Eight Tips to Co-exist in the Workplace While Working (and Living) with a Parent

While completing the six-credit balance of my bachelor’s degree in public relations, I am interning with my father and the team at Feintuch Communications. Below are some first-week musings of the delicate balance that is working and living under the same roof as my dad.

Be sure to check back next week for Henry’s tips on working and living with his offspring.

 1. Wake up before your boss. Nothing says “I’m ready for work” quite like being dressed and ready to go before mom or dad has made his or her way out of bed. Check to see if your parent/boss is awake before jumping in the shower. If they’re still snoozing, take a deep breath and relax under the hot water for an extra few minutes. If mom or dad is up and about, you’re probably playing catch up… so catch up, and fast!

A view from Chappaqua train station

2. Home is not the office and the office is not home. Leave the baggage on the train or you’ll be in for a long day (and a short-lived employment). The moment you allow household fights to migrate into the office is the moment your co-workers become uneasy. No matter how angry you are that your father had the nerve to ask you to clean the basement the night before, your co-workers don’t want to hear about it; it’s just uncomfortable. Debrief BEFORE you get home. Reviewing the events of the day and hearing an executive perspective of them can reveal a lot of valuable insight into how to think more strategically and broad. Not only can you learn a ton from picking your boss brain after hours but it can save you from arguing about the happenings of the day later on. 

3. Remove yourself from conversations about “the boss.” No matter how much you want to be “one of the guys,” you’re not. You may be a member of the team but you’re still the boss’ kid. 

Alex's ankle circa 2012

4. Don’t force the boss’ hand. Would your father understand that you should really get that swollen ankle checked out ASAP? Absolutely. Would your boss? Maybe not. Don’t make mom or dad pick between wearing the boss hat or the parent hat. Sympathy for your health may very well win out, but is it worth projecting to the entire office that your priority is not getting work done and being an equal member of the team? Doubtful. 

5. No complaining to your non-boss parent about the boss! That’s between the two of you and dragging other family members in the middle benefits no one. Balancing the relationship is difficult enough without another family member weighing in.

6. Be honest and realistic about how things are going. No job in the world is worth poisoning the relationship with your mom or dad. If either one of you has concerns, hash it out as quickly as possible (in private). Don’t sweep the issues under the rug because they’re not going anywhere. If the business relationship is truly not working out then drop it before the damage bleeds into the personal relationship. 

7. Keep an open mind. *This applies to all employee/boss relations* While you may not care for your parents’ opinion on what color slacks to put on in the morning, there’s likely good reason why your mother or father has made it to where they are. Take advantage of the resource and learn as much as you possibly can. 

Pictured: Henry (dad) and Alex (author and son)

8. Lastly, embrace it. If your mother or father has provided the opportunity for you to accelerate your career then you've got a real leg up. Be gracious and thankful for the opportunity and do everything you possibly can to prove to everyone that you deserve the position regardless of your last name. 

What tips would you give to your son or daughter if they came to work for you? Let us know in the comments section below.

Public Affairs v. B2B PR: The Differences

As someone with a strong interest in both B2B and government PR, and who has experience interning in both fields, I find it interesting to compare the two. For as much as they are both “public relations” and have many similarities, they also have their differences. After looking at the similarities in my first blog post, let’s now take a look at the differences between PR in public affairs and B2B PR:

Jay Carney, press secretary
for President Barack Obama

1.    Creating Strategy v. Managing Crises – In B2B PR, there is much more of a strategic mindset. The team can create a short term or long term strategy and then try to adhere to it. Crises may arise, but the framework of an agreed upon plan is often largely kept in place.

 In public affairs, there is often no long term plan at all. Rather than being proactive with strategy, the job is often reactive. Though there may be end goals (reelection, certain policies being passed, etc.), a press secretary will often be handling media inquiries or specific, sporadic projects that have a less defined timeline. Whereas in B2B PR we may lay out a strategically beneficial schedule of press releases, media interviews, and other helpful actions, in public affairs there is often no plan for these until the situation arises suddenly.

As a kicker, the situation may disappear just as quickly. A press conference could be scheduled as soon as a Senator decides to introduce a new bill, and then just a few hours before it would take place, the Senator may find an issue with the language of the bill and cancel the whole thing. A Congressional hearing may end up bringing a Representative into the spotlight, and suddenly there are requests for television interviews from MSNBC, CNN and Fox -- all for the next day. A gaffe could lead to the need to prepare a statement for all media that call looking for a comment. This is not to say that these situations never arise in a B2B setting, but rather that general PR has a strong emphasis on proactive strategy rather than being forced to constantly be handling unforeseen situations.

