CIPR PR in a Pandemic

#PRinAPandemic
A CIPR report exploring the impact of
the COVID-19 pandemic on the public
relations profession.

Introduction
Each year, the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) conducts industry-wide research
into the trends, issues, and challenges impacting the profession.
This year’s report includes that same industry-leading data on topics including salaries,
diversity, and wellbeing but with a real focus on how practitioners and the industry have
been impacted by the pandemic.
This data is combined with respondent views on how COVID-19 has changed the nature of
working in public relations and what it might mean for the future of the profession.
The #PRinaPandemic specialist study of the public relations sector authoritatively explores
the immediate impact of COVID-19 on the profession, and how it will develop, reflecting on
a truly challenging year and what this has meant to those working in the profession.
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#PRinAPandemic

Contents
3
#PRinAPandemic

Methodology
4
Executive Summary
6
Employment
Demographics
14
Pandemic impact
18
Pandemic impact
on employment
21
Pandemic impact on
reputation and influence
26
Pandemic impact on
business
32
Pandemic impact on
business: the future
38
Challenges
44
Activities
52
Income
63
Working patterns:
Working hours/
Home working
67
Mental health
75
About the Chartered
Institute of Public
Relations
79
About Chalkstream
81

The CIPR commissioned Chalkstream – an agency with a research specialism led by a Chartered
PR practitioner – to deliver research support in the form of an online survey of both CIPR
membership and non-members, designed by Chalkstream alongside the CIPR. The survey
included incentivisation in the form of an Amazon voucher for £100.
The online survey was launched on 23 March 2021 and
closed on 19 April 2021. Invitations to complete the survey
were sent by email to CIPR members and those signed
up to the Institute’s non-member mailing list as well as via
social media channels.
A total of 1,386 people took the survey, with 1,029
completing the questionnaire in full and 357 partial
completions.
The online survey was complemented by ten,
predominantly qualitative interviews with members and
non-members following a call from the CIPR to represent
a range of different practitioner types – in relation to
seniority, organisation type, job title, length of service,
gender, ethnicity and location.
Many thanks to the following for volunteering to take
part and whose quotes from these interviews are used
throughout this report:
•
Caroline Black, consultancy/agency managing director,
based in London
• Rauf Hameed, independent practitioner, based in
Pakistan
• Emma Huffam, consultancy/agency client manager, based
in Northern Ireland
• Hayley James, in-house public sector assistant director
and CIPR Board member (2021), based in the North West
• Emma Mackintosh, in-house public sector manager,
based in Wales
• Sarah Pinch, consultancy/agency managing director, and
former CIPR President, based in the South West
• Pippa Treavett, consultancy/agency account director,
based in the Channel Islands and London
• Alex Whittingham, in-house private sector manager,
based in London
• Jule Wilson, in-house not-for-profit / NGO and
independent practitioner, based in the North East
• Mine Zaim, in-house private sector executive officer,
based in London
Percentages in data tables throughout this report have
been rounded up or down where relevant and may not add
up to 100% in all cases.
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#PRinAPandemic

Methodology
About Chalkstream
About the Chartered Institute of Public Relations
Mental health
Working patterns: Working hours/Home working
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact on business: the future
Pandemic impact on business
Pandemic impact on reputation and influence
Pandemic impact on employment
Pandemic impact
Employment Demographics
Executive Summary

Executive
Summary
A rocket in reputation and influence
A year of change
The uneven impact of COVID-19
Working hours, mental health and wellbeing
The toll on public sector employees
A future shaped by recent past
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#PRinAPandemic

A rocket in reputation and influence
During the pandemic, demand propelled public relations into new areas within organisations
at greater intensity, which in turn has had positive implications for its perceived value.
The increased value and reputation of PR is identified as the most significantly positive impact
of COVID-19 on the profession. The increased demand was predominantly driven by the
challenges presented by the pandemic and the need:
• to shift at speed from offline channels to digital;
• for crisis and issues communication expertise in
responding to rapidly changing situations;
• to engage employees in a turbulent operating context,
sometimes weighed down by a significant change
management burden; and
• to reconfigure stakeholder relations as a result of
considerable shifts in the influence and interests of
different groups.
The demands made of the public relations function
resulted in an increased level of activity and, in turn, higher
expectations. The activities that saw the biggest increase
in demand were crisis and issues management, internal/
employee communication, community and stakeholder
relations, strategic planning, and social media relations.
Agency and consultancy practitioners reported an
increase in client demands for strategic counsel and better
evaluation and measurement.
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Executive Summary
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Methodology

A year of change
More than one in five PR practitioners changed their role in the past 12 months. Movement
was not typically being fuelled by redundancy or restructure but by individual ambition. Most
of those who changed roles had changed jobs or received a promotion, while 7% of those who
changed roles went independent.
The pandemic has had a fundamental impact on the nature
of working in public relations. There has been an increase
in almost all public relations activities. The most significant
growth in terms of activity corresponds to demands
generated by the pandemic – the need to engage with
a remote workforce, to communicate in a crisis, and to
map and respond to a changing stakeholder landscape.
The wider diversity of PR activities that practitioners have
been undertaken appears to result from the fact that most
practitioners generally found themselves busier.
Where activities have declined, it seems they were replaced
by more immediate, reactive needs.
“Whilst the rest of the business was
still going in and out of furlough, as
a communications team we were
extremely busy. It never let up...
We were doing the business as
usual; we were covering other roles
within the communications and
marketing team and we were then
also managing the Coronavirus
crisis comms.”
Alex Whittingham, in-house private sector
manager
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Executive Summary
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Methodology

The uneven impact of COVID-19
The pandemic experience of practitioners differs widely according to a number of factors.
The fortunes of agencies, consultancies and independent
practitioners have tended to depend on the sectors in
which they operate. A minority have been hit hard in terms
of turnover and sales pipelines and these tend to cluster
in the same sectors where practitioners have experienced
decreased working hours and/or income. At the other end
of the scale are agencies and independent practitioners
who have been extremely productive. For the majority of
in-house practitioners, the story of the pandemic is one
of increased demand, workload and reputation, balanced
against blows to wellbeing and morale.
In terms of income, independent practitioners have been
disproportionately affected – those who have kept busy
had retained income whereas a third have lost clients,
business, and working hours.
Seniority and experience play a role in how people’s
income has been affected. The most senior practitioners
are least likely to report that their income has stayed the
same, with those practitioners reporting both the biggest
decreases and the greatest increases in income. Male
practitioners are twice as likely as females to have seen a
decline in their income over the past year.
UK practitioners were overwhelmingly able to work from
home during the pandemic with only 6% working away
from home in an office or other setting. In contrast, around
a quarter of practitioners outside of the UK were working
away from home.
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Executive Summary
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Methodology

