Vice President, India & Lead, AMEA –
Corporate & Government Affairs,
Mondelez International
For me, it was never Public Relations. When I started my career, it was Perception Management. This was a wider canvas – where one could drive engagement and narratives that would shape ideas, plans and views. Not just inform the public.
Over the last few decades, we have seen the amalgamation of communications, marketing, digital, earned, owned into a driving force deeply linked to business strategy and outcomes. PR became a business partner from being a support function. Its value was being felt and its impact measurable.
With the explosion of social media, the discipline became a shield and sword to address misinformation, drive storytelling through credible voices and engage consumers directly. And now AI is already transforming the way we work – whether it is for insights, driving messages, real time engagement, storytelling, crisis management, influencer marketing or content creation, distribution and monitoring.
Given the external environment our businesses operate in – geopolitical, societal, digital, environmental – now more than ever, organisations need to use PR strategically and impactfully. While its no longer about getting to the front page of a newspaper, it certainly is about driving action and building trust. PR now needs to get brands to be more authentic, take a stand on issues and invest in action as required – thereby building deep connections and trust among stakeholders in today’s fast paced world. This must be based on research, insights, data and a deep understanding of the forces now shaping human behaviour and external trends.
And in this, AI can help us by making communications faster and smarter. But it also opens doors to vulnerabilities. From deepfakes to misinformation, AI can damage or build reputations. Therefore, as AI becomes more mainstream, the responsible use of AI will become fundamental in the way we do business and the way we do PR. The role of rigorous fact-checking, human judgements and maintaining a credible and distinct brand voice will become even more critical.
So, while our profession has a strong future, our talent will need to keep pace with the change. While we need to master AI, there is also an urgent need to understand public policy, sustainability and ESG, trade and cross market linkages, digital developments, employee policies and next gen talent to create strategies and actions that will very sharply address business and brand needs. The CCOs of the future will need to evolve from business partners to strategic business leaders. This will require a high level of agility and depth of knowledge beyond our discipline of communications – our CCOs will need to be visionaries, synthesisers and influencers all in one – building trust, managing misinformation and engaging and driving impact.