Shaping an industry to match a changing society
This blog forms a part of a series called PR: Shaping the Future, a campaign led by a team of Centennial College public relations and corporate communications postgraduate students in partnership with the Canadian Council of Public Relations Firms (CCPRF). The campaign aims to highlight how storytellers can shape narratives in a diverse and authentic way to become agents of change.
This blog compliments a podcast series which illuminates the bright future of the industry, and the growing diversity within it. The podcast brings attention to the diverse voices that have shaped the industry, the different paths taken to enter the industry, and the work they have made to help promote diversity, equity, and inclusion. Listen in to gain new insights about the industry, and how PR practitioners are actively shaping the narrative to promote the societal changes they envision.
By: Daniela Biggart, Nicholas Li, Dhruvy Rawal, Chiara Silo, Karson Simpson
Introduction
The past few years has been a period of tremendous transformation, from the pandemic changing the way we work, to society’s reckoning with ongoing racial injustices still present today. As with other industries, the communications and public relations field has faced increased pressure to embrace changes that promotes diversity, equity and inclusion. Unlike other industries though, the communications and public relations industry has the opportunity to take a leading role in influencing changes that help advance a fair and equitable society.
As these issues entered the public spotlight, organizations have struggled with crafting a message that was both authentic and attuned to public demands for diversity. Simplistic performative messages and empty platitudes from an executive team that has no exposure to these issues will no longer suffice.
The value of being a good communicator is becoming more apparent as diversity and equity issues become key priorities for organizations around the world. As key players in the communications industry, PR professionals are uniquely positioned to serve as real agents of change, as they help mould the current zeitgeist and shape new narratives that are not only engaging to the public, but also promotes the values of diversity, equity and inclusion.
Shaping an industry to reflect modern Canada
If the PR industry aims to be authentic agents of change, the field will need out seek diverse and youthful storytellers that not only support the values of diversity and equity, but also reflect the modern Canada we live in. It is crucial that we not only acknowledge the need to improve on diversity and inclusivity, but also encourage young storytellers to take advantage of their talents to help make permanent the equitable society they envision.
Preliminary results from the 2021 Canadian census already reveal the country is becoming increasingly diverse, especially in major metropolises like the Greater Toronto Area. Canadian PR firms have seen similar growth with its workforce. In the Canadian Council of Public Relations Firms 2021 comprehensive report on diversity and inclusion in the PR industry, approximately one-third of junior professionals identified as BIPoC.
Of course, the industry still faces challenges common in other fields, and the work towards improving the field’s diversity and inclusivity is far from over. BIPoC professionals continue to face challenges and hurdles with advancement into upper management. But a desire to improve the industry from the top, and the groundswell for real change from young storytellers and PR professionals makes such a situation unlikely to continue.
The path forward
As Canadian society continues to transform, it becomes critically important for the industry to remain on top of these changes. To advance and improve the industry, the PR firms that make up CCPRF have released a shared commitment to enact six strategic actions to help promote and maintain a pipeline of diverse storytellers into the industry.
In keeping pace with these changes and standing by CCPRF’s commitments, Canadian PR agencies and their practitioners have found themselves in positions where they can genuinely serve as proactive agents of change and advocates for the underrepresented. As a profession that needs to be attuned to the needs of society, an increasingly diversified field will help illuminate key perspectives that would not come to light with a more homogenized industry.
Having to craft campaigns for a variety of clients, PR practitioners are finding themselves in increasingly influential roles where they can transform the narrative for the better. While the task of crafting a narrative that reconciles all these priorities may sometimes be difficult, seeing a worthwhile narrative materialize is a payoff few storytellers outside the PR industry see.
The podcast
The first PR: Shaping the Future podcast, we invite you to find out how Jozef Agtarap, a communication and outreach manager at Inspirit Foundation, has used his gift for storytelling to help develop campaigns in support of Indigenous Canadian communities, and how diversity initiatives have helped shape the PR agency into an industry for social advocates.
In our second podcast is a special feature where Angel Carolino, a Public Relations – Corporate Communications student has a discussion with Steph Porter, an account director with Apex PR. In this episode, Porter and Carolino discuss what work PR professionals do on a day-to-day basis, and how the industry has evolved into a wholistic communications profession.
The third episode in this series features Jefferson Darrell, the founder and CEO of Breakfast Culture, and a thought leader for culture, inclusion and equity. This episode explores Darrell’s efforts to advance diverse, equitable, and inclusive culture in PR workplaces, and how he works to remove barriers BIPoC individuals face when working in the industry.
Tune in to all the podcasts on CentennialOnDemand, Apple Podcast, Amazon Music, SoundCloud and Spotify. Follow our Centennial PR social media pages for more updates on the campaign on twitter at @Centennial_CCPR, Instagram at @centennial_pr and TikTok at @centennialpr.
This campaign is also created in partnership with PRofessionals & Coffee with podcasts available on their YouTube channel PRofessionals & Coffee. They are also promoting PR: Shaping the Future on their twitter at @PRandCoffee, Instagram at @professionalsandcoffee and TikTok at @professionalsandcoffee.
