Exercise your choice....

The election has not actually been declared yet but it is only a matter of hours before the starting pistol is fired for the official campaigning to begin. I just hope folks are not sick of it already.
The clear blue water between the main Parties is almost non-existent so we will have to recall our history to help inform our decisions on polling day or try to pick our way through the rhetoric. The televised debates may help, but let’s be honest so much of that will be a beauty contest, as we listen with our eyes not our ears. Moreover, much like the first of these (Ask The Chancellors) the words will be so bland the only Party able to be robust and take risks will the one with least chance of forming a Government.
My parents generation of voters – yes there are some left, will remember the Wilson years and fear the worst, my generation will recall Thatcherism and (hopefully) shy away from the greed and selfishness of those years. And today’s young people will judge the Blair years - an era of spin and a war we followed as America’s poodle.
Whatever your political views I urge you to exercise your choice.

We adults have not all had the right to vote for that long - 1928 saw women achieve equal rights to vote following a campaign in which a number lost their lives for the cause. So, don’t stay at home go and cast a vote of some sort, exercise real choice – it is apathy that allows extremists to get in, then we will have something to moan about.

So how are we preparing the youth of today to be the PRs of tomorrow? Particularly bearing in mind that many of the tutors of today are the PRs of yesterday... and bearing in mind that the advent of Web 2.0 sees PR changing faster than it has for very many years! Emily Cagle, PR consultant and entrepreneur recently posed this question to me and, as ever, I had a few thoughts...
At the University of Lincoln we are a small but beautifully formed team of ex-practitioners and academics setting PR in the business context alongside Marketing, Advertising, occasionally Management or HR and even less occasionally Journalism. Our purpose is to give students a solid academic grounding in their chosen subjects but with a practical dimension to give that added extra to their employability. To this end we encourage them to get as much paid or unpaid work experience as they can find and to develop a portfolio of work they can show off to potential employers.
Increasingly we are encouraging students to develop this portfolio online in the form of blogs and integrated web pages taking advantage of Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn used appropriately – Facebook is very much the ‘Uni life’ and softer side of the portfolio! So, we are inviting our protégés to embrace Web 2.0...and then explain it to us! The portfolio may also be a repository for some of their assignments for example in their studies of Managing PR the assignment is a blog about developing team working skills and a reflection on how the individual has learned about their own strengths and weaknesses as a team player. As part of PR for organisational communications part of the task is to develop a real campaign for an organisation of their choice – a charity or voluntary group – and to get as much of it implemented as possible.
But of course this is just part of the picture, it’s getting those blogs and pages noticed that will count. ‘Behind the Spin’ the Chartered Institute of Public Relations student online publication provides a great outlet for the students to write about their experiences, review books and observe about developments in PR. Recent contributors from Lincoln have attracted comment from far and wide resulting in offers of help with their careers and even jobs. Subjects have included a discussion of the role of Twitter in crisis communications and aspects of the debate between students from different schools at the University – is PR killing Journalism? One book review by a Lincoln student prompted the book’s author to make contact and another student’s observations about a PR campaign to stamp out spamming in PR attracted interest from the campaign manager.
Dissertations form a critical part of the final year of study and students are encouraged to explore something new. This year social media is a popular subject including its role in the workplace as an internal communications tool, its impact on music PR as well as the afore mentioned crisis management. The students are developing a wealth of original thought and creating new angles on old models such as the popular Grunig and Hunt four models of communication (Managing Public Relations,1984).
So, to return to the question, I guess the students are preparing themselves very well and in true academic style we are guiding them to think independently, take risks and try new ideas in a safe environment. I am confident, therefore, that tomorrow’s PR specialists and thought leaders will be able to shift and change to meet their clients’ needs and provide wise counsel to ensure PR objectives are fully integrated into a powerful package of communications using the most appropriate tools and techniques from the ever expanding kit bag.

