CIPR — State of PR Profession — 2016

STATE
OF
PR
2016
INSIGHT TO INFORM____
#StateOfPR

State of the Profession, now in its seventh year, remains the
most comprehensive survey of people working in public
relations. Once again, it provides evidence of common trends
in practice anecdotally shared on a daily basis.
Among the key findings is a continued trend of convergence
between public relations and other communications
disciplines, including marketing. Also, for the first time, media
relations is not reported as the most common demand on
time in the working life of a practitioner. Content creation
and curation, led by digital and social demands, is on the rise.
The survey also shows that despite a roughly 50/50 gender
balance amongst those who define themselves as working
in senior roles, significant pay inequalities exist for women
who operate at the very highest level.
STATE OF PR 2016
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
2 #StateOfPR

Convergence
As recorded in surveys since 2009, the convergence of public relations and marketing,
alongside other related disciplines, remains a clear trend that shows little sign of slowing.
76% of all respondents said compared to two years ago, they now work more closely
with dedicated social and digital media teams, as well as the marketing, advertising and
sales departments. This is an increase of 3% on #StateOfPR 2015 and is clearly led by
the cross-management of digital and social media.
Convergence is least likely to occur around media relations and internal communications,
indicating that these remain solid areas of specialism for public relations.
In line with previous years, traditional marketing led tasks increasingly found with
PR teams include copywriting, branding, sponsorship and strategic partnerships –
with a notable year-on-year increase of a third more PR professionals now seeing
some responsibility for prize draws, competitions and promotions (28% in 2016 up
from 21% in 2015).
The rise of “content”
Further evidence of amalgamation between departments is highlighted when PR
professionals are asked to indicate the amount of time they spend on a list of defined
common operational tasks. The list of potential responsibilities was reviewed and
expanded in this year’s survey, meaning that content creation, and curation, was included
for the first time.
Content creation is the most common way practitioners spend their time at work,
as identified by 81% of all respondents. Media relations (72%) is the second most
common demand on their time and it is still the practice area that commands the
majority of their budgets.
Grammar and proofreading follows as the third most common operational task, ranking
just above content curation and the management of digital and social media. Digital and
social media management also rank in the top three budget considerations.
For most practitioners, public relations is firmly a tactical role up to and including
managerial level, whereas at senior levels, practitioners tend to dedicate themselves
to other tasks – including pitching, account management and client handling, and
budgeting and financial planning. Across the board, what could be considered as
technical PR tasks again rank low in terms of amount of time spent. These include web
design, video and photo editing, coding, and search engine marketing. When they are
delivered, these tasks are more or less exclusively the remit of junior staff.
As the industry continues to evolve and the remit of PR continues to grow, an apparent
gulf between the tasks and competencies of junior and senior staff raises the question as
to whether PR bosses understand and could effectively deliver the increased day-to-day
workload that is now demanded of their staff?
STATE OF PR 2016
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
3 #StateOfPR

Skills
To review skills demand across the sector, respondents were asked about the
competencies required of new recruits. Alongside leadership, interpersonal and strategic
management skills, areas such as pitching, project management and budgeting/
financial planning are all sought after by those looking for senior staff. Despite this, these
commonly fail to rank high on the list of professionals’ own perceptions of their skills
set – and remains unchanged from last year. For junior recruits, softer skills – such as
interpersonal skills, attention to detail and creativity – are more apparently in demand.
Following this, and generally mirroring last year’s results, the strongest skills all
respondents believe they possess are soft skills – the top three being traditional forms
of written communication (35%), interpersonal skills (31%) and attention to detail (27%).
However, content curation, which ranks as the joint fourth common PR operational task,
is only believed to be the strongest skill of 3% of respondents. The weakest skills that
all respondents believe they possess are again technical tasks, with HTML and coding (69%)
and search engine optimisation (48%) clearly out in front, also concurrent with last year.
Interestingly, this year’s report shows that women are more than twice as likely as men
to rank organisational skills as their strongest asset, whilst men in PR are twice as likely
as women to rank identifying current affairs and industry trends as their strongest skill.
Confidence in leadership and management skills is also far more prevalent amongst men
than women. Yet interpersonal skills are perceived to be strongest amongst a third more
women than men.
