European Communication Report 2007 A survey by the European Association of Communication Directors (EACD) and the Institute of Media and Communications Management at the University of St. Gallen
European Communication Report Brussels: Helios Media SPRL, 2007 Publisher: European Association of Communication Directors (EACD) AISBL Content Foreword 6 Summary 7 1. Organisational Data 11 2. Personal Data General Information 17 3. Personal Data Education and Career 27 4. Organisational Communication Structures and Organisational Integration 45 5. Tasks and Routines, Basics 61 First issue: June 2007 All rights reserved. Helios Media SPRL, Brussels 2007 6. Job Satisfaction 67 7. PR Associations 75 Helios Media SPRL 13-15, Rue de la Charité B-1210 Brussels Tel +32 (0)2 219 22 90 Fax +32 (0)2 219 22 92 info@helios-media.com www.helios-media.com Coordination: Melanie Breunlein Design and layout: Marcel Franke, Miriam Eckstein Print: Print&Media, Möllerdamm 3, 18337 Dänschenburg, Germany 5
Foreword Summary What will be the major challenges for Communication professionals in the future? How influential are communicators within their organisations? How much money do they earn? How satisfied are they with their jobs? These and other important questions are being answered by the European Communication Report 2007. The survey among almost 1,200 communication professionals across Europe portrays the professional backgrounds, challenges and working environments of communication directors and spokespeople Europe-wide. The online study has been conducted by the European Association of Communication Directors (EACD) and the Institute for Media and Communication Management at the University of St. Gallen. This publication should provide deep insights into the state of our profession, illuminating trends and developments in communications from across Europe. Indeed, it is the ambitious scope of the study, covering all of Europe, which gives its results such potential pertinence. Fostering qualification within the field of communication is one of the EACD s main objectives. We believe that this first European Communication Report is a good basis for the association s work towards this goal. Dr. Herbert Heitmann President European Association of Communication Directors (EACD) 6 Communication across national boundaries is a management task of increasing importance within a constantly developing European Union. For communicators in multinational companies, associations, institutions and politics, the European perspective is crucial in their strategic and practical work. Still, there is very little knowledge about the transnational aspect of the communication profession. As of today, no comprehensive Europewide study exists that explores the professional backgrounds, challenges and working environments of in-house communication experts all over Europe. Consequently, the joint survey of the EACD and the University of St. Gallen, which we present to you on the following pages, intends to take a closer look at the issues on hand, from an international perspective. The insights are quite informative about the state and the growing importance of the profession. Altogether, 1171 communication professionals from all over Europe participated in the survey. The better part of them, 85%, worked for companies in the private sector, about 70 % of these corporations were listed. Although said companies covered a wide variety of industries, participants predominantly worked for very large organisations with more than 10.000 employees. The overall number of participants was evenly split between male and female respondents, in the majority of cases they were aged between 30 and 50 years. As a testament to the strategic importance of communication expertise within organisations, the salary level of respondents was comparable to other management functions. Almost every third communication professional participating in the survey earned more than 100.000 EUR. With regards to remuneration policy, private companies paid on average significantly higher salaries than institutions under public law or public policy. Only about 14% of the overall salary was related in one way or another to the profitability of the organisation, although 7 of participants reported regular success measurement of their activities. 7