It’s been a while ....but I've finally cracked

I am determined not to blog for the sake of it, so that’s why I have not written for a while. I guess you could say I am taking a leaf out of one of the current debates around PR and journalism and not spamming myself into oblivion.

PR and journalism are, as I have often said, two sides of the same coin. We need each other. But the arrogance of some journalism colleagues leaves me wondering if they understand this. There are some very bitter and twisted souls out in the world of journalism – or should I say about to launch themselves on that world.

PR folk need to be mindful of what journalists do and journalists need to appreciate the role of PR in this world. PR exists to promote its subject matter, journalists are there to put balance into the story and check the other side. Sometimes there will be a negative aspect to the story but there will be times when it genuinely is all good news! It is not a battle, and it should not be personal. We are each doing our job to the best of our ability.

I am hopeful that the distasteful world of ‘spin’ is on the way out and PR is about to embark on a brave new world of real engagement with the publics. Why do I say this? Well the advent of social media, the influence of the citizen journalist and the power of the individual to publish their thoughts to the world as they ‘click a little button’ means PR must listen as well as inform and PR must respond constructively.

Spring is well and truly in the air so maybe PR and journalism can bury the hatchet as the snowdrops nod in the breeze and daffodils push through the frozen earth. The sunshine of the last few days must surely be capable of lifting the spirits of even the most embittered PR or journo?

A vexed question....

It’s that time of year when the classes start to settle down and I can see who is likely to succeed and who needs a kick up the proverbial! The trouble is I am talking about young adults who should be taking responsibility for their own futures – I am not their mother, their nursemaid or their boss. I am someone who, from time to time, tries to impart bits of knowledge and inspire them to look further at their chosen subject – you could say I am the supplier of a service. This brings me to the real point of today’s missive...the vexed question of tuition fees and the impact they have on the relationship between tutors and students.
Now I must put up a health warning here, the thoughts expressed are those of the author alone and do not reflect university policy or even the opinion of my colleagues – I have not really talked to them about their views. As ever these words are the ravings of yours truly, fuelled tonight by camomile tea.
I come from the generation who did not face tuition fees but had the luxury of a grant – albeit means tested against parents’ income. I went to a girls’ grammar school and it is important to note that not everyone expected a university education. Only the very best would end up at university, the next tier might go to a polytechnic or teachers training college and others might find themselves training at one of the London teaching hospitals to become a nurse. The idea behind grants was to make it easier for anyone to go to university but it is fair to say it was not easy for the working classes to enjoy the privilege of a university education for a whole range of reasons. Anyway the point is that in those ‘olden days’ the relationship between the higher education establishment and the student was much more like that between school and pupil today. I can remember having to go and see the Principal of my college to seek permission to go home a week early because my Mum was in hospital and my Dad needed me to go home and run the house - the conversation did not go well for reasons of education and feminist ideology, but I did get my week off.
Today the students pay a fee to attend university, it does not cover the full cost of their education, but it is a contribution. This has recently caused some students at universities around the country to question what they are getting for their money – class sizes and contact time being the main issues at some of the bigger establishments. I agree this has changed the relationship to one of customer and supplier but with a big proviso, the fee is not just a monetary one.
What do I mean by that? Well, I think that students pay their fee in a number of parts. The first is the tuition fee we all know about but the other parts are less tangible. I believe the other critical parts of the transaction are to turn up to lectures and listen attentively, prepare for seminars either individually or in the relevant groups and then actively participate, read round the chosen subject according to the texts set and to find interesting material of their own and finally to submit assignments on time and completed to the best of their ability. Only when all parts of the transactions are shown to be being carried out can students start to question what they get for their fees.
Now I must close by saying I am not a fan of tuition fees. I think as a state we should pay to educate the next generation – it does mean that students who do not study would face a heightened risk being ‘slung out’ if they take the piss out of their privileged position, but that is fair enough.