Pay and reward
For the first time, data relating to pay and reward combine figures for all in-house,
consultancy and independent practitioners into average annual earnings figures.
The average annual earning figure for PR professionals is £48,196. In line with previous
years, analysis reveals that London based professionals earn on average 31% more
(£13,616) than those based in the rest of the UK. Those working in-house in the private-
sector command the highest average salary of all employees at £51,075, whilst public
sector commands the lowest (£39,966).
Interestingly, a non-graduate PR professional is found to earn on average 24% more
(£12,348) than a graduate. Whilst it is the case that graduates dominate the working
population (only 15% of respondents were non-graduates), non-graduate respondents
are relatively balanced by seniority and by organisation type. Additionally, even though
the size of the overall graduate pay gap between is primarily down to high earnings
reported by non-graduate independent practitioners vs. graduates – it also the case that
when comparing in-house and consultancy PR professionals, non-graduates earn a higher
average annual salary.
STATE OF PR 2016
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
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Gender balance and equal pay
The public relations workforce has long been more or less two-thirds female. In this year’s
survey, women make up 66% of respondents, an increase of 2% on last year’s figure and
6% higher in comparison to the first #StateOfPR survey, conducted in 2009.
In ‘Non-Manager’ and ‘Manager’ roles women make up 73% and 70% of the respective
populations. This decreases for ‘Head of Comms / Associate Directors’ to 60%, and
at ‘Director / Partner / MD / Owners’ level to 48%, the same proportion as recorded
in 2015. The fact that at the most senior level gender balance remains more or less
unchanged, when compared to all previous surveys, and despite the fact that the number
of women in PR has proportionally increased, is possible evidence of an employment
ceiling affecting the opportunities available to women.
Building on previous findings, this survey continues to evidence a large gender pay gap
in public relations – recording an average disparity of £15,040 between male and female
earnings. This apparent 19% year-on-year increase on 2015’s figure is primarily due to
the inclusion of independent practitioners in the overall results. An employee-only figure
however shows a gap of £11,698, a 7% year-on-year decrease.
Conducted for the second year in a row, regression analysis of the salaries of those
employed in PR roles (excluding independent practitioners) records that gender is the
third most influential factor on PR practitioners’ pay packets, which is consistent with the
findings in 2015. The influence of gender amounts to a £6,004 disadvantage for women,
a decrease of £2,479 on 2015’s figure.
For the first time, the gender gap has been cross-analysed by different industry
demographics in an attempt to offer greater insight into the issue.
When looking at seniority, the gender pay gap stands at £1,500 in relatively junior
roles, yet widens significantly further up the career ladder. Comparing the earnings of
men and women who define themselves as ‘Head of Comms / Associate Directors’
reveals a gender pay gap of £5,635. Above that, for ‘Director / Partner / MD / Owners /
Independent Practitioners’ the gender pay gap is nearly four and half times greater, rising
to £24,770 (excluding independent practitioners would be £19,221).
At an organisational level, there is a significantly higher pay gap between men and
women working in agencies and consultancies (£22,205), than there is for those working
in-house (£6,555). The most striking disparity is for Independent Practitioners, where the
difference between the annual turnover of men and women is £38,632.
These findings provide further evidence that woman are disadvantaged at all levels in
terms of earnings in an industry which they are numerically dominant. The gender pay
gap becomes more acute at senior levels, where the numerical advantage decreases
or balances out, an employment ‘ceiling’ exists. With this evidence, the question should
now be put to the professions leading practitioners, employers and thought leaders:
are the highest paid jobs in public relations open to women?
STATE OF PR 2016
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
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STATE OF PR 2016
CONTENTS
1 METHODOLOGY & DATA TABLES
2 DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE
DEMOGRAPHIC ORGANISATION TYPE
DEMOGRAPHIC SENIORITY
DEMOGRAPHIC LOCALITY
3 OPERATIONAL TASKS & BUDGET SPEND
4 COMPETENCIES & SKILLS DEMAND
5 PAY & REWARD
6 GENDER BALANCE AND EQUAL PAY
7 DIVERSITY
8 FURTHER ISSUES & CURRENT DEBATES
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STATE OF PR 2016
METHODOLOGY
Survation interviewed 1,518 PR professionals between
4 November and 22 December 2015. Invitations
to complete the survey were sent by email to the
CIPR member and non-member database of PR
professionals, as well as links made available directly
by CIPR through emails and the website.