Still, despite the even distribution between male and female respondents, and no significant gender differences regarding job positions, only 3 of top earners are female. Organisations and their communications function increasingly operate in a complex and challenging environment, necessitating a diverse set of personal and professional skills as well as organisational capabilities. Nearly 9 of respondents hold an academic degree, mainly either in the area of business and economics or in humanities and social sciences. In addition, a large proportion of participating communication professionals had significant previous work experience, if not in the field of Public Relations itself, then usually either in marketing or journalism. Work experience was with only few exceptions supplemented by some form of PR-specific training. Interestingly though, the overall educational level did not prove to have a noticeable impact on either the participants positions or salaries. Regarding organisational capabilities, communication departments were usually responsible for national or worldwide operations; regional responsibility was very much the exception. The budget size to fulfil the tasks at hand were on average between 250.000 and 500.000 Euro, though the private sector had significantly higher communication budgets available than had public institutions, which may also account for the differences in income between the private and the public sector. Overall, the size of communication budgets increased in the past and is expected to continue to further increase in the foreseeable future. In summary, the survey provides us with first insights into what might become interesting discussion points for the European Communication Summit and beyond. With regards to the state of the profession, the good news is that the average job satisfaction was exceedingly high, providing respondents with challenges and diversity more so than stress. This, however, is no reason for us, as professionals as well as researchers, to sit back and relax, as a genuinely European PR-Community is still in the stage of formation. It is up to us to support and advance the further strategic integration and internationalisation of the profession. For it holds true that a profession has from time to time to think and to reflect about its very foundations, so as to cope with the challenging and ever changing industry and competition environments organisations are facing nowadays. We hope that this study makes a contribution to this process, and that it serves as the basis for discussion among the members of the European Association of Communication Directors. Prof. Dr. Miriam Meckel Director Institute for Media and Communication Management at the University of St. Gallen Besides the financial endowment of the communications function, the organisational integration is another determining factor for the strategic importance of the profession. It turned out that communication professionals hold a significant level of responsibility within their organisation, 4 of respondents were responsible for the entire organisational communication of their employer, and furthermore nearly half of the communication departments were embedded on the top-management level a sign of the growing recognition of the importance of professional communication and the strategic imperative to foster a positive image for the organisation. 8 9
1. Organisational Data
Organisations are mainly from Western Europe. A majority of participants work for listed companies. Headquarters Germany United Kingdom Switzerland Belgium Netherlands Sweden Finland France Norway Italy Denmark Austria Spain Czech Republic Hungary Portugal Luxembourg Romania Poland Ireland Greece Slovenia Slovakia Lithuania Estonia Malta Latvia Cyprus Bulgaria 14.3 10.7 8.6 8.1 6.3 5.6 5.4 5.1 4.5 4.2 2.8 2.0 1.3 1.2 1.0 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 0,5 0.4 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.1 6.8 9.0 15.0 69.2 8 6 4 0 4 8 12 16 Institution under public law Other institution of public policy Unlisted company Listed company 12 13
Participants are spread throughout all relevant Participants work predominantly for large organisations. industries. Employees 5 Industry Finances/Insurance 21.9 14.9 46.1 Information/Technology 7.8 Health 6.7 4 Transport 6.2 Energy 5.8 Telecommunication 5.0 Food 3.2 3 Media 2.3 Environment 1.8 Politics Research Tourism 1.8 1.0 1.0 17.1 Social Affairs Education Legal Matters 0.9 0.6 0.5 10.8 11.6 8.7 1 Sports 0.5 5.6 Family/Youth 0.3 Culture 0.1 5% 1 15% 25% up to 100 100-500 501-1,000 1,000-5,000 5,000-10,000 more than 10,000 14 15