Из России с любовью

Just a few days spent in Moscow with a day trip out to Vladimir and Suzdal to take a look at bit of ‘normal’ Russia – time well spent?
Entering the country was a bureaucratic challenge of immense proportions. We had to fill in several forms on the flight over and passport control, took forever (it was just as bad leaving!). At the hotel we had to have the paperwork authorised so we could walk around freely. I am glad to report we were never challenged by any of the guards or police but we were rarely without our guide.
I loved Red Square, it is breathtakingly beautiful as the name implies (red means beautiful for those like me that did not realise) and the mixture of architecture just works...but I do not like Moscow, it is too big, too noisy, too busy, too arrogant. The young women all looked like footballers wives or high class hookers (OK not much difference I grant you!) and how they balanced on those heels I will never try to find out, and I include the female guards in this comment! - I know I sound like a grumpy old woman but I guess that’s what I am! The shops we came across were full of designer kitsch and bling, although I confess to dribbling with desire at many of the clothes and shoes in the GUM (pronounced ‘g-oom’) shopping precinct. The older Russian people and families visiting the city looked drab by comparison and the divide between the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’ was very clear.
Weddings were everywhere. The tradition is to lay flowers at the tomb of the unknown soldier in Alexander Gardens just off Red Square and to be photographed in the gardens, or in Vladimir you head to the mound outside the main Russian Orthodox cathedral that gives you views across the countryside. The young brides looked very WAG-ish (and very young) and the grooms wore good, but shiny, suits. The best man and bridesmaids were equally well-dressed (see above!) and were distinguished from other guests by a sash not unlike those you see around Lincoln’s bars on hen party night. Other members of the wedding party did not seem to have made much extra effort – other than to ensure they had copious amounts of alcohol at hand! The parents did not seem to be in evidence – whether they attended the official ceremony and post photo party who knows...there were plenty of rose petals strewn at the entrances to restaurants and cafes in the area. It seems you can get out of the army if you have two children; otherwise, I was led to believe, you serve from the age of 18 to 27 - the divorce rate is 50%.
The roads are a total nightmare. The main street that leads to Red Square is four lanes in each direction – though it seems you can personally increase this at will! There are speed limits and rules of the road but the evidence was scant. When you park you bounce the front two wheels of your imposing 4X4, Merc or Lexus up onto the nearest pavement and, if necessary, to get back into the traffic you just drive down the pavement until it is convenient to rejoin the melee. The motorway is as many as eight lanes in each direction and if you thought it was fast and chaotic in the city “you ain’t seen nothin’ yet!” There are no crash barriers and people walk across the flow of traffic. The peasants – old and young - sit by the side selling cucumbers and watermelons. There are junctions, traffic lights and regular crashes (we saw three in quick succession on the journey out of town).
Fortunately, you need not drive in Moscow thanks to the Metro. When Stalin said he wanted to build the best one in the world he wasn’t kidding. Sadly I forgot to take photos here as too much time was spent trying to make sure we ended up in the right place by cross checking the Cyrillic script against our guide’s instructions to us! It was also designed as a comfortable nuclear shelter hence the depth but the marbled halls and chandeliers were amazing. The cleanliness of the trains and passageways could teach our underground system a thing or two. In fact, everywhere we went was spotless – although some of the loos were a tad primitive!
Vladimir and Suzdal are quieter thank goodness – you can walk across the route of Trans Siberian Railway without hindrance from crossing gates (take note Lincoln station!). Vladimir is not famous for vodka as you might imagine but for exquisite glassware. Suzdal is a splendid tourist attraction where they have preserved the old wooden buildings and courtyards of the past.
Religion is gaining ground again since 1992 – makes you wonder where it hid all that time. The Russian Orthodox Cathedrals have been rebuilt or re-opened according to their previous fate under Stalin so the icons, paintings, carvings and gold abound. My neck aches from looking up at the various extravagances of the church. There are strong Italian influences in the architecture and to be honest the look is very reminiscent of most Mediterranean churches I have visited (which are not really that many, just feels like it!) but with a bit more gold and many more personal tributes – Ivan the Terrible springs to mind here.
So, after all this denial of communism we visited Lenin lying in state in his mausoleum. Bit spooky looking at the corpse of a guy about my age and wondering if he had survived what would the world be like now? We dropped by the Kremlin and saw the doors where the photo opportunities take place -another imposing piece of real estate with so many cathedrals! From there we took ourselves off to the less well-promoted Museum of Contemporary Art to get a lesson in the revolution and its legacy. Some interesting artefacts and, comparatively, a lot of space given over to Putin....
The people have embraced capitalism but do not yet have the hang of it; they are too ostentatious, flaunting their newfound wealth. The system does not take account of the elderly or infirm as yet so beggars are never far away. The older people (my generation!) gave me the impression that they miss communism in many ways. OK they did not have the choices they have today but they knew what was there was affordable and would cost the same wherever they went in the whole country. They can also teach us a thing or two about credit crunches! These people have lived through – and survived 300% and 1,000% inflation. Our guide told us her son was potty trained when nappies increased in price – overnight - by 300% and she had just run out! And she was married to a high-ranking soldier so was not one of the ‘have-nots’ by any means.