The first invitations were sent out on 4 November 2015
to a randomly selected batch of 4,600 email addresses
in order to soft launch the project,withtheremainder
ofthecontactsreceivinginviteslaterthatday.
Weekly scheduled reminders were created,
with the first reminder sent out on
10 November 2015 and the final sent on
22 December 2015.
1
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STATE OF PR 2016
METHODOLOGY
DATA TABLES
The full dataset from this study is available to download.
Unfortunately it is not possible to publish the raw data.
As respondents participated in the survey on the basis that their
responses would all be anonymous, it would be unethical to
release publicly information which could lead to them being
identified. This also would be a breach of Survation’s obligations
under the Market Research Society code of conduct.
ABOUT CIPR
Founded in 1948, the Chartered Institute of PR (CIPR) is the only
Royal Chartered professional body for PR practitioners in the
UK and overseas. The CIPR was granted its Royal Charter by the
Privy Council in February 2005.
With over 10,000 members involved in all aspects of PR, it is the
largest body of its type in Europe. The CIPR advances professionalism
in PR 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
PR Practitioner status (Chart.PR).
ABOUT SURVATION
Survation is an innovative and creative market research agency and
leading UK opinion pollster, working with big brands and key
campaigns. Survation carry out telephone, online and face-to-face
research, with a major focus on social and political research Survation
is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules.
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DEMOGRAPHIC 2
PROFILE
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STATE OF PR 2016
DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE
AGE
18 to 24 7%
25 to 34 32%
35 to 44 29%
45 to 60 27%
Over 60 4%
SEX
Female 66%
Male 34%
UNIVERSITY EDUCATION
Graduate 85%
Non-graduate 15%
The following charts break down the basic demographic profile of all survey
respondents. Respondents were asked a series of simple profiling questions
about age, sex, type of university eduction and their location. Industry specific
questions were also asked to establish the type of organisation they work in,
their level of seniority and how many years they’ve worked in PR.
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STATE OF PR 2016
DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE
LOCATION
Channel Islands 1%
East of England 6%
East Midlands 4%
London 27%
North East 3%
Northern Ireland 3%
North West 8%
Scotland 8%
South East 12%
South West 8%
Wales 4%
West Midlands 4%
Yorkshire & Humber 5%
Outside the UK 8%
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STATE OF PR 2016
DEMOGRAPHIC / PROFILE
ORGANISATION TYPE
In-House Private Sector 22%
In-House Public Sector 24%
In-House Not-for- Profit/NGO 16%
Consultancy/Agency 25%
Independent Practitioner 13%
SENIORITY
Intern/Trainee <1%
Assistant/Executive 9%
Officer 20%
Manager 35%
Head of Comms/Associate Director 19%
Director/Partner/MD 12%
Owner 5%
Other (please specify) 1%
YEARS IN PR
0 to 2 years 12%
3 to 5 18%
6 to 10 22%
11 to 15 16%
16 to 20 14%
21+ 17%
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DEMOGRAPHIC 2
ORGANISATION TYPE
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LOCATION
London
Midlands & East England
North England
South England (inc. C.I.)
Northern Ireland
Scotland
Wales
SEX
Female
Male
67%
62%
33%
38%
28%
25%
13%
15%
14%
17%
21%
23%
2%
3%
9%
8%
5%
2%
AGE
18 to 24
25 to 34
35 to 44
45 to 60
Over 60
4%
9%
37%
25%
33%
26%
24%
33%
2%
7%
STATE OF PR 2016
DEMOGRAPHIC / ORGANISATION TYPE
In-house Consultancy
Key
Key
Key
This section breaks down the demographic profiling of respondents into all
of those who identified working In-house and those working in Consultancy
or as an Independent Practitioner.