2. Personal Data General Information
The survey managed to cover a wide variety of European countries. Participants live mainly in Western Europe. Nationality Country of Residence German British Italian Finnish Norwegian Swiss Swedish Dutch Belgian French Danish Austrian Spanish Czech Irish Hungarian Polish Portuguese Slovakian Greek Romanian Lithuanian Slovenian Estonian Latvian Bulgarian Maltese Luxembourgian Cypriot 16.9 12.4 6.6 5.9 5.4 5.4 5.3 5.1 4.5 4.3 3.8 3.7 2.7 2.3 2.0 2.0 1.9 1.7 1.4 1.3 1.1 1.0 0.9 0.6 0.6 0.5 0.3 0.3 0.2 14.0 11.3 9.6 7.7 5.9 5.9 5.7 5.6 4.6 4.5 3.2 3.1 2.6 2.3 1.8 1.5 1.5 1.4 1.3 1.2 1.0 0.9 0.9 0.6 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.2 Germany United Kingdom Belgium Switzerland Finnland Norway Netherlands Italy Sweden France Denmark Austria Spain Czech Republic Hungary Portugal Poland Greece Slovakia Ireland Romania Slovenia Lithuania Estonia Bulgaria Latvia Luxembourg Malta Cyprus 5% 1 15% 5% 1 15% 18 19
Participants are mainly between 30 and 50 years old. Men and women are equally represented in the field of PR/communications. 4 41.6 49.8 50.2 5 34.0 4 3 3 13.4 1 8.8 1 2.2 younger than 30 30-39 40-49 50-59 60 or above male female 20 21
There are no significant gender differences regarding job positions. German is the most common first language,... Position within PR/Communications Department female male 10 27.2 17.5 German English 8.1 Dutch 8 6.7 6.2 Italian Swedish 6.0 French 5.3 Finnish 3.9 Danish 6 2.7 2.4 Spanish Czech 2.3 Hungarian 1.9 Polish 4 1.7 1.6 Portuguese Greek 1.5 Slovakian 1.0 Lithuanian 0.9 Slovenian 0.9 0.7 Romanian Latvian 0.7 Estonian 0.6 Bulgarian 0.3 Maltese Head of entire corporate or organisational communication Solely responsible for a single communications discipline Solely responsible for communications/pr in one country Staff member communications/ PR Other 1 3 22 23
while English is clearly the dominant second language. English 77.9 French 11.4 German 3.5 Dutch 1.7 Italian 1.2 Spanish 1.2 Swedish 1.1 Finnish 0.8 Hungarian 0.4 Danish 0.3 Czech 0.3 Romanian 0.1 Portuguese 0.1 25% 5 75% 24
3. Personal Data Education and Career
Participants are predominantly responsible for entire organisational communication. Participants have on average been professionally active for 15 years... 40.8 4 3 26.1 3 19.2 20.3 20.5 18.8 11.6 9.9 10.0 9.3 7.6 1 1 5.9 Head of entire corporate or organisational communication Solely responsible for a single communications discipline (e.g. media relations) Solely responsible for communications/pr in one country Staff member communications/pr Other 1-5 years 6-10 years 11-15 years 16-20 years 21-25 years 26-30 years more than 30 years 28 29
ten thereof in the field of communications. Previous work experiences are predominantly in communication-related fields. 4 34.2 14.1 Other 27.8 PR 3 24.7 22.0 Marketing/Advertising 17.8 Journalism 19.4 6.6 Assistant of Management 3.4 Science/Academics 12.5 2.3 Technology/Engineering 2.2 Human Resource Management 1 5.8 1.9 Research and Development 1.8 1.4 1.3 Controlling/Accounting 0.7 Legal Department 1-5 years 6-10 years 11-15 years 16-20 years 21-25 years 26-30 years more than 30 years 1 3 30 31
A large majority of participants hold an academic degree. The educational level has no significant impact on job position. Equivalent of PhD Equivalent of Master s Degree Equivalent of Bachelor s Degree Equivalent of High School Degree 6 55.5 10 8 4 6 26.7 4 10.0 7.8 32 Equivalent of High School Degree Equivalent of Bachelor s Degree Equivalent of Master s Degree Equivalent of PhD Head of entire corporate or organisational communication Solely responsible for communications discipline (e.g. media relations) Solely responsible for communications/pr in one country Staff member communications/pr Other 33
The educational level does only have marginal influence on income level (highest PhD rate within 100,000 plus category). Economics/Business is the most common subject studied by the participants. 10 3 25.1 8 23.3 6 18.9 16.1 4 7.3 1 5.4 2.9 0 Equivalent of PhD Equivalent of Master s Degree Equivalent of Bachelor s Degree Equivalent of High School Degree 34 less than 24,999 25,000-34,999 35,000-44,999 45,000-54,999 55,000-74,999 75,999-99,999 higher than 100,000 None Law Journalism Media or Communication Studies Other field of humaniies/social sciences Economics/ Business Other 35
