Difference between PR and Corporate Communication: Course Curriculum and Job Profile

By Amith Prabhu

 

There is hardly any difference in course curriculum for those opting for a career in Public Relations and Corporate Communications. In fact, both job streams are heavily dependent on high level communication skills – the written and the spoken word. However, to demystify the thinking that the two are different let us look at them holistically.

Origin of Corporate Communications

A PR professional typically works in a PR firm or PR consultancy (there is nothing called a PR agency. That is a term that is used incorrectly). These companies work on multiple client assignments. As Public Relations companies evolved in the middle of the last century in the west and in the later part of the last century in India the companies began to create an internal position for the person who would interact with the PR consultancy. To differentiate this person from the external firm, the Corporate Communications department was created, and the person came to be known as the Corporate Communications executive. Depending on the seniority the executive would be replaced with Manager or Director. Highly evolved organisations have called this person Chief Communications Officer or in some cases Chief Reputation Officer. Well, there are organisations that only have an in-house department and do not engage a PR company.

However, some people sometimes incorrectly assume PR is Personnel Relations (the erstwhile term used for Human Resources). Well, Public Relations is an all-encompassing umbrella term of all activities an organisation undertakes using various tools – mainly communication, to reach out to stakeholders.

Similarities and Difference

In India, in the initial years Public Relations firms focused largely on helping clients connect with media outlets. That evolved to reaching to another important stakeholder – the government. Some firms have Public Affairs departments to do government outreach on behalf of clients. And few others have Corporate Responsibility divisions that help clients in their social outreach through grants and activities. In recent times, a new division for Employee Engagement has emerged in PR firms that offers companies strategies and tactics to engage better with its most important stakeholder.

On the other hand, a powerful corporate communications job includes overseeing all the four areas mentioned above. These include media, government and society through CSR. These three are external in nature. Employee engagement and internal communications are inward facing and in some cases are part of the HR mandate or a separate person is in charge of the same depending on the strength of the employees.

Typically, a person spends a few years in a PR firm working on multiple clients honing her or his skills before moving into a corporate communications job which focuses on a single organisation. Corporate Communication jobs instantly makes the person a client which means added power and responsibility. It also comes with better salary and more perks. In recent times a person with 15-20 years’ experience in a PR firm and an in-house corporate communications department could potentially have a similar designation of a Senior Vice President or Executive Vice President and draw a similar salary ranging anywhere between 60 lakhs to a crore per annum. 

The only thing one does in a PR consultancy job that may not be needed in a Corporate Communication job is new business development. And the only thing that one may get an opportunity to do in a Corporate Communication job which may not be easily given to a PR company representative is to be the spokesperson. Besides these, on either side of the aisle the professional is expected to have fairly good writing skills and the ability to weave stories. Crisis preparedness and management is critical whether you are the consultant or the client. An understanding of how brands operate, and corporates work is important for both PR consultancy professionals and the corporate communications executive.

These days a lot of journalists with experience ranging from one year to twenty years are shifting to Corporate Communications and in some cases to PR consultancies. This is another interesting path to follow.

Organisational Hierarchy

In a Corporate Communication job, one typically reports to the Chief Executive. If the designation is Brand Communications or Marketing Communications the reporting maybe to the head of Marketing. Quite often the Chief Marketing Officer oversees communication as well. In this case the Head of Communications along with Head of Marketing reports to this person. In the case of a PR consultancy the reporting is internal and ends at the branch level of the consultancy level, but PR teams work closely with the client and sometimes end up reporting to the client who is typically a senior professional.

While a lot of youngsters like to start at corporates in the communication department I would strongly recommend spending at least three to four years in a PR consultancy before making the shift. It’s good to be a generalist working on clients from multiple sectors before settling for one specific sector. It also helps in becoming a better client. In the end to each their own.

Also read:

What Sets Apart the Best Programme in Public Relations

About the Author:

Amith Prabhu is the Founding Dean of SCoRe (School of COmmunications & REputation), and a native reputation management professional with over twelve years of experience having worked both in leading consultancies and in-house. He is the co-founder of PRAXIS. Amith was chosen as the Indian PR Professional of the Year in 2014. He writes India’s longest running weekly column on Public Relations.