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UNIVERSITY
EDUCATION
Graduate
Non-graduate
YEARS IN PR
0 to 5
6 to 10
11 to 20
21+
SENIORITY
Non-manager
Manager
Head of Comms/
Associate Director
MD/Partner/Owner
87%
84%
12%
15%
33%
25%
26%
17%
30%
31%
11%
28%
33%
20%
39%
24%
21%
12%
5%
43%
STATE OF PR 2016
DEMOGRAPHIC / ORGANISATION TYPE
Key
Key
Key
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DEMOGRAPHIC 2
SENIORITY
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21%
2%
-%
1%
52%
45%
18%
11%
17%
34%
43%
35%
9%
17%
37%
48%
1%
1%
2%
6%
AGE
18 to 24
25 to 34
35 to 44
45 to 60
Over 60
SEX
Female
Male
STATE OF PR 2016
DEMOGRAPHIC / SENIORITY
73%
70%
60%
48%
27%
30%
40%
52%
Non-manager Manager Head of Comms MD/Partner/Owner
Key
Key
This section breaks down the demographic profiling of
respondents into broad groups relating to the level of seniority
they identified. For consolidation, Independent Practitioners
have been included in the ‘MD/Partner/Owner’ category.
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23%
28%
35%
30%
13%
14%
14%
13%
18%
15%
13%
13%
22%
21%
17%
23%
3%
2%
1%
2%
9%
10%
9%
8%
6%
5%
2%
2%
LOCATION
London
Midlands &
East England
North
England
South
England
(inc. C.I.)
Northern
Ireland
Scotland
Wales
STATE OF PR 2016
86%
88%
90%
85%
13%
11%
10%
14%
UNIVERSITY
EDUCATION
Graduate
Non-graduate
Key
Key
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YEARS IN PR
0 to 5
6 to 10
11 to 20
21+
STATE OF PR 2016
70%
31%
9%
4%
18%
34%
24%
15%
9%
28%
50%
42%
4%
7%
16%
39%
Key
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DEMOGRAPHIC 2
LOCALITY
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STATE OF PR 2016
DEMOGRAPHIC / LOCALITY
AGE
London Midlands & North South Northern Scotland Wales
East England England England Ireland
18 to 24 8% 8% 11% 6% 13% 1% 13%
25 to 34 36% 25% 30% 30% 43% 39% 33%
35 to 44 28% 30% 27% 31% 15% 24% 36%
45 to 60 25% 30% 29% 29% 18% 35% 19%
Over 60 3% 7% 3% 5% 13% 2% 0%
SEX
Female 62% 62% 67% 70% 75% 73% 75%
Male 38% 38% 33% 30% 25% 27% 25%
UNIVERSITY EDUCATION
Graduate 91% 79% 80% 79% 80% 88% 94%
Non-graduate 9% 20% 19% 21% 20% 11% 6%
YEARS IN PR
0 to 5 years 32% 28% 31% 30% 30% 33% 34%
6 to 10 24% 16% 24% 24% 24% 16% 27%
11 to 20 28% 36% 29% 28% 21% 32% 29%
21+ 16% 20% 16% 19% 24% 19% 11%
This section breaks down the demographic profiling of respondents into
their location – where they identified they were based. For consolidation,
respondents from the Channel Islands have been included in South of
England. Respondents who identified as being based ‘Outside of the UK’
have been excluded.
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STATE OF PR 2016 3
OPERATIONAL
TASKS &
BUDGET SPEND
In line with the growing remit of
PR, and continued alignment with
marketing, content creation is
now the primary way a majority
of professionals spend most, or at
least some, of their time.
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STATE OF PR 2016
OPERATIONAL TASKS
& BUDGET SPEND
Respondents were asked to consider how much time they spent
working across various operational areas of PR.
Following this, respondents were asked the three most common
items that PR budget is spent on, excluding staff costs.