Working hours, mental health and wellbeing
Working hours dramatically increased during the pandemic for the majority of practitioners
across organisation types and at various levels of seniority.
In particular, female practitioners, those working in-house
in the public sector, and those employed in Head of PR/
Communications or Associate Directors are more likely on
average to have reported an increase in working hours. The
situation for independent practitioners, on the other hand,
is tripartite – a third have seen an increase in working hours,
a third have stayed the same and a third have seen their
hours shrink.
Practitioners are five times more likely to say that their
mental health has deteriorated over the past 12 months
than improved.
Those working in-house in the private and public sectors
are most likely to say that their mental health has
deteriorated, with independent practitioners least likely.
Those in the most senior roles were the only group to say
their mental health has stayed the same or improved, rather
than deteriorated. Females are more likely than males to
say their mental health has deteriorated.
The mental health impact has been felt more acutely by
those in more junior roles; one in ten respondents say
that their mental health has deteriorated significantly
over the past 12 months, and these respondents are
disproportionately younger and in more junior posts. Over
half of interns, trainees, assistants, and executives and
officers report their mental health as having deteriorated in
the last 12 months.
The mental health of practitioners is seen as the main
challenge facing the profession in the next 12 months. This
is especially true of younger practitioners with more senior
practitioners identifying fake news and disinformation and a
possible recession as a greater risk.
Practitioners are more likely to believe their working hours
will increase rather than decrease over the coming months,
although the majority predict they will stay the same. Those
working in-house in the private sector expect their hours
to increase more than practitioners in any other type of
organisation. Those employed in more junior roles are most
likely to expect their hours to increase.
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Executive Summary
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Methodology

The toll on public sector employees
Those employed in-house in the public sector are reported to have experienced the most
dramatic changes in terms of demand, working hours, and wellbeing as a result of the pandemic.
They reported a greater increase in crisis and issues
management than practitioners in other types of
organisations as well as an increase in influence among
senior leaders and at board level. Public sector teams were
significantly less likely to have furloughed staff – many
unable to access the furlough scheme – compared to
other organisation types and were far more likely to see an
increase in the size of their teams.
In-house public sector managers predict slower growth in
terms of staff numbers in the coming months compared to
respondents working in other types of organisations.
In-house public sector practitioners are among those most
likely to consider the mental health of practitioners to be
the biggest challenge facing the profession.
“When Covid hit we became very
focussed straightway. The whole
organisation was all pulling towards
a single goal, which was really
fascinating.”
Emma Mackintosh, in-house public sector
manager
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Executive Summary
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Methodology

A future shaped by recent past
Predictions as to the future of the profession are strongly shaped by personal experience gained
over the past year.
Practitioners typically expect to return to tasks that
they have abandoned or put on hold as a result of the
pandemic. These activities differ depending on organisation
type, with only in-house public sector respondents
expecting to be engaged in more crisis communication
over the next year compared to the last.
On balance, practitioners are optimistic about the trajectory
of the reputation of public relations, with the majority of
practitioners expecting it to continue to increase or stay the
same.
Perhaps as a result, those in management roles expect
recruitment to increase rather than decrease in the next
12 months, with the majority expecting it to remain
unchanged. Consultancies and agencies report to be more
likely to be recruiting compared to other organisation
types.
Practitioners are more likely to believe their working hours
will increase rather than decrease with those working
in-house in the private sector predicting a greater rise
compared to those in other organisation types. This is
particularly true of those in the most junior roles and those
working in consultancies and agencies.
There has been a considerable shift in what practitioners
consider to be challenges facing the profession compared
to pre-pandemic. Almost all the challenges previously
identified have been replaced by new ones, with over half
of respondents seeing the mental health of practitioners
as the biggest challenge with a recession and job
losses second. Only the emergence of fake news and
disinformation was seen as a bigger threat to the profession
compared to pre-pandemic. The challenges of under-
representation of PR at board level and unethical practice
have both fallen considerably in the view of respondents.
“Organisations are recognising
the impact and the need to have
that reputational, strategic view at
a higher level than they ever did
before.”
Hayley James, in-house public sector
assistant director
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Executive Summary
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Methodology

“I think certainly from the broader
staff engagement piece, of which
we do huge amounts of work, none
of the usual methods that people
were using for reassurance were
there. So, they were looking to
organisations like ours to help them
cope with that.”
Sarah Pinch, Consultancy/agency managing
director, South West
#PRinAPandemic
13

Employment
demographics
Age group
Gender
Ethnic group
Organisation type
– Current employment
– Role
– Time in PR
Region
14
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100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Age Group Gender Ethnic Group
16 to 24 3%
25 to 34 25%
35 to 44 31%
45 to 54 26%
55 to 64 14%
65 to 74 1%
75+ 1%
Male 32%
Female 68%
White 88%
Mixed/ 3%
multiple
Asian/ 3%
Asian British
Black/African/ 4%
Caribbean/
Black British
Other 2%
15
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Current employment
Organisation type and seniority:
Role Time in PR (years)

In-house 19%
in private sector

In-house 36%
in public sector

In-house 14%
for not-for-profit
organisation

Consultancy/ 20%
agency

Independent 11%
practitioner

Intern/Trainee/ 4%
Assistant/Executive
Officer 16%
Manager 34%

Head of 19%
Communications/
Executive Director

Director/ 25%
Partner/Founder/
Managing Director
Other 3%
Less than 1%
1 year
1 to 4 13%
5 to 9 19%
10 to 12 13%
13 to 16 14%
17 to 21 13%
21+ 27%
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About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Region
London 24%
South East 11%
Outside of 9%
the UK
Scotland 8%
North West 7%
South West 7%
East of England 6%
West Midlands 6%
Wales 5%
Yorkshire and 5%
the Humber

Northern 5%
Ireland
East Midlands 4%
North East 3%
Channel Islands 1%
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About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Pandemic impact Impact of COVID-19 on the profession
– Positive impact of COVID-19 on the profession
– Negative impact of COVID-19 on the profession
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Respondents were asked whether they felt COVID-19 has had an overall positive or negative
impact on the profession. Based on their response, they were then invited to suggest what they
felt were the factors that contributed most to their view.
Impact of COVID-19 on profession
Response