2.    Meeting Different End Goals – In B2B PR, the strategy always consists of, at a basic level,  helping the client as best as possible in order for that client to become a more successful company by achieving their business objectives.

The goals for a politician can often be more diverse. Two frequent goals that may even come in contention with each other are reelection and legislating. This might mean making a politician develop a strong media presence when dealing with certain issues that many constituents back - all in an effort to be reelected. At the same time, however, it could mean shying away from media exposure in an attempt to legislate something that may be unpopular to the constituents.

There is a constant balancing act between legislating and getting reelected, and between trying to get media exposure and trying to stay behind the scenes. Other possible goals include better committee assignments, or positioning for a more powerful position further down the road, just to name a few. In B2B PR, there is less contention. Though there are times that a client may not want a lot of exposure and other times when a client will want lots of it, the goal is always the success of the company within its market.

3.    Being More Than, or Only, PR – One of the first things I learned at Feintuch Communications was that it is important not to just think of ourselves as a PR firm. We handle all sorts of tasks for our clients, from press relations to investor relations, to analyst relations, to complete marketing strategies. This is very different from my experience in Congress, in which a Press Secretary or Communications Director really just handles the media. There are no investor relations projects because there are no investors. There is no need for a big, intricate marketing strategy because as I alluded to earlier, it would all fall off the rails quite quickly. The job ends up consisting mostly of press and media relations, with social media sometimes thrown in depending on the level of the staffer and on the politician being represented. The nature of the job forces its simplicity and precision - there is no market share, there are no investors, there are no analysts, and as I mentioned earlier there is less of a proactive strategy. This all makes public affairs PR a much less comprehensive offering, at least in comparison to the PR discipline and orientation I have been experiencing while interning with Feintuch Communications. 

Is it Pop? Or is it Soda? …Or is it Coke?

Image courtesy of ShareAlike 2.0 Generic

The differences across the country in how we speak, act, dress and live day-to-day life have always fascinated me. Just last week, I was in Minnesota visiting friends when one said the word “bagel” but instead of pronouncing it “BAY-gull,” she (and others around her) pronounced it “BAG-gull.” Furthermore, my friends from Pittsburgh often use terms like “jagger bush” instead of “thorn bush.” And don’t get me started on the never-ending battle of pop vs. soda… (despite the mass popularity of pop, it’s soda!) .

Although these are subtle differences that most people understand when spoken in context, such differences across a language and linguistics can create a challenge for PR/communications professionals who are always striving to effectively communicate a brand’s message to an audience. In many cases, PR professionals can refer to the AP Stylebook for the proper grammar and use of a word. But, some differences, particularly regional dialects, just aren’t covered.

In 1999, the Harvard Dialect Survey, collected data on terms/sounds that were used differently across North America. Last month, this study went viral after Joshua Katz, a Ph.D. student, used the data to inform a series of maps illustrating the variances in speech across the U.S. (Side note: a great proof point for the power of using visuals to make a story come to life!).

In my mind, this all begs the question: Do these variances directly impact how a brand is perceived? If a company decides to be a “soda company” vs. a “pop company” – will that turn off a particular audience?

While the answer to that particular (exaggerated) example leans toward “unlikely,” the topic of dialect variances as a roadblock to effectively communicating a brand story remains.

Have you ever been faced with a situation where dialect got in the way of communicating? What are other cultural factors that influence the way we communicate a brand’s story?

Buckle Your Seatbelts.... Tray Tables Up...and Please DON'T Turn Off Your Devices.....

Finally, the F.A.A. has caught up with air passenger reality.

You know that silly edict about "please turn off all electronic devices that have a switch" that made the entire flying public either closet criminals, plain bored or impotent and docile sheep reconciled to putting our short-term health and well-being...and independence... into the hands of our flight stewards.

It's been a sort of an open joke among road warriors and flight crews that Kindles, noise cancelling headseats, tablets and even active games of Word with Friends (yes that game, Alec Baldwin) have never been implicated in a flying emergency (let alone something more dreaded).  In truth, it helped the cabin crew to establish "control" over its passengers and perhaps saved a few bumps on the head due to flying electronics if an aircraft hit turbulence. Nothing more.

Most of us complied, begrudgingly, even as we played a cat and mouse game of using our devices for a few extra seconds before the flight steward came by and either softly....or not so gingerly...requested compliance.  And how many of us have sat near someone who chose to simply ignore the protocol and do their electronic thing regardless.  Or ever been on a flight where someone, who may not know how to shut off their phone, had their phone ring during ascent?  Ooops....

