Fast-paced in an understatement. The PR Class of 2010/2011 took a field trip to the Hill & Knowlton Agency in Toronto to speak with some of the employees about their job experiences. Hill & Knowlton is a multi specialist agency that provides clients with a variety of services including: crisis communications, public affairs, marketing communications, government relations, technology communications, digital communications, consumer health and corporate communications. They have 79 offices in 44 countries.
While we were there we had the pleasure of speaking with Paule Bellegarde – Human Resources Manager, Miguel Pacheco –Marketing Communications, Lindsay Mack – Corporate Communications and Public Affairs, and Jennifer Drogell – Technology Group who gave us a snapshot of a day in the life of a Hill & Knowlton employee.
While we were there we had the pleasure of speaking with Paule Bellegarde – Human Resources Manager, Miguel Pacheco –Marketing Communications, Lindsay Mack – Corporate Communications and Public Affairs, and Jennifer Drogell – Technology Group who gave us a snapshot of a day in the life of a Hill & Knowlton employee.
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| Hill & Knowlton Human Resources Manager, Paule Bellegarde speaks to students during their visit to the Toronto office. |
They told us about their likes including seeing a project through to fruition and dislikes, including billing and balancing all the clients. Jennifer, who has a background in journalism, told us that she found seeing a project go from a crazy idea through to fruition is what provides her with the most personal satisfaction.
Miguel, who has a background in political science, indicated that billing is one of the things he does not enjoy about his job. Paule elaborated on that point by saying that working in the agency setting requires a great deal of internal structure. Having to bill a company for intangible objects (thoughts and conceptions) forces you to really pay attention to how you spend your time.
Lindsay, who has a background in political science, spoke to us about how her job has a bit of balance built in, due to the nature of Public Affairs. There is a slower turnaround of events in Public Affairs due to the fact that dealings with the government tend to take a little longer.
They also gave us tips on how to make your resume stand out. For example, the types of hobbies that you put on your resume tell a lot about who you are. Things like reading, writing or golf indicate that you like to spend time alone. And that working in a team environment may not be a strong suit. Whereas activities such as soccer, football or theatre, indicate that you are comfortable working in a team environment which is what working in an agency is all about.
I think that working for an agency is a great idea for a new PR practioner because it gives you the chance to wear different hats. For example you can finish writing a press release for a pharmaceutical company then have to take a call from a dairy company and go to an event held by a cell phone company all in one day. It gives you a chance to hone your skills before venturing out into a specific industry if you chose to leave the agency environment.
And in the true fashion of a fast-paced, high-volume agency it seems like we were rushed out of the office at the end of the presentation, but I understand that time is money in the industry and at the end of it all we were glad they took the time out of their busy schedule to speak to us.
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| (L-R: Paule Bellegarde, Jennifer Drogell, Lindsay Mack, Miguel Pacheco) |
Zakiya T.
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