Trust Me, PR is Dead
By Robert Phillips
The Former EMEA President and CEO of the world’s largest PR firm on the end of PR
Sunday, 27 April 2014
Almost There ...
I have spent the last week on "holiday", editing and fine-tuning part two of the book. This charts the rise of Public Leadership and the implications not just for Public Relations and communications but for the real worlds of business and politics, too. Public Leadership, I argue, needs to be be matched with a new sense of Public Value. There will be no return to "old" trust (the world is too chaotic and complex now), but there at least has to be a better way.
Each of the chapters explores personal stories as well as develops (hopefully) interesting thoughts. Here is the new running order:
Chapter 8: Richard - The Enlightened CEO
Chapter 9: “John” or “Johanna” - The Trusted Leader
Chapter 10: Spedan & Patrick -The Citizen Leader
Chapter 11: Paul and Yvon - The Society-First Leader
Chapter 12: Frances - Leadership Through Action, Not Words
Chapter 13: Lou and Celine - Anger, Activism & Agency
Chapter 14: Colin & Mike; Roxanne & Dagmara - The Incumbent Disruptor Shifts
* * *
The final chapter charts some of the excitable debates of recent weeks, since we launched crowd-funding for the book . I thought I would share the opening lines of Chapter 14 here....
I am a #douche.
I have fouled my own nest. I have taken the devil’s shilling. I am Captain Opportunistic. I have betrayed my former company, my former staff and my former clients by living a lie for the past twenty-five years. I am just pissed off with Edelman. I am trying to cash-in while I can.
Except I am not. None of the above is true. It is just what some people have been saying since we launched the crowd-funding for this book.
If anything, I am a revolutionary prick.
That is, a prick to the conscience of an industry that it is immediate danger of overseeing its own demise ….
I could of course be wrong.
* * *
Over the next couple of weekends, I will be (re-)editing the final section. It is called "What is To Be Done?" - partly because it makes the thinking of Parts One and Two practical and partly because it will wind-up all those who oddly see some proto-Marxist conspiracy emerging.
Thanks again for all your support. I genuinely could not have done this without you.
Robert
Top rewards
Digital
Hardback
Comments