CorpComms Magazine

More than seven in ten European-based PR professionals believe that their function has become more important since the recession but fewer than one in four have been able to secure additional resources as a result, a new survey has revealed.

Indeed, 37 per cent of European-based PR professionals claim that they have lost resources compared to other functions, according to the 2010 European Communication Monitor, which surveyed about 2,000 professionals working in 46 countries, on behalf of the European Public Relations Education and Research Association and the European Association of Communication Directors.

Pressure on communication budgets has been most intense within public listed companies, where 41.8 per cent of PR professionals claim they have seen their resources slashed and only one in five has received any increase.

Surprisingly, just one in three communicators working in government organisations has suffered cuts in resources and budgets while 46.4 per cent have experienced no change.

However, the survey also found clear evidence that those communications

departments which maintained a strong focus on supporting organisational goals through the recession, perhaps through motivating employees or influencing consumer preferences, reported an increase or improvement in budgets or resources.

Indeed, there are other benefits for those PR professionals who aligned their work to organisational goals. The survey found that professionals who enacted the roles of 'strategic facilitators and business advisers' reported higher salaries than their contemporaries.

But, despite the obvious benefits in being able to link performance to strategic goals, the survey found that PR professionals were remarkably basic in their approach to evaluation. The most popular way to measure activities remains clippings and media response, which are used by 82.3 per cent of professionals, while 69.7 per cent rely on Internet and intranet usage and 57.2 per cent assess the satisfaction levels of internal clients.

More than seven in ten European-based PR professionals believe that their function has become more important since the recession but fewer than one in four have been able to secure additional resources as a result, a new survey has revealed.

Indeed, 37 per cent of European-based PR professionals claim that they have lost resources compared to other functions, according to the 2010 European Communication Monitor, which surveyed about 2,000 professionals working in 46 countries, on behalf of the European Public Relations Education and Research Association and the European Association of Communication Directors.

Pressure on communication budgets has been most intense within public listed companies, where 41.8 per cent of PR professionals claim they have seen their resources slashed and only one in five has received any increase.

Surprisingly, just one in three communicators working in government organisations has suffered cuts in resources and budgets while 46.4 per cent have experienced no change.

However, the survey also found clear evidence that those communications

departments which maintained a strong focus on supporting organisational goals through the recession, perhaps through motivating employees or influencing consumer preferences, reported an increase or improvement in budgets or resources.

Indeed, there are other benefits for those PR professionals who aligned their work to organisational goals. The survey found that professionals who enacted the roles of 'strategic facilitators and business advisers' reported higher salaries than their contemporaries.

But, despite the obvious benefits in being able to link performance to strategic goals, the survey found that PR professionals were remarkably basic in their approach to evaluation. The most popular way to measure activities remains clippings and media response, which are used by 82.3 per cent of professionals, while 69.7 per cent rely on Internet and intranet usage and 57.2 per cent assess the satisfaction levels of internal clients.

Basic evaluation techniques

Just one in four PR professionals consider the impact of their work on intangible or tangible resources, while 25.7 per cent consider the impact on financial or strategic targets.

Unsurprisingly, perhaps, public listed companies are leading the way in considering the financial costs and business impacts of PR activities. Just over half of all public listed companies consider the financial costs of their PR departments, and 35 per cent consider whether business goals have been attained. By contrast, fewer than one in five government organisations or not-for-profit organisations consider business goals.

Almost 89 per cent of government organisations consider clippings and media responses, while three in four look at Internet and intranet usage to evaluate their performance.

The survey found that social media and the rise of online communications is dominating the minds of PR professionals across Europe, although fewer than one third of organisations have implemented necessary steps, such as social media guidelines, monitoring routines or even key performance indicators to define and evaluate measures of success in this new world.

Almost seven in ten (67.8 per cent) PR professionals now view online communications, such as websites, email and intranet, important instruments for addressing stakeholders, against 54.4 per cent who held a similar view in 2007.

More than one quarter (26.7 per cent) now believe social media, such as blogs, podcasts and social networks, are important tools, against just 11.5 per cent in 2007.

Inter active channels important for public relations

                                                       2011        2010       2009

• Online communities    78.1%     44.6%     32.8%
• Online videos                75.3%     38.4%     28.9%
• Weblogs                         58.1%    30.9%     24.8%
• RSS feeds                     48.4%     24.2%     20%
• Podcasts                        41%       16.8%      14%
• Microblogs                     51.6%     26.3%     14%
• Wikis                              40.2%      17.2%     12.2%
• Virtual worlds                24.8%        9.5%       7.7%

Despite this view that social media will grow in importance, just one in five PR departments and agencies had already implemented training programmes while 52 per cent had no immediate plans to do so. Similarly, just 18 per cent of PR departments had already introduced key performance indicators to measure social media activities, while 54.8 per cent had no plans to follow suit.

While PR professionals recognise the opportunities that social media offers their organisations, they are also aware of the threat posed by the loss of control and openness. On balance, however, the potential opportunities appear to outweigh the threats.

While 38 per cent of PR professionals are concerned that everyone within an organisation is able to spread information, viewing this as a threat, 37.6 per cent see this as an opportunity. Similarly, while 30.7 per cent worry the open dialogue nature of social media means that no one side can control the debate, this is viewed as an opportunity by 37.7 per cent of PR professionals.

Salaries within Europe

The percentage of respondents reporting high incomes above €100,000 (£84,000) has declined while 18 per cent of respondents claim that they do not earn an annual salary in excess of €30,000 (£25,000).

This low salary may be attributed to the regional background of respondents, as an increasing number came from Southern and Eastern European countries where there are lower incomes.

The survey found a wide disparity of salaries across Europe, with respondents in Western and Northern Europe receiving the highest incomes. However, male PR practitioners were more highly paid than their female counterparts in every region.

The existence of a glass ceiling was also highlighted by the Annual State of the PR Profession Survey, produced on behalf of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, which found that men were almost twice as likely to earn a salary in excess of £50,000 than women.

Even though the CIPR survey found that two thirds of those employed in the PR profession are women, it highlighted that 18 per cent of male PR professionals were employed at director level against just nine per cent of women.

Basic annual salary of European PR practitioners

• More than €300,000          1.3%
• €200,001 - €300,000         2%
• €150,001 - €200,000        4.2%
• €125,001 - €150,000        5.3%
• €100,001 - €125,000        8.2%
• €90,001 - €100,000          6.0%
• €80,001 - €90,000            6.2%
• €70,001 - €80,000            8%
• €60,001 - €70,000            9.3%
• €50,001 - €60,000            9.4%
• €40,001 - €50,000           11.0%
• €30,001 - €40,000           11.3%
• Up to €30,000                   17.8%

Annual salaries (median) of different roles

                                                                Female                      Male

• Head of communication       €60,001-€70,000     €90,001-€100,000
• Unit leader                               €40,001-€50,000     €60,001-€70,000
• Team member                       €30,001-€40,000      €40,001-€50,000

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