Positive 40%

Negative 29%

Mixed 20%
Neutral 10%
None 1%
“I think that things have been
really tough for people, but I think
that also drives creativity. It drives
people to have to approach things
in a different way and I think that
there are some amazing companies
that are doing extraordinary things
within the industry and that is
lovely to see still.”
Pippa Treavett, Consultancy/agency account
director
19
#PRinAPandemic

Pandemic impact
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Executive Summary
Methodology

120%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
120%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Top Responses
Top Responses

Negative impact on
staff wellbeing/morale 16%

Decreased value/reputation
of PR 16%

Increase in workload 12%

Increased staff turnover/
job losses/furlough 12%

Negative financial impact 11%

Reduction in face-to-face
working 7%

(Poor) Government guidance/
handling 6%

Digital transformation 5%

Demand for crisis
management 4%

More reactive/responsive 4%

Uncertainty in profession 4%

Lack of resources/pay issue 3%

Reduction in demand
for services 3%

Increased value/reputation
of public relation 85%

Positive digital transformation 9%

More adaptable function 5%

Remote or flexible working a
benefit to function 4%

Increased demand for crisis
management services 3%
More innovation 3%
Positive impact of COVID-19 on the profession Negative impact of COVID-19 on profession
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Pandemic impact
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Executive Summary
Methodology

Pandemic impact
on employment
Furlough by organisation type
Pandemic impact on role
Reason for role change
Team / department size
Employment; the future

The number of staff employed over
next 12 months overall
–
The number of staff employed
over next 12 months by
organisation type
21
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Furlough by organisation type
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
Consultancy / Agency
Furloughed staff

In-house private sector 56%

In-house public sector 17%

In-house NFP/NGO 66%

Consultancy / Agency 57%
Not furloughed staff

In-house private sector 40%
In-house public sector 80%
In-house NFP/NGO 33%
Consultancy / Agency 41%
22
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About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Pandemic impact on role
Reason for role change
% of respondents

Changed role 22%

Stayed in same role 78%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%

Change of job 44%

Job promotion 28%

Redundancy 13%

Now self employed 7%
Other 5%
Restructure 3%
Time off work 1%
Work / income reduced 1%

Additional
responsibilities 1%
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About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Team / Department size
Those in a management role were next asked about the size of their team and how this was
impacted in the short term by the pandemic.
Team size by organisation type

Decreased significantly 4%

Decreased somewhat 17%

Stayed about the same 50%
Increased somewhat 20%
Increased significantly 6%
Don’t know 3%

Decreased significantly

Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
Increased significantly
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
Consultancy /
Agency
7%
13%
52%
18%
8%
6%
30%
47%
13%
2%
5%
20%
46%
23%
5%
5%
13%
54%
18%
4%
Team / Department size overall
24
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About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Employment: the future
Those in a management role were next asked about their expectations in relation to staff
employment over the coming 12 months.
The number of staff employed
over next 12 months overall
The number of staff employed over
next 12 months by organisation type

Decrease significantly 2%

Decrease somewhat 13%

Staye about the same 47%
Increase somewhat 32%
Increase significantly 4%
Don’t know 3%

Decrease significantly

Decrease somewhat

Stay about the same
Increase somewhat
Increase significantly
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
Consultancy /
Agency
8%
31%
40%
18%
2%
2% 1%
20%
25%
7%
53%
36%
2%
1%
57%
11%
1%
55%
18%
3%
25
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Pandemic impact
on reputation and
influence

Agencies, consultancies, and
independent practitioners
–
The reputation of public relations
among clients over past 12 months
–
Reputation among clients by
organisation type
–
Reputation of PR in the organisation

In-house practitioners
–
Influence among senior leaders for in-
house practitioners
–
Influence of PR among senior
leadership
–
Influence of PR at board level
–
Influence of PR at board level by
organisation type
–
Reputation of PR in organisations by
organisation type

Reputation and influence; the future
–
Reputation of PR among clients over
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Don’t know 5%





Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
Consultancy /
Agency
Consultancy /
Agency
Independent
practitioner
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
19%
39%
30%
8%
10%
41%
37%
4%
2%
1%
Agencies, consultancies, and independent practitioners
Those in a management role working in agencies, consultancies, and as independent practitioners were asked about the
reputation of public relations among clients over the past 12 months.
The reputation of public relations
among clients over past 12 months
Reputation among clients
by organisation type
Reputation of PR in the
organisation
“Comms and PR is one of those
things that people don’t generally
understand and you are fighting
to be valued. It is something that
the industry doesn’t really prepare
you for and it can become really
disheartening and you can become
disillusioned with it... I’m not
feeling so much of that now...”
Jule Wilson, in-house not-for-profit/NGO
manager and independent practitioner
27
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology



Don’t know 3%
In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
19%
43%
29%
4%
29%
41%
18%
8%
21%
41%
30%
2%
2%
2% 1%
In-house practitioners
Respondents working in-house in a management role were asked about the reputation of public relations in the organisation.
Influence among senior leaders for
in-house practitioners
Influence of PR among senior leadership
28
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About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology



Don’t know 8%
In-house
private sector
In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
In-house
NFP/NGO
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
15%
18% 15%
29%
44%
36%
31%
5%
33%
37%
5%
19%
39%
30%
8%
10%
28%
39%
27%
41%
37%
4%
1%
2%
2%
1%
2%
1%
3% 3%
Influence of PR at board level Influence of PR at board level by organisation type
Reputation of PR in organisations by organisation type
29
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Reputation and influence: the future
Practitioners in a management role and independent practitioners were next asked about their expectations in relation to the
reputation of PR among clients.
Reputation of PR among clients and within organisations over next 12 months

Don’t know


Decrease somewhat

Stay about the same
Increase somewhat
“I have really made the connection
between the day job of being what
my coach calls ‘the person in the
watchtower’ as a communicator
and taking that into boardrooms.
What we do day in day out
within the business, and actually
articulating that is a really good set
of skills for a non-Exec Director and
I feel very optimistic about that.”
director
1%
8%
45%
43%
7%
7%
50%
30%
5%
2% 1%
1%
In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
Consultancy /
Agency
Independent
practitioner
120%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
5%
10%
36%
47%
7%
3%
39%
44%
6%
11%
5%
34%
47%
3%
2%
1% 1% 1%
30
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

“What does normality mean now?
I’d be very surprised if we are back
in work five days a week, so how do
we ensure that we get that balance
right with hybrid working? There
will be some physical meetings
in the office and for some it will
remain virtual. The bigger your
team the more difficult that will
be...It’s about having a clarity on
the channel landscape that the
business has and the purpose of
those channels and the limitations
of those channels to complement
that hybrid working strategy.”
Alex Whittingham, In-house private
sector manager
31
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Pandemic impact
on business