So – would I go there again? Probably not, but St Petersburg calls.
Did I enjoy the trip? Very much, as I said – Red Square takes your breath away.

oy, do you like 'ospital food?

A number of things have probably raised my blood pressure to dangerous levels over the last few days and I think I should let off steam before I write the official complaint. Although the immediate sight of ‘he who thinks he should be obeyed (hbo)’ battling with the cat on his lap (Mao) that has his kitty foot on 'hbo's' IPod and the dog (Ralph) with his nose up said cat’s arse in true doggy greeting is relieving a lot of stress!!

I digress...it has been a tough few days with my Mum being taken very ill (as only an 84 year old can) on bank holiday Monday. And I guess that is what has spurred me to the main topic of my rant.

Now I am an ardent supporter of our beloved NHS – I worked within it for a few years and OK like all great institutions it has its faults and creaks in places but, on the whole, when you are in dire need it pulls out all the stops to help you. However, these last few days there is one thing that has depressed rather than angered me about this beloved regime of care.

A few years ago in a great flurry of positive PR Lloyd Grossman set about hospital food and now all the daily menus have dishes with a little chef’s hat next to key dishes designed to delight the patient. Mum is not really in the mood for food at the moment (a worry all itself but that’s the personal stuff and not for this occassion) but then again, like all sick people she needs nourishment as part of the healing process and so it should be a key part of her treatment plan. She can’t make her own choices presently but I do know the kind of food she enjoys. So pen in hand I fill in the little blocks on the menu to pick out some tasty morsels for her. Because of her current condition it is hard to find out if she enjoys my selections, but I think I know now...

Today, for a variety of reasons, I was allowed special visiting privileges and found myself at her bedside when lunch arrived. I had selected haddock with parsley sauce (and chef’s hat), peas and carrots to tempt her followed by an apple. OK the plate had exactly that order on it...but I think you know the reality. The fish was rock hard, the sauce a solid blob, the peas a dull green and shrivelled more than the majority of the patients on the ward but oh joy, the carrots looked pretty. Oh yes, the apple was a pale yellowish green and looked like the journey from France began with the Normandy landings we are currently celebrating. Needless to say the few mouthfuls I tried to get her to eat returned rapidly giving me faith that she is not completely detached from reality.

BUT HOW THE HELL WILL SHE GET BETTER IF THIS IS WHAT SHE IS EXPECTED TO EAT?

You might try to tell me today was blip but we all know it wasn’t – and anyway one of the ladies who is at the stage where she can communicate told me it was the norm – she had been made sick by the previous day’s offerings. I will have to say something but I know it won’t change much, mass catering is beyond us as a nation. My plan is to ask the Trust Board to make an unannounced visit to the wards and see if they would be willing to partake of the chef’s hat.

Watch this space for the results.

Cat and dog now asleep, ‘he who thinks he should be obeyed’ is nodding patiently.

