‘Be respectfully challenging. Be bold and be brave to ask questions about what you want and how you can achieve it’ inspiring and captivating words shared by Mary Hampshire at the CIPR Yorkshire Networking Event with PR practitioners, 14th of March 2024 at the Rose Bowl – Knowledge Exchange room of Leeds Beckett University hosted by Teela Clayton.
The world of public relations is a dynamic field that requires professionals to stay updated with the latest trends, statistics, strategies, and insights.
For a couple of years now, outside my rituals and must-do activities to keep a healthy body, soul, and mind, I have developed a growing love for networking events that have grown to become an activity that I wholeheartedly enjoy participating in.
Networking events to me are events organised to gather as well as encourage professionals to meet and engage with one another to build valuable connections.
Networking events are realistically organised for a different number of things, but the major aim is achieving a common goal, which is to allow attendees to build professional connections.
An event that enlightens, inspires and first-hand paves the way for a greater collaboration.
So, one could imagine the excitement on my face reading my inbox and seeing an invitation to register.
The first course of action to start the event was the opening speech delivered by the host, Teela to welcome her guest, panellist, co-workers, and students.
During her speech, she exhaustively explained the event’s purpose and gave a charge to the students present to take advantage of this opportunity and get the best out of every moment the night had to offer.
There were 7 guests scheduled to speak at the event that evening, who were members of CIPR, we were to sit and listen to panellists vast in their field, some were in the field of communication and Marketing, TV station reporters, external relations and strategy, and PR ad media relations among a host of things the panellists are involved in their line of career.
No particular order
David Glanville, Head of Communications and Marketing, Bradford Council.
Amelia Selby, PR Manager, SEO Travel.
Naj Modak, Chart.PR, BBC Reporter, Radio Humberside.
Rebecca B., Head of External Relations and Strategy, Ministry of Defence.
Gary Taylor, Chart.PR Fellow, Press and Communications, South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority.
Prakriti Roy, Alumni Relations, Leeds Beckett University.
Mary Hampshire, Head of PR and Media Relations, The Sheffield College and Associate Lecturer in PR, Sheffield Hallam University.
Each had about 10 minutes to talk about themselves and their journeys.
They all shared their thought-provoking and inspiring stories about their accomplishments, the challenges faced within the industry, steps for success and some rejection that they had received along the way.
The second course of action was to meet people and ask questions about what they had shared during the panel discussion or seek specific advice on what to do in building your career.
I got to speak with a couple of people who had shared specific stories and I wanted to know more.
Rebecca Benn was one of the guests I had a conversation with, and she spoke about the importance of understanding what best suits you and how well you can present what you know in your career.
“Recruiters also want to see ambition as a candidate who is goal-oriented and can prove that he or she needs the job”
In conclusion, it is always important to note that furthering your skills is a bold if not “bolder” step to take and we have a lot to offer in the creative world of PR.
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