Consultancy / agency and independent
practitioner; impact on business
–
Top responses
–
Agencies, consultancies, and
independent practitioner rates during
the pandemic
–
Rates charged to clients by
organisation type
–
Sales pipeline during the pandemic
–
Sales pipeline by organisation type
Client base
–
Client base by organisation type
–
How client base changed during the
pandemic
–
How client PR needs changed during
the pandemic
In-House Teams
–
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on
the organisation
–
How organisation PR needs have
changed
32
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Practitioners were asked their views on the business impact of COVID-19 on their organisations
including rates, the sales pipeline, client base, changing client needs, PR needs of organisations
and how the pandemic has changed their business practices.
120%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%


Remote working/less face-to-face contact 15%

Decreased workload/demand 12%

Increased workload/demand/pressure 11%

Uncertainty/more cautious client base 8%

Poorer staff morale/well-being/ mental health 8%

Shift to digital communication channels 7%

Increased value of PR/Comms 5%

Processes have slowed/projects delayed 4%

Changes to working practices – general 4%

Job losses/lower salaries 3%

Reactive/short term projects 3%

Client priorities changed 3%

No change 3%
Consultancy/agency and independent practitioners
Impact on business
“We took on a large number of
new clients in 2020 and I think that
I have actually met only one of
them, which was in the break when
we were allowed to meet people
in October. And that has been
very strange because usually we
spend a lot of time with our clients
and a lot of time understanding
their business and getting to
know them.”
director
33
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Consultancy / agency and independent
practitioner rates during pandemic
Sales pipeline during pandemic
Rates charged to clients by organisation type
Sales pipeline by organisation type



Don’t know 5%



Don’t know 9%


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
Consultancy /
Agency
Consultancy /
Agency
Independent
practitioner
Independent
practitioner
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
18%
11%
32%
23%
19%
7%
6%
24%
24%
22%
17%
17%
3%
56%
17%
62%
9%
4%
1%
4%
34
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Client base
Client base over the past 12 months by organisation type
How client base changed during the pandemic


Changed 55%

Don’t know 5%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Consultancy /
Agency
Independent
practitioner
Changed
Stayed about the same

Don’t know

Growth in client numbers/business 34%

Diversification of client types/sectors 27%

Decline in client numbers/business 24%

More short-term projects 3%

Increase in digital support clients 4%

Work put on hold 3%

Clients have reprioritised 2%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Top Responses
53%
8%
60%
33%
44%
3%
“I feel that we have just come
through the world’s biggest
campaign and it’s still going on.”
Emma Mackintosh, In-house public sector
manager
35
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

How client PR needs changed during the pandemic
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%

Increased demand for digital support 20%

Increased demand – general 17%

Increased demand for strategic counsel 12%

Require ROI evidence / improved evaluation 12%

Increased demand for crisis management support 9%

More short term / reactive support required 7%

Change of focus - general 5%

Increased use of social media 5%

Increased demand for innovation / creativity 2%

Lower volume of service required 2%

Increased demand for relationship management support 2%
“I think that everything still comes
down to whether an organisation
sees value in that communication,
in that engagement and public
relations. More companies I feel do
... I think that there will be more of
a shift in organisations to develop
their internal and external PR teams
because everyone has seen the
value of it.”
Alex Whittingham, In-house private sector
manager
36
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

In-house teams
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
on the organisation
How organisation PR needs have changed
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%

Remote or flexible working/
less face-to-face contact 18%


Negative impact on staff
wellbeing/morale 9%

Organisational change/new
operational procedures 8%
Digital transformation 7%

Increased demand for services 6%

Improved communication –
internal and/or external 4%

Increased demands on staff
(general) 4%

Impact of COVID regulations
(specifically) 3%

Redundancies 3%

Increased demand – general 29%

Increased demand for
employee engagement 22%

Increased demand for public
health communications 11%

Stakeholder change/
complexity 11%

crisis communication 10%

digital communication 8%

media liaison 7%

reputation management 4%

More reactive 4%

strategic communications 4%

social media support 3%

campaigns 2%
120%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
“We quite quickly had to adapt to
the daily rhythm of doing the same
thing day in, day out, reporting
on things, horizon scanning; the
things that we would normally do,
but over a much longer period.
Everything was crammed into a
24-hour cycle, so it has certainly
enhanced my crisis management
skills.”
Emma Mackintosh, In-house public sector
manager
37
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Pandemic impact
on business:
the future

Future public relations needs

PR needs of organisation and clients in

How client PR needs will change over
next 12 months

Client base over next 12 months by
organisation type

How client base will change over next
12 months
38
#PRinAPandemic

In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
Consultancy /
Agency
Independent
practitioner

Don’t know

Change in the
following ways...

Stay about the same
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
5%
31%
64%
6%
35%
59%
8%
35%
57%
7%
39%
53%
19%
36%
45%
Future public relations needs
Practitioners were asked their views about the impact of the pandemic on business operations
and the needs of clients and their organisations over the next 12 months.
PR needs of organisation and clients in next 12 months
“I think that the job market is really
buoyant. I am in the North and the
addition of home working opens
up places like the North West to
positions and opportunities that
would not otherwise be available.
We have also got the movement of
government out of London.”
Hayley James, In-house public sector
assistant director
39
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

How client PR needs will change over next 12 months
Agency, consultancy, independent practitioner response
120%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%

Increased demand for digital communication support 19%

Increased demand - general 12%

Change of focus/adaptability 9%

strategic counsel 9%

Improved communications among client base 8%

Requirement for post-pandemic recovery support 6%

Increased demand for remote working support 4%

More reactive/ad-hoc/short term work 4%

I don’t know 4%

Return to pre COVID activities including events 4%

Increased demand for crisis planning support 3%

Increased demand for reputation management support 3%

Increased demand for stakeholder engagement support 3%

Financial constraints will affect requirements 3%

Higher expectations of PR outcomes 2%

Other 22%
“When you are working on a
project and you are communicating
and working alongside those
more senior stakeholders, you do
need to manage upwards and be
more concise with your messages.
Probably more so than we have
previously because their workload
has just exploded over the last year
and a half”
manager
40
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%

