Remote working is corrupting the PR talent pool
If the next generation of public relations professionals start their careers working solely remotely, who do they model their work ethic and career development off? Rachel Demarco, senior PR/influencer manager, InsideOut PR poses the question.
As someone who worked from the office almost every day during the pandemic, unlike most I managed to keep the separation of work and home life by leaving my laptop at the office. With the rest of the team working remotely, it meant longer hours and back-to-basics tasks for the most part as we strived to keep up the standard our clients pride us for.
I didn’t hesitate at packing media kits and sending/receiving parcels because I know the importance of that task in the overall process, having progressed through the ranks and watched my colleagues do the same when needed. However, it got me thinking…if the next generation of public relations professionals start their careers working solely remotely, who do they model their work ethic and career development off? A screen?
You can develop staff by giving them one-on-one time, working directly with senior staff and the director in order to pass along knowledge and company values.
“The children now love luxury; they have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for elders and love chatter in place of exercise.” – Socrates (c. 470BC)
This type of sentiment has been around for centuries… yet here we are.
While it’s a fair comment to say that “it will take more effort to teach this emerging talent pool some of the soft skills of the job that they may have picked up through osmosis while working in the office”, it’s unfair to say they won’t have work ethic.
Studies are showing that the latest generation coming into the workforce actually have a tremendous work ethic, they are more entrepreneurial and likely to set up side hustles in addition to a full time job, they are also likely to be more loyal than recent previous generations if they find an employer that reflect their own values.
We are in the midst of a fundamental change in the workplace. As much as we will cling to the past and hope that things will remain the same, history has shown that companies that cling to hard will be left behind. Relationships will always be incredibly important in business, but the ways that relationships are formed is changing… just ask my 6 year old daughter who makes me drive her 30 minutes across town so that she can sit in the same room as her cousins while they all sit on their own iPads and go into virtual worlds on Roblox to “talk” to each other while they ignore me nagging them to go play outside.
I think it was Socrates who said “The kids will be fine. PR will be fine.”
I’m pretty sure no aspiring young PR professional would be interested in working with you after reading this.
Micromanager vibes