SENIORITY
Content creation
Media relations
Content curation
TOP THREE TASKS
OCCUPYING 'MOST OF'
PR PROFESSIONALS' TIME
33%
44%
37%
21%
15%
33%
39%
36%
29%
20%
21%
28%
27%
13%
5%
All
Non-manager
Manager
Head of Comms/ADs
MD/Partner/Owner
Key
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STATE OF PR 2016
OPERATIONAL TASKS
& BUDGET SPEND
TIME SPENT ON COMMON
PR OPERATIONAL TASKS Most or Only
some of occasional
my time or no time
Account management and client handling 51% 49%
Advice and guidance on corporate governance 27% 74%
Advertising 15% 85%
Audience segmentation and analysis 32% 68%
Branding 41% 60%
Budgeting and financial planning 40% 59%
Business planning and objective setting 54% 46%
Community management 35% 66%
Content creation 81% 19%
Content curation 63% 37%
Corporate social responsibility 27% 73%
Crisis and reputation management 55% 46%
Digital and social media management 63% 37%
Digital and social media strategy and planning 59% 41%
Email marketing 22% 79%
Event management 36% 64%
Grammar and proofreading 64% 36%
Internal communications 53% 48%
Influencer relations 49% 51%
Measurement and evaluation 55% 45%
Media relations 72% 28%
People and performance management 41% 59%
Photo and video creation and editing 28% 72%
Pitching 32% 69%
Project management 61% 39%
Public affairs and Lobbying 20% 79%
Research 36% 65%
Search engine marketing 5% 94%
Stakeholder mapping 29% 70%
Strategic planning 58% 41%
Web design and coding 12% 89%
COMMON AREAS OF PR BUDGET SPEND
Media relations
Event management
Social or digital media management
Internal communications
Consumer or public campaigning
Research, planning and measurement
Public affairs/lobbying
Corporate social responsibility
Contributing to business strategy
Strategic planning
Crisis management
41%
39%
34%
25%
24%
18%
12%
11%
8%
8%
7%
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STATE OF PR 2016 4
COMPETENCIES
& SKILLS DEMAND
PR pros continue to believe their
strongest skills are soft ones –
with writing remaining top of the
pile. From HTML to SEO, new
technical competencies remain
the weakest – with little or no
increase in demand of these skills
from potential employers.
#StateOfPR
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STATE OF PR 2016
COMPETENCIES
& SKILLS DEMAND
Respondents were asked to rank their strongest and weakest
competencies in a bid to reveal areas required for further training
and development.
Following this, consultancy and in-house professionals tasked with
hiring new employees were asked to reveal the specific skills they
require of new junior and senior recruits in PR.
Written communication – traditional
Interpersonal skills
Attention to detail
Leadership and management skills
Strategic management
Creativity
Content creation
Organisational skills
Knowledge of current affairs and industry trends
Written communication – digital/social
Oral communication
Project management
Event management
Behavioural psychology
Pitching
Measurement & evaluation
Research
Community management
Content curation
Time management
Photo/video editing
Budgeting and financial planning
Qualitative data analysis
Quantitative data analysis
Search engine optimisation (SEO)
Email marketing
HTML and coding
35%
31%
27%
26%
22%
22%
21%
19%
16%
14%
14%
10%
6%
6%
5%
5%
4%
4%
3%
3%
2%
2%
1%
1%
0%
0%
0%
STRONGEST PERCEIVED
COMPETENCIES
BY RESPONDENTS
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STATE OF PR 2016
COMPETENCIES
& SKILLS DEMAND
TOP TEN
SKILLS IN DEMAND OF
JUNIOR HIRES IN PR
Written communication - traditional 87%
Attention to detail 82%
Interpersonal skills 79%
Written communication – digital/social 77%
Oral communication skills 74%
Creativity 69%
Time management 61%
Knowledge of current affairs
and industry trends 50%
Content creation 49%
Research 22%
TOP TEN
SKILLS IN DEMAND OF
SENIOR HIRES IN PR
Leadership and management skills 82%
Strategic management 77%
Knowledge of current affairs
and industry trends 75%
Project management 71%
Written communication – traditional 71%
Organisational skills 71%
Budgeting and financial planning 68%
Oral communication 65%
TOP FIVE
STRONGEST PERCEIVED COMPETENCIES
BY MEN
Written communication – traditional 38%
Strategic management 25%
TOP FIVE
STRONGEST PERCEIVED COMPETENCIES
BY WOMEN
Written communication 34%
Attention to details 29%
Organisational skills 23%
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STATE OF PR 2016 5
PAY &
REWARD
The average annual earnings
for a PR professional is £48,196.
Despite this relatively high figure,
a PR pro in London earns on
average 31% more than a PR pro
based elsewhere in the UK.
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STATE OF PR 2016
PAY & REWARD
For all In-house and consultancy/agency professionals all data
relates to the average annual gross basic salaries. For independent
practitioners they were asked to record their annual business
turnover at the end of the last financial year. For the first time, key
findings combine figures for the two types into an average annual
earnings figure. Data shared is the mean1
.
1
The mean instead of the median
is the preferred method used
by Survation. Within this mean
calculation, all outlier values have
been removed.