Increased needs (generally) to meet stakeholder demand 17%

Increased demand for strategic communication 11%

Increased demand for digital communication 10%

Quality of communications will improve - general 7%

Requirement for post-pandemic recovery support 5%

Return to pre COVID days including events 4%

Increased demand for stakeholder engagement support 3%

Increased demand for creative communications 3%

More resource will be made available to the function 2%

Increased demand for remote working support 2%

More focussed - generally 2%

Fewer resources will be made available to the function 1%

Increased demand for marketing support 1%

Increased demand for fundraising or sponsorship support 1%

Increased demand for change management support 1%

Increased demand for more proactive / bold PR 1%

Increased demand for adaptive function 1%

Increased demand for public affairs support 1%

No change 1%

Things still uncertain 1%

Other 25%
How client PR needs will change over next 12 months
In-house response
“Every existing client has said to
me ‘Can you transfer what you do
in the classroom online?’ So, in fact,
I have had an enormous amount
of work to do translating what I
would normally do face to face into
what is suitable for and effective on
social media platforms like Zoom.”
Caroline Black, Consultancy/agency
managing director
41
#PRinAPandemic

Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Methodology

Don’t know

Change in the
following ways...

Stay about the same
Consultancy / Agency Independent practitioner
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Client base over next 12 months by organisation type
11%
51%
38%
19%
39%
41%
42
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

120%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%

It will grow/increase - general 59%
Diversify - general 7%
Diversify - new sectors 7%
It will shrink/decrease - general 7%
Diversify according to need 7%

Increase - more international
clients 2%
Consolidate - fewer sectors 2%
More demanding client base 2%
Don’t know 2%
The value of PR will increase 2%
Other 10%
How client base will change over next 12 months
43
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Challenges
Main challenges facing PR over the
next 12 months


next 12 months by seniority

next 12 months by age group

next 12 months by gender

next 12 months by ethnicity
44
#PRinAPandemic

All respondents were asked about the main challenges facing public relations over the next
12 months. These are compared to challenges previously identified by practitioners according
to previous research.
Main challenges facing PR over the next 12 months
“I think that last year has shown
the art of the possible and I don’t
think that we will ever potentially
get back to those enormous
conferences and people flying
around the world because it has
been shown that amazing things
can be achieved [without that],
but I am looking forward to seeing
some other PR professionals and
having a good old networking
event.”
Pippa Treavett, Consultancy/agency account
director
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Pre-pandemic
position from
CIPR’s State of the
Profession 2020
Mental health problems among practitioners 51% N/A
Recession / job losses 48% N/A
Dominance of digital channels 38% =
Fake news / disinformation 38% 6 (+2)

Loss of personal interaction between
practitioners and broader workforce 34% N/A
Stakeholders / publics working remotely (generally) 32% N/A
Longer working hours among practitioners 30% N/A
Loss of personal interaction between practitioners 25% N/A)

An expanding skills set required of
individual practitioners / loss of specialisation 20% 5 (-4)
Lack of diversity among PR practitioners 18% 7 (-3)
Not being seen as a professional discipline 14% 2 (-9)
Convergence with other disciplines 13% 8 (-4)
Under-representation of practitioners at board level 13% 1 (-12)
PR practitioner productivity issues 12% N/A
Automation / Artificial Intelligence 10% 10 (-5)
A lack of collective self-belief and confidence 9% 11 (-5)
Unethical practice 9% 3 (-14)
Lack of analytical skills 7% 9 (-9)
Broader workforce productivity issues 6% N/A
Something else 3%
45
#PRinAPandemic

Challenges
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Recession
/
Job
losses
Loss
of
personal
interaction
between
practitioners
Loss
of
personal
interaction
between
practitioners
…
Stakeholders
/
publics
working
remotely
(generally)
Dominance
of
digital
channels
Longer
working
hours
among
practitioners
Mental
health
problems
among
practitioners
PR
practitioner
productivity
issues
Broader
workforce
productivity
issues
Fake
news
/
disinformation
Automation
/
Artificial
Intelligence
Unethical
practice
Under-representation
of
practitioners
at
board
level
An
expanding
skill
set
required
of
individual
practitioners
Lack
of
diversity
among
PR
practitioners
A
lack
of
collective
self-belief
and
confidence
Convergence
with
other
disciplines
Not
being
seen
as
a
professional
discipline
Lack
of
analytical
skills
Something
else
None
of
the
above
Don't
know
In-house private sector
In-house public sector
In-house NFP / NGO
Consultancy / agency
Independent practitioner
“I’m excited to see where we can go with
the technology and approach to how we
communicate internally within organisations.
Are there going to be some major shift
changes from a technology and behaviour
point of view that allows us to be really
connected and seamlessly communicate
over a variety of channels with a couple of
clicks? The pandemic has forced us to get
comfortable with virtual meetings so do we
evolve this approach or look at different
avenues to account for hybrid working?
There is a lot of scope for us to improve
that and it is quite exciting to see where we
could take that within the industry.”
Pippa Treavett, Consultancy/agency account director
46
#PRinAPandemic

Challenges
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

by seniority
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Recession
/
Job
losses
Loss
of
personal
interaction
between
practitioners
Loss
of
personal
interaction
between
practitioners
…
Stakeholders
/
publics
working
remotely
(generally)
Dominance
of
digital
channels
Longer
working
hours
among
practitioners
Mental
health
problems
among
practitioners
PR
practitioner
productivity
issues
Broader
workforce
productivity
issues
Fake
news
/
disinformation
Automation
/
Artificial
Intelligence
Unethical
practice
of
practitioners
at
board
level
An
expanding
skill
set
required
of
individual
practitioners
Lack
of
diversity
among
PR
practitioners
A
lack
of
collective
self-belief
and
confidence
Convergence
with
other
disciplines
Not
being
seen
as
a
professional
discipline
Lack
of
analytical
skills
Something
else
None
of
the
above
Don't
know
Intern / Trainee / Asst / Exec
Officer
Manager
Head of Comms / AD
Director/ Partner / Founder / M
47
#PRinAPandemic

Challenges
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

by age group
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Recession
/
Job
losses
Loss
of
personal
interaction
between
practitioners
Loss
of
personal
interaction
between
practitioners
…
Stakeholders
/
publics
working
remotely
(generally)
Dominance
of
digital
channels
Longer
working
hours
among
practitioners
Mental
health
problems
among
practitioners
PR
practitioner
productivity
issues
Broader
workforce
productivity
issues
Fake
news
/
disinformation
Automation
/
Artificial
Intelligence
Unethical
practice
of
practitioners
at
board
level
An
expanding
skill
set
required
of
individual
practitioners
Lack
of
diversity
among
PR
practitioners
A
lack
of
collective
self-belief
and
confidence
Convergence
with
other
disciplines
Not
being
seen
as
a
professional
discipline
Lack
of
analytical
skills
Something
else
None
of
the
above
Don't
know
16 to 24
25 to 34
35 to 44
45 to 54
55 to 64
65 to 74
“At the moment I can talk to, and
often do talk to, five different
organisations in one day and I
might [remotely] attend three
different board meetings in one
day. If I am expected to be there
in person that is not going to be
physically possible.”
director
48
#PRinAPandemic

