12th Annual Prospect State of the Industry Review reveals the big issues affecting the PR and Communications industry in Asia and the UK.- For the first time, pay is trumped by training, promotion opportunities and flexibility in determining employee happiness in Asia.
- Almost two-thirds of respondents in Asia are considering a job change in
1st March 2023: Prospect, a global talent consultancy exclusively for the PR and communications industry, today released the 12th annual Prospect State of the Industry Review. With input from more than 570 communications practitioners in Singapore, Hong Kong and the UK, the Review provides an authoritative view into the drivers of employee happiness, the competition for attracting and retaining talent, and the skillsets most in demand in 2023.
The findings show that half of all PR and communications practitioners in Asia are happy in their current employment, but that happiness does not translate into loyalty. More than 60% would consider changing employment in 2023, and more than one-quarter plan to relocate to a new country. Employers can expect a continued trend of talent mobility within the industry in the year ahead.
Training, promotion opportunities and flexibility have the greatest impact on employee happiness in Asia. For the first time, pay fell outside the top three determinants of happiness for respondents in Asia. While employees were seen as doing a good job in providing workplace flexibility (2.6 out of 3), they were evaluated comparatively poorly in providing training (2.0 out of 3) and promotion opportunities (1.9 out of 3).
Emma Dale, Co-founder and Managing Director, Prospect (Asia) said: “The importance of training in retaining and developing industry talent cannot be overstated, especially in this era of hybrid working. The need to coach leaders and aspiring leaders has really grown as firms have witnessed the business impact of an absence of employee loyalty due to less engaged or inspiring leadership.”
Strategic counsel dominants as the most valued skillset in the PR and communications industry in Asia. However, the challenges of 2023 such as ongoing pandemic-related restrictions, geopolitics, and global inflation have heralded the demand for sector expertise in ESG, data and analytics, and digital.
This year, it was almost impossible to provide an accurate salary guide. While talent has always been short, as markets came out of the pandemic it was particularly scarce. Regular salary ranges were skewed as companies increased packages in an attempt to retain staff or attract new talent.
While there was no indication from agency and in-house leaders that the PR and communications industry would be downsizing in 2023, many alluded to being more cautious in their hiring in the year ahead and, for in-house professionals, more discerning about their agency spend.
The full Prospect State of the Industry Review can be downloaded here.
Check out the perspectives of industry leaders at the Prospect State of the Industry Roundtables in Hong Kong and Singapore.
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For media enquiries or interview opportunities with Emma Dale, contact:
Elissa Campbell elissa@epiloguecreative.page
About Prospect
Prospect is a global talent consultancy exclusively for the PR and Communications industry with 20 years’ experience supporting corporate companies and agencies to build and expand their teams. With offices in London, Hong Kong and Singapore (and a reach much further), we have relationships with a loyal alumni of candidates across all experience levels, nationalities and specialisations.
Building on the success of our Recruitment services, our offering has expanded to include Mentoring and Coaching. Our annual mentoring programme connects industry leaders with mentees from the UK, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mainland China.
Prospect’s coaching offering is led by Emma Dale, accredited Associate Coach with the International Coaching Federation (ICF ACC), certified coach with the Institute of Executive Coaching & Leadership (IECL) and licenced Firework career coach. She coaches business professionals across industry sectors from mid-level high-potential talent to CEOs on how to fulfil their potential and maximise their performance. Individual and group coaching sessions are available.
