How Communication Can Help Create a Better World?

We have passed through diverse challenges during 2020 on personal, professional, and organisational fronts. 

And each one of us has done our bit to resolve the issues and emerge victorious on our own respective fronts and survived these challenges. 

Let us Discuss Tomorrow How Can We Create a Better World through Communication in 2021 with an expert panel of communication professionals in conversation with PR professional and National Vice President of PRCI, CJ Singh

SUBIR MOITRA has 25 years of experience in Reputation Management, Brand building, Public Relations, Corporate Communications and Crisis Communications.  He led corporate communications for KPMG, United Technologies, Pratt & Whitney and Sterlite Power in India. 

He has been conferred various awards for his role as a top communication professional including 2020 Exchange4Media’s (e4m) Top 100 Influential Gamechangers in PR & Communications industry in India; Pratt & Whitney’s coveted International Eagle Awards; and  Blackbelt in Communications Strategy, Gartner Communications and Bachelor of  Commerce

MANRAJ GREWAL SHARMA is the resident editor of The Indian Express. Author of a book on Punjab militancy called “Dreams after Darkness”, she has also worked as a consulting editor with development organisations such as United Nations Environment Programme and Asia Pacific Adaptation Forum. She has been a publishing consultant with the Asian Development Bank, Manila, as well, and was the managing editor of “Gender, Technology and Development” , an international peer-reviewed journal published by Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok, for five years.  

VIVEK ATRAY, ex IAS, is a Motivational Speaker, Author, Mentor, Advisor, Columnist and Visiting Professor. Founder of SUVICHAR Think Tank, He is visiting Professor at Shoolini University, member of the CSR Advisory Board of ACTION AID. He is also a founder of the Vibrant Networking Forum, Chandigarh Literary Society and Co-Convenor of INTACH Chandigarh. He is a member of the Governor's Advisory Council for Chandigarh UT.

A weekly columnist Random Forays in Hindustan Times he is author of two novels Move on Bunny & Dubey ji Bounces Back. and has recently published his third book, Finding Success Within: 52 Life Skills for Young Indians. 

He is currently the Chairman of PRCI Chandigarh Chapter. 

The event would go Live on Facebook.   

Please join in.  Click here to log in:  http://bit.ly/PRCI30Dec2020

Please put your questions in the comment section during the Live session.

Vivek Atray to head Chandigarh Chapter of PRCI

PRCI to setup Young Communicators Club in the universities in the region: Vivek Atray

Chandigarh Chapter of Public Relations Council of India elected Mr Vivek Atray, former IAS officer, motivational speaker, and author, has been elected as Chairman for 2020-21. 

Vivek Atray who had been engaged with the Chapter of PRCI since 2010 said that there is a greater need for every organisation to deploy effective communication for its survival, growth, and success. 

With extensive senior resource persons available in the city, the Chapter would be not only organising professional training programmes for the corporate and public sector but would also be establishing Young Communicator Clubs (YCC) in various Universities to prepare the youth for the challenges of life. 

Others office bearers of the Chapter include Vice Chairman Prof Jayanth Pethkar from School of Communication Studies, PU; Secretary Sudeep Rawat, PR consultant; Joint Secretary Gurmeet Singh Khaira, PRO DIPR Punjab; Pavittar Singh, Director M&S, Press Information Bureau. 

Other members of the Executive include
Shikha Nehra, Jt Director DIPR Punjab Raj Bhavan;
Amit Roy CEO of iCatchers PR;
Aditya Sharma, CEO of Manthan PR;
Arun Johar, Joint Director (Retd), Deptt of PR, Govt of Haryana; 
Lalit Sharma, CEO Founder of Mantrin PR;
Ritu Nag, Director-Tech Mahindra SMART Academy for Healthcare;

Jatinder Vij, former PR head of HMT Ltd., Past Chairman of Chandigarh Chapter, shall be National Council representative and
Aneesh Bhanot, Editor of Sector News, and Past Chairman shall be the Zonal Representative of the Chapter. 

National Vice President of CJ Singh, and the North Zone Chairperson of PRCI Renuka Salwan shall be the Advisors to the Chapter.

What is Public Relations?

 

Public relations suffer from a deep perception crisis, and right from the academics to media, to corporate leadership, have diverse views on what this profession is all about. 

One can gauze the understanding of the chief PR person of a public sector organisation when he, sharing his "success" story, mentioned that the best PR lesson he learnt was to take care of his boss's dog, his wife and his kids and he never ever he had any problem in his career since then. 

This shocking revelation in front of an audience left the veterans speechless, while many others just wondered at such a disclosure.  Not his fault since in many public sectors and government organisations, earlier, provided a promotional avenue to their clerical staff to get into public relations whose primary job used to be running an errand or managing the reception. 

In the last four decades of my engagement with diverse fields of communication, right from being a journalist to public relations practitioner and visiting faculty to various educational institutes, it remains an enigma for many, including some of the corporate where PR does not go beyond 'Press Release' or media relations. 

There are numerous myths that surround the profession even today to a large extent, though senior communicators and businesses are taking serious note of the practice. 

Several professional bodies like the Public Relations Council of India, Association of Business Communicators, International Public Relations Association, and Indian PR Consultants Association, are making efforts to educate the management and introduce the professional practice. 

Young communicators opting for public relations often fall prey to the whims of the uninformed management leadership and are relegated to tasks far below their roles. 

In fact, the practice of public relations profession began with their role as firefighters in an hour of crisis but a young professional Ivy Lee put to rest the misbeliefs in the minds of the managements that PR is not to hide the truth but to be honest and truthful and proactive in sharing information with stakeholders. 

Public Relations is not: 

• Advertising
• Liaison
• Lobbying
• Propaganda 
• Ensuring publication of Press Releases in media
• Manipulating facts (spin-doctoring)
• White-washing/Hiding facts, especially during a crisis  (fire-fighting)
• Entertaining media people and keeping them in good humour

Public relations practitioner is a professional who is trained to manage communication effectively between an organisation and its stakeholders (or 'publics') to achieve desired results. 

Multi-Dimensional

A professionally trained communicator with knowledge of psychology, sociology, public administration, anthropology, linguistics, behavioural sciences, management principles, technology, data mining, business environment auditing, with a vision to judge the future impact of an organisation's existence,  can make people, corporate, public bodies, the governments, effect the change, what Mahatama Gandhi said, "you want to see in the world".  

The Changemakers

The young communicators entering the professions must feel proud of the fact that they are the changemakers who can bring about the desired change in the lives of the people, their perceptions, and their thought processes, just through sound communication techniques.

PR is all Pervasive

Organisations thrive through their stakeholders, which are diverse and different for every organisation.   Their study and communication consumption patterns defines the organisation's success story. How the stakeholders perceive a brand, an event, a person, depends upon the successful communication strategy. 

So the public relations practitioners should learn the fundamental nuances of communication tools, techniques and tactics, while the managements need to learn to harness the hitherto unutilised or underutilized Power of PR. 

PR in Action. Register Now.

Public Relations Council of India in association with Indian PR Forum, is organising a knowledge event, PR Act at Mumbai on 20th May 2016, at 6:30pm at Mumbai Press Club. Those of us who are travelling to Mumbai, or intend to attend the event, must register for this great opportunity.