Challenges
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

by gender
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Recession
/
Job
losses
Loss
of
personal
interaction
between
practitioners
Loss
of
personal
interaction
between
practitioners
…
Stakeholders
/
publics
working
remotely
(generally)
Dominance
of
digital
channels
Longer
working
hours
among
practitioners
Mental
health
problems
among
practitioners
PR
practitioner
productivity
issues
Broader
workforce
productivity
issues
Fake
news
/
disinformation
Automation
/
Artificial
Intelligence
Unethical
practice
of
practitioners
at
board
level
An
expanding
skill
set
required
of
individual
practitioners
Lack
of
diversity
among
PR
practitioners
A
lack
of
collective
self-belief
and
confidence
Convergence
with
other
disciplines
Not
being
seen
as
a
professional
discipline
Lack
of
analytical
skills
Something
else
None
of
the
above
Don't
know
Male
Female
“I think that in the next 24 months
that is what we are going to see,
a complete tightening of the belt
when it comes to budgets.”
Caroline Black, Consultancy/agency
managing director
49
#PRinAPandemic

Challenges
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

by ethnicity
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Recession
/
Job
losses
Loss
of
personal
interaction
between
practitioners
Loss
of
personal
interaction
between
practitioners
…
Stakeholders
/
publics
working
remotely
(generally)
Dominance
of
digital
channels
Longer
working
hours
among
practitioners
Mental
health
problems
among
practitioners
PR
practitioner
productivity
issues
Broader
workforce
productivity
issues
Fake
news
/
disinformation
Automation
/
Artificial
Intelligence
Unethical
practice
of
practitioners
at
board
level
An
expanding
skill
set
required
of
individual
practitioners
Lack
of
diversity
among
PR
practitioners
A
lack
of
collective
self-belief
and
confidence
Convergence
with
other
disciplines
Not
being
seen
as
a
professional
discipline
Lack
of
analytical
skills
Something
else
None
of
the
above
Don't
know
White
Multiple / Mixed ethnic groups
Asian / Asian British
Black / African / Caribbean / Black British
Other ethnic group
“It will be interesting to see how
‘hybrid’ works and can work. So I
think that there will be a challenge
when clients start asking for face to
face when they are so spread out
over the country.”
director
50
#PRinAPandemic

Challenges
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

“I was hired to set up a UK Office,
so I joined the organisation in
December 2019. It’s been a real
roller-coaster. I think that for
us as a team we’ve just been
really focussed on identifying
new opportunities so that we
can support existing clients, but
also building relationships and
securing UK clients too.”
Pippa Treavett, Consultancy/agency
account director
51
#PRinAPandemic

Activities
Public relations activities that have increased
in the past 12 months
–
PR activities that have increased in the past
12 months by organisation type
–
PR activities that have increased in the past
12 months by seniority

Public relations activities that have decreased
–
PR activities that have decreased in the past
12 months by organisation type
–
PR activities that have decreased in the past
12 months by seniority

Activities that practitioners expect to spend
the most time on in next 12 months
–
the most time on in next 12 months by
organisation type
–
the most time on in next 12 months by
seniority
52
#PRinAPandemic

Practitioners were next asked which public relations activities they are doing more of compared
to 12 months ago. These are compared with what practitioners reported to have spent most
time doing pre-pandemic according to previous research.
Public relations activities that have increased
“I am developing additional skills
and I have taken on additional
opportunities. It’s almost future-
proofing.”
director
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Movement from
last year’s State
of the Profession
report (position)
Crisis, issues management 50% +4 (5)
Internal/employee communication 46% +7 (9)
Community and stakeholder relations 42% +4 (7)
Strategic planning 40% -1 (3)
Social media relations 39% +1 (6)
Copywriting and editing 33% -5 (1)
PR programmes/campaigns 31% -6 (2)
Management of people, resources 29% +3 (11)
Media relations 29% -5 (4)
Research, evaluation, measurement 22% -2 (8)

Defining mission/values,
corporate governance 21% =3 (14)
Marketing 18% = (12)

Public affairs 18% +2 (15)
Technical/digital (excluding social media) 17% +3 (17)
Project, account, client management 14% -2 (13)
Events, conferences 13% -6 (10)
Influencer relations 13% -1 (16)
Financial, investor relations 5% = (18)
53
#PRinAPandemic

Activities
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

PR activities that have increased in the past 12 months by organisation type
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Community
and
stakeholder
relations
Copywriting
and
editing
Crisis,
issues
management
Events,
conferences
Financial,
investor
relations
Internal/employee
communication
Influencer
relations
Public
affairs
Defining
mission/values,
corporate
governance
Research,
evaluation,
measurement
Social
media
relations
Technical/digital
(exc
social
media)
Management
of
people,
resources
Marketing
Media
relations
PR
programmes/campaigns
Project,
account,
client
management
Strategic
planning
Don't
know
/
Not
applicable
In-house NFP / NGO
54
#PRinAPandemic

Activities
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

PR activities that have increased in the past 12 months by seniority
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Community
and
stakeholder
relations
Copywriting
and
editing
Crisis,
issues
management
Events,
conferences
Financial,
investor
relations
Internal/employee
communication
Influencer
relations
Public
affairs
Defining
mission/values,
corporate
governance
Research,
evaluation,
measurement
Social
media
relations
Technical/digital
(exc
social
media)
Management
of
people,
resources
Marketing
Media
relations
PR
Project,
account,
client
management
Strategic
planning
Don't
know
/
Not
applicable
Officer
Manager
Head of Comms / AD
Director / Partner / Founder / MD
55
#PRinAPandemic

Activities
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Public relations activities that have decreased
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%

