30 Years on: The journey from CIPR Associate to Fellow

Right from my days at University in the 1980s I knew I wanted to work in Public Relations. However, I had no vision or idea how to go about it and in the late 80s I fell into what felt like a dead end job, working in print advertising telesales for a number of little known business publications. I began with a basic of ￡50 per week, the rest was to be earned by commission. After a couple of weeks the owner announced that he could no longer afford to pay any basic salary, we would have to be paid on commission only from then on. Sell something - get paid. Sell nothing, get nothing. Quite a brutal lesson at a young age of what matters to organisations - the difference between 'activity' and the 'value' of our individual and collective efforts.

Our boss would walk around each Friday afternoon handing out our pay cheques, the chat somehting like this: "Smith? - Good week Smith, well done. Well on your way to achieving that Ferrari you're dreaming of! Here's your pay cheque. Adams? - Where's Adams? Well done Adams, smashed another week. You'll be in that mansion you're dreaming about soon. Bagnall? Bagnall. Ah. Nothing this week for you. Jones? Excellent week Jones, a couple of great deals. No doubt you will be getting the champagne in..." etc etc.

I nearly jacked it all in as I struggled to get my first deal. But I didn't know what else I would do and I didn't want to quit. So I persevered. Even once I'd closed my first deal it was still difficult to learn the rhythm of how to make sales work. But I carried on and learned so many of life and work's most important lessons:

• Selling is not a dirty word
• We are all sales people even if we don't think it
• No one owes us a living
• The harder you work, the luckier you become
• People buy people
• People like people like themselves
• Develop the 'ask', forget the 'tell'
• The importance of resilience in the face of knock-backs
• The power of networks
• The importance of connecting people

And of course many, many others.

I'm so glad that I did persevere as a series of happenstances then conspired to get me into the PR and comms industry and ultimately into its research, measurement and evaluation fields.

First, my publishing company was awarded the contract to sell the ads in the then IPR's inaugural Handbook of Members - literally a print directory of all of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations' members contact details. I started to learn about the industry, it's leaders and connectors.

From this opportunity I met one of the original greats of PR, the amazing Nesta Hollis, founder of the Hollis Press & PR Annual. In the days when the internet didn't exist, mobile phones hadn't entered common usage and a typewriter with a memory module for addresses was cutting edge, the Press & PR Annual was literally the bible of our industry, a thumbed and closely guarded copy on every PR professional and journalist's desk.

Nesta took me under her wing and for about 4 very happy years I worked as her sales manager, launching Hollis Europe and the Sponsorship and Donations Yearbook too.

I met so many brilliant people through Hollis, both at the company and in the wider industry too. I'm especially grateful to Angela Heylin LVO OBE who so kindly took me under her wing at that time with advice, kindness and support despite her being boss of the mighty Charles Barker PR and me being a lowly salesperson. Through Nesta, the industry's ultimate connector, I was introduced to many other PR industry greats, including CIPR leaders Colin Farrington, Dick Fedorcio OBE, Roger Haywood, Douglas Smith, Reginald Watts, Rosemary Brook Arbiter, Mike Beard and Simon Lewis. I got to know then PRCA DG, Colin Thompson with whom I enjoyed my first business lunch at which he introduced me to the delights of Lebanon's Chateau Musar. It was also while at Hollis that I first got to know Ben Smith, my opposite number at PR Week, who of course has gone on to do such incredible things with the PRMoment stable.

As happy as I was at Hollis, with our Teddington Riverside office along with an office tortoise, office veg patch and wonderful colleagues, I yearned for something more. I wanted to get into public relations.

Alan Capper, chair of the newly created Rowland Worldwide offered me the route I needed. Saatchi & Saatchi had recently acquired the world's largest PR firms and brought them all together - Granard, Kingsway and the Rowland Company. Would I join and help the agency with its new business? As much as I loved working at Hollis, I had to take this opportunity.

Many warned me against it - this massive merger was facing many challenges and I would be leaving a role where I was valued and secure for one in the bright lights of Charlotte Street in a new sector, and in very uncertain times. I took the plunge and finally joined the industry that I had aspired to, in one of the biggest and best companies. In addition to Alan, I worked with many inspirational leaders and colleagues. Peter Rae, Judy Ditchburn, Christina Bruce, Fiona Driscoll, Tari Lang (nee Tari Hibbitt), Robin Courage, Jane Atkinson, John Maples, John Cameron, Jessica Bondy, Helen Barnard and even a pre-politics John Bercow.

As well as managing new business which included one memorable call with the now disgraced Max Clifford, I also had the opportunity to work on some of the agency's key accounts, including the National Lottery, the highlight being working behind the scenes at the BBC for the weekend of the launch show with Noel Edmonds.

In 1994, Philip Dewhurst became the CEO at Rowland and encouraged me to join the then IPR as an associate member. And so began a relationship with the CIPR that's now lasted an incredible 30 years. During this time I've had so many enjoyable experiences and been presented with so many amazing opportunities thanks to my membership.

I've judged its awards, attended and spoken at multiple national, regional and special interest events, had the opportunity to co-author books including Share This, Share This Too, and Platinum, and been an active member of its Social Media Panel that did so much great work under the leadership of Stephen Waddington and then Gem Griffiths-Rimmer (She/Her) and Daniel Tyte . The panel was full of incredible people from whom, as I've so often found, I was able to learn far more than I ever felt I could contribute. Big thanks to amongst others Andrew Bruce Smith , Stuart Bruce , Rob Brown , Katy Howell , Julio Romo , Philip Sheldrake , Russell Goldsmith , Adam Parker , Mark Pack , Michelle Goodall , Andy Ross and Koray Camg?z .

I've met and become friends with so many of the CIPR's members, far too many to list here. But a special shout out to past president Rachel Roberts who gave me the great honour of awarding me the President's medal in 2022 for distinguished services to Public Relations. It is a cherished possession.

I feel very priviledged as I celebrate my 30th year membership of the CIPR to be able to share a few memories of my circuitous route into PR and the Institute. (Here are some corresponding tales of from my journey in PR measurement, if of interest.) I'm always conscious that not every one is so lucky and a number of colleagues and friends from my career are no longer with us, some having led a very full life, some taken in their prime. We're not all granted the gift of time.

Back in 1994 when Philip encouraged me to become a member and I received my certificate of membership I was so proud. But not as proud as I was just before this Christmas last year when I learned that I had been awarded a Fellowship of the Institute. Many congratulations to Ann-Marie Blake , Emma Duke , and Elaine Fee FCIPR who also achieved Fellowship recognition at the same time. I'm sure we have followed very different journeys but it's great to end up in the same place as you!

A massive thank you to those that supported my Fellowship, especially to Eva Maclaine FCIPR, Found Chart PR , Andy West , Anne Gregory and Steven Shepperson-Smith . I appreciate your trust, encouragement and support.

I don't think (sadly) it is realistic for me to say here's to the next thirty years with the CIPR, but I do look forward to continuing to work with the Chartered Institute and support its work and I encourage anyone reading to do the same. As I found with my work at AMEC Measurement and Evaluation , our trade associations and professional bodies offer so much to those that support them and we always get more out of them than we put in. Thank you CIPR for being such an important part of my journey. I've enjoyed every twist and turn in the journey together.