR can or cannot accomplish. A firm's personnel must constantly educate clients about PR. Many times an account person must attend night functions or work overtime to meet a deadline.

Despite these frustrations, practitioners thrive in a PR firm . They enjoy the constant challenge of coming up with creative ideas-the psychic reward of observing their idea for a slogan become a household term or a planned special event achieve international publicity. Those who leave a public relations firm for jobs with corporations often miss the diversity of assignments.

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