Events, conferences 60%

Media relations 17%

PR programmes/campaigns 17%

Marketing 15%

Strategic planning 14%

Copywriting and editing 14%

Research, evaluation,
measurement 13%

Defining mission/values,
corporate governance 12%

Don’t know/Not applicable 11%

Influencer relations 11%

Community and stakeholder
relations 10%

Management of people,
resources 8%

Public affairs 8%

Project, account, client
management 7%

Financial, investor relations 7%

Internal/employee
communication 7%

Social media relations 6%

Crisis, issues management 6%

Technical/digital (excluding
social media) 5%
Activity
“The nature of the networking that
I do is now much more online as
you would imagine, but much less
of it, I’m finding. I think it is quality
rather than quantity now, and I
think that there have been some
positives in that respect.”
Jule Wilson, In-house not-for-profit/NGO
56
#PRinAPandemic

Activities
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

PR activities that have decreased in the past 12 months by organisation type
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Community
and
stakeholder
relations
Copywriting
and
editing
Crisis,
issues
management
Events,
conferences
Financial,
investor
relations
Internal/employee
communication
Influencer
relations
Public
affairs
Defining
mission/values,
corporate
governance
Research,
evaluation,
measurement
Social
media
relations
Technical/digital
(exc
social
media)
Management
of
people,
resources
Marketing
Media
relations
PR
Project,
account,
client
management
Strategic
planning
Don't
know
/
Not
applicable
In-house NFP / NGO
“[We have been] more creative
about how we could engage with
audiences…we had to look at
different ways to be innovative
and creative as to how we could
share stories. I think that we have
diversified [from media relations].”
Emma Huffam, Consultancy/agency client
manager
57
#PRinAPandemic

Activities
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

PR activities that have decreased in the past 12 months by seniority
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Community
and
stakeholder
relations
Copywriting
and
editing
Crisis,
issues
management
Events,
conferences
Financial,
investor
relations
Internal/employee
communication
Influencer
relations
Public
affairs
Defining
mission/values,
corporate
governance
Research,
evaluation,
measurement
Social
media
relations
Technical/digital
(exc
social
media)
Management
of
people,
resources
Marketing
Media
relations
PR
Project,
account,
client
management
Strategic
planning
Don't
know
/
Not
applicable
Officer
Manager
Head of Comms / AD
58
#PRinAPandemic

Activities
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

All practitioners were asked about the public relations activities they expect to spend the most
time on in the next 12 months.
Activities that practitioners expect to spend the most time on
in next 12 months
Response
60%
40%
20%
0%

PR programmes/campaigns 54%

Strategic planning 52%

Community and stakeholder relations 48%

Media relations 42%

Social media relations 42%

Internal/employee communication 41%

Crisis, issues management 36%

Copywriting and editing 32%

Research, evaluation, measurement 31%

Management of people, resources 30%

Defining mission/values, corporate governance 24%

Public affairs 22%

Marketing 21%

Influencer relations 20%

Events, conferences 20%

Project, account, client management 18%

Technical/digital (excluding social media) 18%

Financial, investor relations 7%

Don’t know 2%

None of the above 1%
59
#PRinAPandemic

Activities
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Activities that practitioners expect to spend the most time on in next 12 months
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Community
and
stakeholder
relations
Copywriting
and
editing
Crisis,
issues
management
Events,
conferences
Financial,
investor
relations
Internal/employee
communication
Influencer
relations
Public
affairs
Defining
mission/values,
corporate
governance
Research,
evaluation,
measurement
Social
media
relations
Technical/digital
(exc
social
media)
Management
of
people,
resources
Marketing
Media
relations
PR
Project,
account,
client
management
Strategic
planning
None
of
the
above
Don’t
know
In-house NFP / NGO
60
#PRinAPandemic

Activities
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Activities that practitioners expect to spend the most time on in next 12 months
by seniority
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Community
and
stakeholder
relations
Copywriting
and
editing
Crisis,
issues
management
Events,
conferences
Financial,
investor
relations
Internal/employee
communication
Influencer
relations
Public
affairs
Defining
mission/values,
corporate
governance
Research,
evaluation,
measurement
Social
media
relations
Technical/digital
(exc
social
media)
Management
of
people,
resources
Marketing
Media
relations
PR
Project,
account,
client
management
Strategic
planning
None
of
the
above
Don’t
know
Officer
Manager
Head of Comms / AD
61
#PRinAPandemic

Activities
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

“I think that people are being
more discerning with regards to
Covid because they know that
they haven’t necessarily got as
much money ...I think that they are
making sure that they are engaging
with practitioners who have got
a really good track record or are
recommended.”
Jule Wilson, In-house, not-for-profit/NGO
62
#PRinAPandemic

Income Practitioner Income
–
Income from PR over past 12 months by
organisation type
–
Income from PR over past 12 months by seniority
–
Income from PR over past 12 months by gender
63
#PRinAPandemic

Practitioners were next asked about changes to their income from public relations over the
past 12 months.
Practitioner income



Don’t know 1%
Income from PR over past 12 months by organisation type
In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
Consultancy /
Agency
Independent
practitioner
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
5% 6%
13%
75%
5%
1%
4%
11%
25%
45%
14%
5%
10%
21%
22%
24%
23%
15%
69%
7%
3%
18%
61%
13%
3%
64
#PRinAPandemic

Income
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Income from PR over past 12 months by seniority
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Intern/trainee/assistant/
executive
Officer Manager Head of comms/
Associate Director
Director/partner/
founder/MD


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
8%
17%
47%
17%
6%
4%
14%
72%
6%
2%
6%
18%
64%
9%
2%
7%
18%
67%
6%
11%
18%
41%
18%
11%
2%
65
#PRinAPandemic

Income
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Income from PR over past 12 months by gender
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Male Female


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
7%
18%
53%
14%
8%
7%
17%
63%
9%
3%
66
#PRinAPandemic

Income
About Chalkstream
Mental health
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Working patterns:
Working hours/
Home working

Home working status by organisation type

Home working status by seniority
Working hours
–
Working hours over past 12 months
–
by seniority
–
by gender

Working patterns; the future
–
Working hours over the next 12 months – overall
–
Working hours over the next 12 months
–
Working hours over the next 12 months
by seniority
67
#PRinAPandemic

100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
Consultancy /
Agency

Worked away from home

Worked from home in a
different region to my
organisation

Worked from home in
the region where my
organisation is based
Home working status by organisation type
9%
20%
72%
5%
19%
76%
5%
22%
74%
6%
15%
79%
“Everybody seems to have no time
now. We are all working longer
hours but there seems to be no
time. So even when you grab
someone on a quick call, you get a
sense that people are trying to get
to the end of it as soon as possible
so they can go onto another one.”
manager
68
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Home working status by seniority
executive
Associate Director
Director/partner/
founder/MD
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%