£24,570
N/A
£24,570
£34,069
£59,000
£34,069
£52,566
£62,121
£53,264
£60,530
£71,597
£62,536
£47,126
£103,943
£74,874
AGE
18 to 24
25 to 34
35 to 44
45 to 60
Over 60
In-house/Consultancy IPs Combined
Key
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Key
Key
STATE OF PR 2016
PAY & REWARD
£53,393
£119,632
£56,938
£41,953
£63,775
£44,391
£39,158
£49,570
£40,147
£42,138
£74,135
£46,555
£31,511
£100,000
£40,348
£41,616
£65,167
£42,856
£40,302
£24,000
£39,095
LOCATION
London
North England
Northern Ireland
Scotland
Wales
UNIVERSITY
EDUCATION
Graduate
Non-graduate
£45,279
£63,220
£46,677
£48,716
£105,581
£59,025
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ORGANISATION TYPE
In-House Private Sector
In-House Public Sector
In-House Not-for- Profit/NGO
Consultancy/Agency
Independent Practitioner2
£51,075
£39,966
£43,498
£47,383
£74,255
SENIORITY
Non-manager
Manager
Head of Comms/Associate Director
MD/Partner/Owner
£27,587
£39,443
£60,393
£74,612
YEARS IN PR
0 to 5
6 to 10
11 to 20
21+
£29,323
£79,000
£29,810
£43,754
£68,000
£44,570
£55,643
£60,862
£56,271
£69,212
£85,859
£73,766
2
Annual business turnover
and not salary.
STATE OF PR 2016
PAY & REWARD
Key
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STATE OF PR 2016 6
GENDER
BALANCE &
EQUAL PAY
The gender pay gap in PR is
£15,040. This is despite a close-to
50/50 gender balance across the
most senior roles.
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STATE OF PR 2016
GENDER BALANCE & EQUAL PAY
Gender balance in relation to levels of seniority is shared to put
data relating to equal pay and the gender pay gap in context.
This information has been gleaned from the demographic profile of
respondents. Independent practitioners have been factored
in as 'Owners' in the first chart, but they have been excluded
from the following two charts. All findings remain more or less
unchanged from previous year's reports.
73%
70%
60%
48%
27%
30%
40%
52%
Non-manager Manager Head of Comms/ADs MD / Partner / Owners / IPs
Key
Key
Key
SENIORITY BY SEX
Female
Male
SENIORITY BY SEX –
IN-HOUSE ONLY
Female
Male
SENIORITY BY SEX
CONSULTANCY ONLY
Female
Male
74%
67%
61%
45%
26%
33%
39%
55%
69%
81%
59%
49%
31%
19%
41%
51%
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STATE OF PR 2016
£41,603 £53,301 £58,348 £42,976£96,980 £58,015
Female Female FemaleMale Male Male
Analysis of earnings reveal that a gender pay gap of £15,040 exists in PR.
To understand this in greater detail, multiple linear regression analyses3
on a
range of independent variables were conducted to reveal factors that influence
the earnings of PR professionals.
3
Multiple linear regression was employed to help determine to what extent gender could predict salary when controlling for other factors and also how strong this
prediction is compared to the other variables considered. All variables considered displayed a significant bivariate correlation with salary and thus all were used in the
multivariate regression analysis. A direct method was used for the multiple linear regression analyses. The five variables produced an adjusted R2 of .25 (F (5, 1190) =
81, p < .001) for the prediction of salary. Individual variables results that were significant predictors were gender (Beta = -.08, p = 0.002), level of seniority (Beta = .328,
p < .001), and number of years in PR (Beta = .186, p < .001). However, being a university graduate (Beta = -.027, p = .286) and whether you work in a public or private
company (Beta = -.047, p = 0.076) were not significant predictors of salary.
4
Respondents who did not work in the UK were excluded from the data collected. Additionally, edge cases of salary (below £5,000 and above £500,000) were
excluded. Predictive variables that were included were gender, whether or not you are a university graduate, seniority, whether you work in a public or private company,
and number of years working within the PR industry.
Key
The results of this analysis show that gender has the third largest overall impact
on a PR professional’s earnings, after level of seniority and years in the industry.
The analysis suggests that when performing the same role, men are on average
being paid £6,004 more than women after controlling for other factors.
