Roberto Adriani, MSL Group: PR agencies are outdated as long they talk about ‘products’ for clients

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: 12 Mai 2014 |; Roberto Adriani

‘I strongly believe that the destiny of the world is in ‘words’. PR agencies are outdated as long they talk about “products” for clients. I think that we have to talk about processes first of all. Consumers are much less loyal than before, market changes every day, globalization has created an interdependent world and even time seems going quicker’ - Roberto Adriani, MSL Group Italy

How do you define innovation in the PR industry?

The capability to lead and to reshape all the different company’s skills and expertise acting as one, with a more comprehensive vision of the market trends.

None of the traditional departments of a company can be improved by PR: top management, finance, HR, R&D, Sales etc …
PR can create innovation by fertilizing different company’s skills with each other. If PR do that, the final outcome, the real added value is a much more effective and clearer vision of the market’s trends and consumers’ needs.

PR agencies create innovative products for clients, but their modes of operation are standard and somehow outdated. So what’s holding agencies back from innovative and risk-taking structural decisions?

I strongly believe that the destiny of the world is in ‘words’. PR agencies are outdated as long they talk about “products” for clients.
I think that we have to talk about processes first of all. Consumers are much less loyal than before, market changes every day, globalization has created an interdependent world and even time seems going quicker.
Top managers are asked today to make more decisions and having less time to do it than before.
Global companies are today in a continuous process. The commitment of a modern PR agency is to support top managers in leading this process.
The only alternative for global companies today is between managing the shaker and ending up shaken. PR agencies should support companies to choose the first one.

Usual titles like ‘Senior Account Manager’ and ‘Director’ are becoming less and less adequate at defining someone’s true job. How do you see the agency of the future regarding these roles?

I agree. I feel my role as a connector. I help my clients to create valuable relations inside and outside the organization, bridging people with people.
We should find more accurate and self-explaining job titles.

In which areas are you seeing the most concrete industry innovation?

I do not see a specific area. It depends on the industry and the company.
Again, the challenge is stop talking about areas, external vs. internal, products etc… and acting with a holistic approach, offering strategic advisory to top managers. It is not by accident that global PR agencies and strategic advisory firms are getting closer than we think.

Do you think that PR industry attract enough doers with entrepreneurial skills?

Surely PR, especially in the PR agencies, is a fast moving industry which offers many opportunities to collect considerable experiences in a relatively short time.
Of course it is not enough by itself but is an excellent asset to leverage on.

The future is laden with more complex technology and big ideas. Are the agencies ready to take on the next big, unknown thing?

Of course not all the PR agencies are ready to do it, especially the smaller ones, and a Darwinian selection is needed.
On the other hand, I think PR agencies are ready by default to face changes, as they are used to be very flexible and adaptable. The meteorite is coming but PR agencies are strongly enough equipped not only to survive but also to lead the new world.

Roberto Adriani is Public Affairs and Crisis Communication Practice Leader at MSL-Publicis Group Italia