PR-specific training has no clear influence on salary. PR-specific trainings are widely accepted by PRprofessionals. Average yearly income 4 10 32.0 8 3 21.9 6 11.1 12.7 13.7 4 1 8.6 None Other PR-specialisation during studies PR-traineeship PR-specific supplement diploma/certificate None PR-traineeship PR-specialisation during studies PR-specific supplement diploma/ certificate In-service PR trainings Other less than 24,999 25,000-34,999 35,000-44,999 45,000-54,999 55,000-74,999 75,999-99,999 higher than 100,000 In-service PR trainings 36 37
Income levels prove to be quite differentiated. 7 of top-earners are men women tend to gain lower salaries. 4 10 3 30.7 8 6 16.9 17.8 4 1 6.5 7.1 9.3 11.8 less than 24,999 25,000-34,999 35,000-44,999 45,000-54,999 55,000-74,999 75,999-99,999 higher than 100,000 less than 24,999 25,000-34,999 35,000-44,999 45,000-54,999 55,000-74,999 75,999-99,999 higher than 100,000 female male 38 39
Institutions of public policies tend to pay lower salaries, whereas unlisted companies are in the upper levels. Income is still largely not profit-related (on average about 14%). Average yearly income 10 % Profit-related income 32.5 0 11.0 5 8 6 4 Unlisted company Listed company Other institution of public policy Institution under public law 4.4 1.5 3.2 0.6 2.8 0.4 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.3 6.6 13.2 10.6 12.1 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 90 100 less than 24,999 25,000-34,999 35,000-44,999 45,000-54,999 55,000-74,999 75,999-99,999 higher than 100,000 1 3 4 40 41
Foreign work experience is still an exception. If participants have work experience abroad, it is on average limited to 4.5 years. Work experience abroad Years of work experience abroad 10 73.2 8 8 74.3 6 6 4 4 25.7 18.9 6.1 1.8 Yes No 1-5 years 6-10 years 11-15 years more than 15 years 42 43
4. Organisational Communication Structures and Organisational Integration
Communications departments with regional responsibilities are still an exception. PR/communications departments have grown in the past. Department responsible for the communication efforts of Development of department size 4 46.0 5 35.6 35.4 4 3 35.9 3 15.2 18.1 1 10.2 1 3.6 a regional market a national market more than one national market a geographic region (e.g. EU, EMEA) worldwide operations downsized roughly constant increased 46 47
The average size of PR/communications budget is approximately 250,000 to 500,000 Euro. Institutions of public policy tend to have smaller PR budgets in contrast to unlisted companies What is the approximate size of your PR/communications departments budget 10 17.0 8 15% 13.7 13.1 13.4 13.3 13.5 6 1 7.4 4 5% 4.2 4.4 Unlisted company Listed company Other institution of public policy Institution under public law 48 less than 50,000 50,000 100,000 250,000-100,000-250,000-500,000 500,000-1m 1m -2,5m 2,5m -5m 5m -10m more than 10m less than 50,000 50,000-100,000 100,000-250,000 250,000-500,000 500,000-1m 1m-2,5m 2,5-5m 5-10m higher than 10m 49
In the past 5 years, budget increases outweighed decreases. Further moderate increases are expected for the future. 4 39.7 37.7 55.7 6 3 22.6 32.2 4 1 11.8 downsized roughly constant increased downsized roughly constant increased 50 51
Communication has been established as a critical element of organisational leadership/management. Integrated Communication still proves to be fashionable. Hierarchical level of the PR/communications department Integrated Communication strategic element of organisation 10 Subordinate to another department 46.3 88.1 8 Subordinate to Marketing 24.3 Coordinate department alongside other departments 6.0 6 Below management with central management capacity 5.5 4 Staff unit on management level Embedded in top management/ executive level 9.0 8.3 11.9 4 6 No Yes 52 53
Within institutions under public law aproximately 6 of the PR units are subordinate to internal communication unit. PR and Marketing cooperate closely. 10 48.7 5 8 4 6 3 4 19.5 19.9 6.9 5.0 1 Unlisted company Listed company Other institution of public policy Institution under public law 54 Internal Communication/PR units are equal on the same hierarchy level and cooperate closely Internal Communication/PR units are equal on the same hierarchy level and operate independently Internal Communication/PR units are single entity/unit PR unit is subordinate to Internal Communication unit PR unit is superordinate to Internal Communication unit There is no Internal Relations department in my organisation Marketing and PR units are equal on the same hierarchy level and cooperate closley Marketing and PR units reside on one hierarchy level and cooperate independently Marketing and PR units are a single entity/unit PR unit is subordinate to Marketing unit PR unit is superordinate to Marketing unit 55