Worked away from home

Worked from home in a
different region to my
organisation

Worked from home in
the region where my
organisation is based
“When you are in a team and you
are beside your manager day in day
out, there is that level of comfort
and that’s been totally ripped off
you like a plaster, when you go to
working from home.”
Emma Huffam, Consultancy/agency client
manager
17%
23%
60%
4% 4%
20%
76%
5%
25%
70%
8%
17%
76%
12%
84%
69
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Working hours



Don’t know 0%
Working hours over past 12 months by organisation type


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
Consultancy /
Agency
Independent
practitioner
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
“I have been really busy. I haven’t
been promoting myself at all
because I have been at capacity
for quite some time. Actually, I was
really surprised because I expected
the clients that I did have last year
to mostly start to fall away because
of the pandemic. I expected people
to be having immediate reactions
to their marketing spend and so I
imagined that there would be a bit
of a pause on some work but there
wasn’t really.”
22%
38%
27%
6%
7%
40%
29% 30%
15%
23%
32%
16%
14%
30%
27%
10%
31%
33%
5%
2% 2%
36%
19%
3%
1%
70
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Working hours over past 12 months by seniority
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
executive
Associate Director
Director/partner/
founder/MD


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
24%
22%
40%
28%
6%
4%
31%
36%
24%
7%
2%
40%
32%
22%
3%
3%
30%
27%
27%
11%
5%
35%
27%
3%
11%
71
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Working hours over past 12 months by gender
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Male Female


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
25%
30%
31%
8%
6%
33%
34%
23%
7%
3%
“I think what has also been quite
an important lesson is not to rail
against the machine of why I am I
still working here at ten at night?
Well actually because I spent all
morning with my six-year-old and
this is what I have to do to keep
things going. It’s accepting that
...giving myself more confidence to
do that.”
Sarah Pinch, Consultancy/agency
managing director
72
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Decrease significantly 1%

Decrease somewhat 9%

Increase somewhat 25%
Increase significantly 6%
Don’t know 2%


Decrease somewhat

Stay about the same
Increase somewhat
In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
Consultancy /
Agency
Independent
practitioner
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
9%
4% 5% 5%
7%
26%
48%
14%
3%
28%
60%
7%
18%
66%
8%
2%
19%
62%
13%
36%
47%
4%
2%
Working patterns: the future
Working hours over the
next 12 months - overall
Working hours over next 12 months by organisation type
“If we can really open up true
flexible working, about working
from anywhere, about working
around hours that suit you.
Improving flexibility in the PR
industry around that, opens it up to
a broader range of people and the
chance of becoming a really diverse
industry.”
assistant director
73
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Working hours over next 12 months by seniority
executive
Associate Director
Director/partner/
founder/MD


Decrease somewhat

Stay about the same
Increase somewhat
120%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
“We have different teams that do
different things...but everybody has
felt the pressure. The home schooling
and having children at home has been a
massive challenge. We have worked as
hard as we can to support people to talk
about flexible working, how they can
change their hours or to work around
things and overtime. But it has been a
really difficult one to do when we have
still got this pressure and the volume of
things that we have got to do.”
Hayley James, in-house public sector assistant
director
5%
3%
25%
5%
25%
59%
8%
5%
9%
25%
58%
10%
25%
56%
12%
1%
2%
63%
8%
41%
10%
5%
5%
74
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Mental health
Mental health over the past 12 months by
organisation type

Mental health over the past 12 months by seniority

Mental health over the past 12 months by gender
75
#PRinAPandemic



Don’t know 1%
Mental health – overall
Mental health over the past 12 months


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
In-house
private sector
In-house
public sector
In-house
NFP/NGO
Consultancy /
Agency
Independent
practitioner
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
“We have got a huge amount of
well-being support. There is online
learning, guides, phonelines,
webinars. There is everything that
you could possibly think of.... [But]
people are saying “I don’t have
the time to access this stuff”. They
have not got the time and that’s
the problem.”
assistant director
3% 3%
8%
28%
49%
11%
2%
10%
36%
43%
8%
6%
7%
31%
48%
8%
4%
5%
47%
37%
7%
11%
25%
49%
11%
76
#PRinAPandemic

Mental health
About Chalkstream
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Mental health over the past 12 months by seniority
executive
Associate Director
Director/partner/
founder/MD


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
120%
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
11%
3%
8%
18%
57%
14%
3%
10%
28%
49%
11%
3% 4%
8%
42%
39%
7%
5%
38%
46%
8%
24%
51%
14%
77
#PRinAPandemic

Mental health
About Chalkstream
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Mental health over the past 12 months by gender
100%
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
Male Female


Decreased somewhat

Stayed the same
Increased somewhat
“I’m really hoping that things just
don’t completely revert back to
the way that they were... I have
managed to spend much more
quality time with my partners, with
my family, even though I have not
been able to physically see my
family I speak to them far more
often because I have got more
energy... My life as a whole is much
less oriented in work and it’s just
better all-round.”
5%
9%
35%
42%
8%
2%
8%
30%
49%
10%
78
#PRinAPandemic

Mental health
About Chalkstream
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

About the
Chartered Institute
of Public Relations
79
#PRinAPandemic

Founded in 1948, the Chartered Institute of Public Relations
(CIPR) is the world’s only Royal Chartered professional body for
public relations practitioners in the UK and overseas with nearly
10,000 members.
The CIPR advances professionalism in public relations by making
its members accountable to their employers and the public through
a code of conduct and searchable public register, setting standards
through training, qualifications, awards and the production of best
practice and skills guidance, facilitating Continuing Professional
Development (CPD), and awarding Chartered Public Relations
Practitioner status (Chart.PR).
80
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

About
Chalkstream
81
#PRinAPandemic

Chalkstream specialises in in-depth, intelligent reputation and
market research for education and membership body/trade
association clients. Our work involves secondary and primary
research exploring attitudes, awareness and behaviours among
diverse groups. We turn expert research design, first-class
fieldwork and powerful analysis into clear, straightforward, practical
recommendations that drive intelligent decision-making. Current
and former clients include NATO, City Guilds Group, Institute of
Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, Chartered Insurance
Institute, Learning and Work Institute, Association of Colleges,
National Union of Students, Association of School and College
Leaders, ZSL, the UK Government.
82
#PRinAPandemic

About Chalkstream
Mental health
Income
Activities
Challenges
Pandemic impact
Executive Summary
Methodology

Chartered Institute of Public Relations
+44 (0)20 7631 6900
@CIPR_Global
cipr.co.uk

CIPR PR in a Pandemic

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