By Amith Prabhu

The two links pasted below are from archives, interestingly written in 2011 about the profession of Public Relations and the PR professional as the authors visualized it would be in 2015:

http://is.gd/nzkLPy and http://is.gd/fPKtCY

As we start off a new year here are a few thoughts on what will work and what will not in the year ahead. But before we crystal-gaze, it’s important to look back on the most eyecatching event of the last week of 2014 and how the leader of the organisation led from the front by doing three things most important in a crisis. Hats off to Tony Fernandes of Air Asia who rushed to the site of the incident, who communicated through every step of the way and showed genuine empathy.

Leading from the front – leaders of organisations prone to risk and crisis need to learn how to lead from the front from this incident and be better prepared when crisis strikes. So starting now on, more CEOs will embrace social media to use it as a tool to communicate with stakeholders. Twitter will remain the preferred social network of corporate leaders.

Content, content, content – storytelling and content creation will continue to rule the roost. There will be a rising demand for specialist writers who can write on healthcare, finance and technology. Writing skills will be the most important attribute that hiring managers will look for in candidates.

Stability and longevity in organisations – PR firms will want to hire talent that has spent a good number of years in the previous organisation. People who jump the ship often will find it hard to get well-paying jobs as the strength of the workforce increases.

School for PR – There may emerge newer academies that teach the art and science of Public Relations, as good talent that is affordable is the need of the hour. This also means retainers are not going to change dramatically, the only exceptions being the Top 20 organisations paying the Top 5 PR firms top dollars.

High profile movements – Both within consultancies and in corporate communications there will be people movement at the highest level. 2014 saw some interesting changes at two of the leading firms. The trend will continue.

Events on the rise – High quality events that offer great speaking opportunities will evolve. This will not only offer opportunities to speak but to sponsor and partner as well. Keeping an eye for the right events will be key.

Feel free to add to this list of trends and share your feedback on this list of perspectives on PR in 2015.