PR and IR are usually seperate units. PR and Internal Communication show the highest level of integration. 59.3 40.5 6 37.7 4 3 4 20.2 15.4 9.5 11.6 1 6.7 2.0 3.1 IR and PR units are equal on the same hierarchy level and cooperate closely IR and PR units reside on one hierarchy level and cooperate independently PR and IR units are a single entity/unit PR unit is subordinate to IR unit PR unit is superordinate to IR unit Internal Communication and PR units are equal on the same hierarchy level and cooperate closely Internal Communication and PR units reside on one hierarchy level and cooperate independently Internal Communication and PR units are a single entity/unit PR unit is subordinate to Internal Communication unit PR unit is superordinate to Internal Communication unit 56 57
Cooperation with external consultants is part of daily operations. While cooperation with external consultants is overall high, unlisted companies work more often with consutants. 6 10 52.6 8 4 35.5 6 4 11.9 Yes, very often Yes, occasionally No, never Institution under public law Other institution of puplic policy Listed company Unlisted company No,never Yes, occasionally Yes, very often 58 59
5. Tasks and Routines, Basics
Journalists/media are the most important stakeholder group of communication professionals. Communication professionals strive to cultivate their organisation s image. Relevance of stakeholder groups Most relevant objectives Journalists/media Employees/members (for associations) Executive managers General public Clients, suppliers, subcontractors Politicians/state institutions Shareholders/ capital providers Action groups/ environment organisations Competitors Association officials Trade unionists 2.54 4.20 4.06 3.84 3.59 3.47 3.41 3.21 2.93 2.87 4.73 4.23 4.16 4.16 3.93 3.88 3.56 3.48 3.49 3.47 3.40 3.32 3.17 3.12 3.05 4.78 Build-up and preservation of positive corporate image Information and motivation of staff Build-up and preservation of positive product image Keeping the enterprise out of negative headlines Transparency concering corporate policy Standardsation of corporate appearance Publication of product launches Relations with societal and political institutions Attractiveness to potential employees Detection of trends and social developments Communication of stakeholders interests to management Provision of opportunities for dialogue with interested groups Relations with and acquisition of customers Generation of favourable conditions on the financial market Influence on law-making procedures 1 2 3 4 5 0 1 2 3 4 5 62 63
The definition of relevant stakeholders and strategic objectives should influence success measurement. Systematic success measurement 8 70.8 6 4 29.2 No Yes 64
6. Job Satisfaction
Overall job satisfaction is very high among communication professionals. No major gender differences regarding job satisfaction 5 48.2 10 4 8 32.7 3 6 4 14.0 1 1.2 3.8 0 1 very low 2 3 4 5 very high 1 very low 2 3 4 5 very high female male 68 69
Whereas job satisfaction is overall high, employees with higher salaries rate their job satisfaction higher. Communication professionals perceive themselves mainly as managers. Self-perceived role 10 4.26 manager 8 3.84 consultant 6 3.44 mentor/ arbitrator 4 2.90 puplic actor 2.73 journalist 5 very high 4 3 2 less than 24,999 25,000-34,999 35,000-44,999 45,000-54,999 55,000-74,999 75,000-99,999 higher than 100,000 0 1 2 3 4 5 1 very low 70 71
Communication professionals perceive their jobs as challenging and varied. Participants expect to remain active in the field of communications. 5 8 4.45 4.27 69.8 4 3.95 3.71 3.70 3.61 6 3 4 2 1.86 22.3 1 4.7 3.2 0 Challenges Diversity and variety Stress Personal contentment Self-actualisation Fun Boredom intend to remain in PR would consider changing intend to change other (e.g. retirement) 72 73
7. PR Associations
Membership in a national professional association is much more common......than membership in an international association 59.9 6 91.2 10 8 40.1 4 6 4 8.8 No Yes No Yes 76 77
A large majority of participants are not a member of the EACD. EACD membership 10 85.1 8 6 4 14.9 No Yes 78