PRWeek – How Communications Leaders Adapt to a Post-PR World

PRWeek, eBay, Egon Zehnder, and Edelman convened senior PR pros from Silicon Valley to discuss best practices and big issues facing the comms and tech sectors during a March panel discussion at eBay's headquarters in San Jose. PRWeek editor-in-chief Steve Barrett moderated the discussion that featured Egon Zehnder’s Amanda Roberts. Roberts spoke on the importance of having communications leaders on the executive team saying, "Not as many CCOs report to the CEO as we would like. It’s a balance and it’s not industry-specific. A lot of comms people report to marketing and the lines are blurred between who owns the content and who owns the channels. With the recent focus on brand and company reputation, communications leaders have an incredible opportunity to show their strategic stripes and align themselves closely with CEOs and be a trusted adviser. If you show that discipline and link communications to business strategy, there is an opportunity to play a larger role on the executive team.” The panel also commented on the importance of agility for communications leaders working in the tech industry. In an inherently innovative and disruptive space, identifying high-potential, agile leaders is critical for the communications function.

Full story: Amanda Roberts: “Comms in a post-PR World” (June 2017).