TOP THREE
FACTORS
INFLUENCING
EARNINGS
£ influence on earnings
Seniority £8,223
Years in PR £695.80 (per year)
Gender £6,004
THE PR GENDER PAY GAP
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-£ 1,290.64
-£ 1,496.51
-£ 5,634.75
-£ 24,770.47
-£11,576.12
-£5,538.93
-£2,550.80
-£22,204.96
-£38,631.96
STATE OF PR 2016
For the first time, the gender gap has been cross-analysed by three different
demographics in an attempt to offer greater insight into the issue.
DIFFERENCE IN EARNINGS BETWEEN
WOMEN AND MEN BY SENIORITY
WOMEN AND MEN BY ORGANISATION TYPE
Non-Manager
Manager
Head of Comms /
ADs
MD / Partner /
Owner / IPs
In-House
Private Sector
In-House
Public Sector
In-House
Not-for-Profit/NGO
Consultancy/Agency
Independent
Practitioner
+£2,651.15
-£ 285.25
-£ 13,025.80
-£ 13,760.53
-£ 50,779.41
WOMEN AND MEN BY AGE
18 to 24
25 to 34
35 to 44
45 to 60
Over 60
This data clearly evidences that the gender pay gap exists for multiple reasons. Seniority is
the biggest single determining factor, but the type of organisation is also important, despite
there being a close to 50/50 split of men and women operating at the most senior level across
all types of organisations. This strongly indicates that the highest-paid roles in the industry
remain unattainable to women, especially for those working in Consultancy, or choosing to
work as Independent Practitioners.
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STATE OF PR 2016 7
DIVERSITY
BAME PR pros make up 10% of
practitioners across the profession.
Despite this, in all but one area of
diversity, a majority of PR pros now
agree that campaigns carried out by
diverse teams are more effective.
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STATE OF PR 2016
DIVERSITY
This section contains information relating to the demographic
profile of PR professionals in relation to ethnicity, disability, sexuality
and religion. Data relating to the age and gender split of all PR pros
is shared within the first demographic profile section of this report.
Respondents were also asked a series of questions about the
effectiveness of diverse PR teams to assess whether they agreed,
disagreed or were unsure about a series of statements relating
to ethnicity, age, disability, culture, gender balance and disability.
ETHNICITY
White 88%
Black/African/Caribbean/Black British 4%
Asian/Asian British 3%
Mixed/Multiple Ethnic Group 2%
Other Ethnic Group 1%
Prefer not to say 2%
DISABILITY
Yes 5%
No 92%
SEXUALITY
Heterosexual 86%
Lesbian 1%
Gay 3%
Bi-sexual 2%
Other 1%
RELIGION
Christianity 41%
Islam 2%
Judaism 1%
Sikhism 1%
Hinduism 1%
Buddhism 1%
No religion 44%
Other (please state) 2%
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Ethnically diverse
Socially diverse
Of all ages
Representative of the
audience(s) they are
communicating with
Culturally diverse
Made up of a proportionate
number of men and women
Made up of a proportionate
number of people with and
without disabilities
ATTITUDES TO DIVERSITY
Are PR campaigns more effective
when delivered by teams who are...?
51%
27%
22%
68%
18%
14%
65%
21%
14%
62%
27%
11%
64%
20%
15%
52%
30%
17%
27%
39%
35%
Agree Disagree Don’t know
Key
STATE OF PR 2016
DIVERSITY
The only statement that the majority of respondents disagreed with related to disability.
Just over a quarter (26%) of professionals agreed that public relations campaigns are
more effective if practiced by teams comprising of a proportionate number of people
with and without disabilities, whilst 39% disagreed. Interestingly, consultancy professionals
were far more likely to disagree with all of the statements relating to diversity.
Data relating to attitudes to diversity is broadly consistent with last year’s survey results.
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STATE OF PR 2016 8
FURTHER ISSUES
& CURRENT DEBATES
PR pros judge themselves to a
different standard than when
compared to other professions;
convergence across the marketing
mix shows little sign of slowing
down, and the under-representation
of PR at board level is cited as the
biggest future challenge.
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STATE OF PR 2016
FURTHER ISSUES
& CURRENT DEBATES
A series of questions relating to perceptions of professionalism,
happiness and wellbeing, cross-industry convergence and
challenges of the future were asked of all respondents.