Knowing when to stop....

Careers are funny things if mine has been anything to go by. My career planning started as a small child dreaming of being a school teacher, lining up my toys for lessons each day in front of my small blackboard and making my long suffering younger and later school almost phobic cousin participate in pretend lessons during the school holidays – sorry! So, I did all the right things, work experience at my old primary school before heading off to do one of those new fangled B.Eds. Then came my first teaching practice...I HATED it! But I carried on regardless, got my degree and headed off to work in a related industry where I discovered publicity...I now know that was social marketing and Public Relations. I followed this path through a variety of roles for many happy years working long hours, enjoying myself trying to get the work life balance right when my young son asked why I couldn’t be at the school gate like other Mums and so on.
Then one day I realised I had really done enough and was no longer contributing as effectively as I used to...I hadn’t quite done a Campbell and become the story but I wasn’t doing my organisation any favours either. It took me quite a while to realise this and there was a lot of anger and heart searching on the way, a bit like going through bereavement only this time I was grieving for the person I used to be and could no longer be. It never ceases to amaze me now how much of my ‘identity’ was wrapped up in what I did each day, how much of ‘me’ was my career. I won’t bore you with the gory details of what went on and how I felt over a period of some 3 years suffice to say I can now look back with the wisdom of hindsight and wish there was a way of helping others who have reached this point but still don’t realise that.
It may be that some of these colleagues, friends - whomever - are facing a cross roads in their lives through age, health, boredom, fatigue; it doesn’t really matter. What does matter is the recognition of this point and how they eventually come to terms with it. I often remember the dreadful moment when a former boss of mine suffered a stroke in his mid forties and really struggled to come to terms with the fact that he would never return to his career as he knew it then. Very much younger than when many of us face this turning point he spent a long time in denial but eventually good sense prevailed and he realised he owed his family the respect of trying to slow down so he could enjoy more time with them rather than struggling on and shortening his life even further.
There are others who just don’t have that realisation and keep trying to return to their career, refusing to give in to whatever the circumstances might be – “I’m not going to be beaten” you hear them exclaim bravely – or is it selfishly? Let me explain my harsh statement...
The guy who has been overlooked in reorganisation after restructuring after service re-engineering becomes bitter and twisted by the perceived demotions. But he does nothing to move on either physically or mentally harms the working relationships with colleagues and former friends, puts undue pressure on his family as he slips into a black depression is no better than the people he sees as being to blame for his slide from favour. The woman whose ill health is not so bad to make the organisation pension her off but who can no longer do her job as well as she used to ends up taking advantage of her colleagues’ goodwill – while it lasts – and shortens her own life expectancy to the detriment of her loved ones is frankly, plain selfish. The leader who starts to run out of steam and coasts towards retirement avoiding innovation and change brings down their organisation or team leaving them behind the competition and ruining young careers on the way through.
These examples and many others are symptomatic of the way we fail to manage our workforce as it ages and matures. Organisations do not think about ways to make it easier for people to downshift without losing face. If we took a more constructive approach, we could help people ease into a new identity without killing them or embittering them – or their colleagues. We should allow them to support the upcoming generation of leaders and pioneers as we teach respect for the work life balance.
I can recall being enraged I was not being given the chance of the next big job even though I knew my sell by date had been reached some months earlier and my best before was fast approaching! I still had a lot to offer but not at the pace I had to work at up until then, my brain could no longer cope and that in turn caused my emotions to overrule my rational behaviour. I was irritable with my family, OK – more irritable with my family! I became paranoid with colleagues. I retreated into myself. Then I realised that status was not the be all and end all of my life that I could ask to change my lifestyle and downshift. OK financially I was in a position to pay off the mortgage so whatever happened the roof would remain over our heads but once recognised I could still be a whole person without THAT career I found a new spring in my step, my confidence returned, I became the old me – and I was comfortable with it.
So chaps – if you are feeling jaded, if you’ve had spells of ill health, if you are pissed off... stop – for all our sakes!