But that all changed last Friday when the FAA said the rules -- they are a changing.

That's when Marketplace Reporter Dan Gorenstein interviewed our client Jonathan Spira, editorial director of Frequent Business Traveler, to help interpret the new ruling. After their interview, Jonathan (in a PR turnabout), suggested that Dan interview his "agency" head since he too was a fellow frequent traveler who he knew broke out into hives at the mere suggestion of unplugging.

Dan's story ran on NPR late that afternoon.  Grab a read/listen: http://www.marketplace.org/topics/business/faa-answers-why-cant-i-use-my-ipad-takeoff

The new policy will go into effect later this year after an FAA advisory group weighs in and the policy is formally changed. What won't change? No cell voice calls on planes -- at least during this round.

Probably a good thing for most passengers who prefer whatever privacy/quality/quiet time remains during flying to cutting the cord. 

What's your experience? Ever break the rules during take-off and landing  to read an e-book, don your headset or play a game? Should voice calls remain off-limits (even MetroNorth now has a quiet car each train ride in or out of New York City where you can't even THINK of answering or placing a cell call)?

I'll chill on the point..and celebrate a small victory for productivity and individual rights.  Now to start lobbying for the return of that little bag of peanuts on board!

Public Affairs v. B2B PR: The Similarities

Michael Mallon, Intern

I’ve had lots of different internship experiences in my three post-high school years. I interned for the morning show at 103.5 KTU here in New York; I handled marketing strategies at a startup that made financial mobile apps; and I worked for Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (NY-12) 

down in Washington, DC.

Now I’m in PR.

Although most people might link the marketing experience with my current PR internship at Feintuch Communications, my internship with Congresswoman Maloney was actually the most similar to what I’m doing now. From the view of an intern who had many press and writing-related tasks on the Hill, and who is now working at a full-fledged communications and PR firm, there are many similarities in both tasks and mindsets between doing political press and working in private sector press relations.

There are certainly differences as well, but I will save those for a later date. From what I’ve learned so far, here are the top similarities between government press operations and a PR firm’s operations:

Congresswoman Maloney

1. Master Media Relations – The absolute basis of professional press relations does not change. You still need to put out press releases, you still need to coordinate with journalists, and you still need to serve the client’s (or politician’s) interests.
2. Manage Crises Efficiently – There are times, both in government and PR firms, when crises must be handled with great poise. Whether the politician made a comment that is making headlines as a gaffe, or a corporation’s product must be recalled, there’s a need for communications professionals to attempt to counteract the sudden ‘bad press’ that arises. Writing a story that is favorable toward the client, stirring up positive news articles in important publications, reestablishing your client’s credibility, and other techniques are necessary in either field when crises inevitably arise.
3. Develop Clear and Concise Messaging – PR firms and political press experts must both communicate the message of their client in a coherent and compelling manner. This may be through any number of means, but whether you are working for a politician or a corporation, you must make sure that the message and image that they each are trying to convey to the media and to the public are being conveyed effectively.  That could mean a politician who wants to be seen as one of the leaders of the immigration reform efforts in Congress, or it could mean a client who wants to be positioned as having the best customer service in their industry.
4. Manage Your Databases – It’s important in either field to make sure that your databases are up to date and filled with the most relevant contacts. Journalists move from publication to publication or from one focus to another with increasing frequency, making it necessary to constantly update your databases. That way, when news breaks or it’s time to send out a release, it will go out to the proper people.
5. Handle Difficult Clients – Some clients can be difficult to work with in both fields. Whether it’s a Senator who does not want to do interview and media training but consistently fumbles on television, or a company that is a bit too capricious with its marketing plans, it is a PR professional’s job to advise as best as possible. This means that you are constantly walking a thin line between pushing hard for something because you believe it is strongly in the client’s best interest, and serving the client based on what they want.
6. See the Big Picture – In political press and more general PR, you always need to understand the client’s “big picture.” The more you understand a client and their overall vision, the more you can effectively cater to it and provide the right services to achieve the client’s objectives. In politics, that may mean publicizing something that a Senator did even though it may be unpopular with constituents in order to show that the politician is a team-player within the party – the end goal being a specific committee assignment (which is determined by the party apparatus). In PR, you may have a great plan to get publicity in some well-respected publications which would certainly boost the company’s product sales, but if those publications don’t cater to the marketing plan that the client has, then it does not fall in line with the company’s big picture.

Michael Mallon is the 2013 Summer Intern for Feintuch Communications. He attends Cornell University, class of 2014.