Satisfying clients/
employers
Commitment to industry
codes of practice
Levels of training and
qualifications
Chartered Status,
CPD or similar
Membership of a
professional body
51%
31%
17%
20%
13%
25%
10%
13%
9%
12%
HOW DO YOU PRIMARILY JUDGE
THE PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS OF...?
PROFESSIONALISM
Respondents were asked, for comparative
purposes, how they judge the professional
standards of lawyers, accounts and other
professionals, and how they judge the
professional standards of PR practitioners.
PR pros Other professions
Key
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40%
47%
HAPPINESS AND WELLBEING
Respondents were asked to rate their current level of happiness and
wellbeing in the workplace, on a scale where 1 is extremely happy
and 5 is not happy at all.
HAPPINESS
AND WELLBEING
42% are extremely
happy or happy
in the workplace
30% are somewhat
unhappy or not at all happy
in the workplace
18 to 24
25 to 34
35 to 44
45 to 60
Over 60
40%
37%
43%
46%
55%
42%
30%
AGE
extremely happy or happy
Female
Male
SEX
STATE OF PR 2016
FURTHER ISSUES
& CURRENT DEBATES
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London
North England
Northern Ireland
Scotland
Wales
40%
41%
50%
44%
30%
45%
41%
LOCATION
In-House Private Sector
In-House Public Sector
In-House Not-for- Profit/NGO
Consultancy/Agency
Independent Practitioner
38%
40%
41%
43%
53%
ORGANISATION TYPE
Non-manager
Manager
Head of Comms/Associate Director
MD / Partner / Owner
37%
38%
43%
50%
SENIORITY
HAPPINESS AND WELLBEING
STATE OF PR 2016
FURTHER ISSUES
& CURRENT DEBATES
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Social/Digital
Marketing
Events
Customer Service
IT
HR
Advertising
Sales
76%
59%
43%
38%
36%
32%
32%
28%
DEPARTMENTAL CONVERGENCE BETWEEN PR
AND OTHER DEPARTMENTS
Social or digital media management
Internal communications
Media relations
Crisis management
Strategic planning
Contributing to business strategy
Event management
Consumer or public campaigning
Corporate social responsibility
Research, planning and measurement
Public affairs/lobbying
72%
57%
55%
53%
53%
49%
45%
44%
40%
40%
32%
CONVERGENCE FROM COMMON PR TASKS TO
OTHER DEPARTMENTS
CONVERGENCE
The survey looked at cross-sector convergence
on a macro-level and a micro-level, for example
which areas of PR practice have converged with
the departments who now work more closely
with public relations than when compared to
two years ago.
STATE OF PR 2016
FURTHER ISSUES
& CURRENT DEBATES
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Copywriting
Branding
Content marketing
Sponsorship/events
Website design and coding
Print and design
Strategic partnerships
Relationship marketing
Advertising
Search engine marketing
Market research
Customer satisfaction surveys
Prize draws, competitions and promotions
Online customer service
CRM management
Lead generation
Product placement
Product development
Pricing
59%
58%
52%
49%
43%
41%
41%
37%
34%
32%
31%
28%
28%
26%
24%
19%
14%
10%
4%
CONVERGENCE TO PR OF COMMON TASKS LED
BY MARKETING AND OTHER DEPARTMENTS
STATE OF PR 2016
FURTHER ISSUES
& CURRENT DEBATES
CONVERGENCE
FUTURE CHALLENGES
Under-representation of PR
practitioners at board level
Changing social and
digital landscape
The poor reputation of PR in
wider society
An expanding skill set
required of professionals
Convergence with other
marketing disciplines
A lack of collective self-belief
and confidence
Lack of diversity amongst PR
professionals
Automation
42%
38%
38%
31%
27%
10%
9%
7%
RESPONDENTS WERE ASKED ABOUT A
SERIES OF CHALLENGES THAT THE PR
PROFESSION FACES IN THE FUTURE.
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INSIGHT TO INFORM____
#StateOfPR
Chartered Institute of Public Relations
52–53 Russell Square
London WC1B 4HP
+44 (0)20 7631 6900
qualifications@cipr.co.uk
darkhorsedesign.co.uk

CIPR — State of PR Profession — 2016

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CIPR — State of PR Profession — 2016