Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast You're my commsHERO

In this episode of the CommsHero Podcast, we’re joined by Guy Stenson, Chief Executive of Gloucester City Homes, to explore what it means to be a visible, authentic leader in today’s world.

 A self-confessed ‘frustrated comms professional’, Guy shares how his early passion for storytelling, from editing his school newspaper to launching a social care radio show, has shaped his leadership style across housing, health and social care.

 We dive into why visibility isn’t about being in the office all day, how bringing personality into your comms can humanise your brand, and why corporate and personal comms don’t have to compete.

If you’re in comms, leadership, or simply passionate about better engagement, this is an episode you won’t want to miss.

In this episode of the commsHERO Podcast, we welcome Greg Reed, CEO of Places for People, to explore why he’s an active presence on social media and internal comms. From engaging colleagues online to running alongside them in real life, Greg shares how being a visible and accessible leader strengthens culture, communication, and the brand. He’ll reveal how he balances authenticity with leadership, the impact of open conversations, and why an hour with the CEO, away from the boardroom, can be priceless. If you’re in comms or marketing, this is an episode you won’t want to miss!

In this episode, Anisah will talk about her ‘interesting’ journey into the magical world of PR and Communications- it certainly was never in her so -called plan of life- but with a little bit of confidence, some talent spotting and a bunch of incredible leaders in her corner. Anisah talks about how she now manages the PR, Communications, Marketing and Student Recruitment for the first ever established and fourth largest Sixth Form College in the country… all whilst trying to make a small difference in a very special town.

From a degree in Education and Philosophy from UCL, to starting her career off in the Student Recruitment field, Anisah fell into PR in your not-so traditional way. She is now Head of Student Experience and Corporate Communications for one of the oldest, largest and most academically successful sixth form colleges in the country. Call it luck, or fate but she couldn’t have chosen a more perfect career for herself. Anisah is the youngest female, ethnic minority Head of Department in the colleges history! 

Anisah is also a Trustee of Level Trust, Ambassador for Step Forward Luton and more recently won the Asian Women of Achievement Award for Young Achiever of the Year 2023.

‘Don’t be the magpie’ - how marketers need to avoid overlooking the essential elements of a plan for the sake of the quick fix. 

With the constant pressure to present value, busy marketing teams frequently fall victim to short term fixes leading to influences on a strategy that are subjective and poorly informed.

 It’s all too easy to lean on short term fixes at the expense of the essentials that make up the foundation of a good marketing strategy that will last into the long term. This is where the real value in marketing lies. It’s handy to take stock of the essentials often so we know that we’re still on the right track and avoid a marketing strategy with more holes than a Swiss cheese. 

 In this podcast, Jim runs through the thinking behind this and the essential components that he relies on to maintain a true course. 

Guest Biog: 

Jim is an award-winning Chartered Marketer specialising in digital marketing and marketing strategy with over 10 years of experience. Having cut his teeth in a range of agency and in-house positions, Jim is a keen believer in sharing his learnings and experiences (good and bad) so like-minded marketers can benefit in kind. Jim is currently serving as Head of Marketing at Onfigr - Interactive Inspiration Tools. On top of this, Jim curates the Marketing Meetup sessions in Leeds. 

On average, we spend around 90,000 hours of our life working. Life is too short, and it is so important that we spend those hours in a job, and indeed a company, where we are happy. 

Getting to do what we love each day and being presented with lots of learning and development opportunities is key to us being fulfilled at work and making the most of our careers. Working in a business where I feel valued is incredibly important to me and I’m a big advocate for not staying in a job where you are not happy – I know this is easier said than done sometimes, but, trust me, there is always that perfect job out there for each person. I’m very lucky that I started my marketing career in such a business (Screwfix) and am now proud to have found ‘my place’ at Specsavers. 

Earlier this year the CIPR published ground-breaking analysis of census data about PR practitioners, undertaking by Chalkstream. 

 This is the first study of its kind involving data from the 2021 census and the latest in a series of Chalkstream studies investigating the population of UK PRs. 

 It covers off all sorts of demographic information, including sex, age, religion, passports and even how many practitioners own second homes. 

 The results pose a significant challenge for PR, shedding new light on imbalances between genders.

Connect with Ben on LinkedIn here.

It is a truth universally acknowledged that organisations are only ever one social media post away from a crisis. But social media is also an opportunity – to turn those crisis situations around, to learn what your customers think about you and to build relationships with the stakeholders that matter most.

In this podcast, James talks about how the social housing world, which is on the cusp of a new era of consumer regulation, is communicating with the residents the sector exists to serve. He then shares his top tips for organisations looking to turn those Facebook frowns upside down.

Join Olivia Hullah and Asif Chodury on this podcast episode as they share Olivia's incredible journey from a marketing apprentice to the Marketing Manager at Trust Electric Heating, all by the age of 22. The episode delves into the challenges and triumphs of marketing radiators ethically in a Net Zero landscape while making it exciting and personal.

Get ready for an insightful conversation that explores the unfiltered life of working in a small company, apprenticeships, the sustainable future, and the dynamic world of marketing.

Growing up, Sonia thought that she wanted to be a lawyer. At the age of 18 this all changed. In this episode, Sonia opens up about the some of the challenges and pressures she’s faced growing up in an Indian/Asian community and how she’s worked through these to break into the world of comms. She shares some personal experiences of bias and how she’s worked hard, and how she feels she must continue to prove herself to progress her career as a woman of colour. In this episode be prepared to go on a true, personal journey of having to grow up very quickly and overcoming hurdles of bias.   

Our industry is unhealthily obsessed with two words: best practice. You see them regularly on internal comms blogs, you hear it at internal comms conferences, those words come up frequently on LinkedIn. But a best practice approach only works for simple, non-complex work. The work we do as internal communicators is highly unpredictable and and complex, charged with human emotion and full of complexity. Joanna proposes that we instead talk about “good practices” and think about innovation as an antidote to best practice.

Joanna Parsons is the Founder and Director of The Curious Route, an internal communication consultancy practice. She helps organisations to create effective systems of internal communication. 

Joanna is a content creator and thought leader in internal communication with a following of more than 16k on LinkedIn and a new YouTube channel just launched. She has worked in internal comms for more than a decade and was previously Head of Internal Comms with the Irish national police force. She’s a Fellow of the Institute of Internal Communication and has won multiple communication awards for her work over the years. Joanna is also a Lecturer in Strategic Internal Communication with the Public Relations Institute of Ireland. 

She’s currently writing a book, “Innovative Internal Communication” which will be published by Kogan Page in the summer of 2024.

In this episode, Matt Geer Head of Communications and Marketing at West Kent Housing Association shares some thoughts and reflections on his career in communications. Matt talks more about how to ensure that you as a comms pro have a seat at the top table to support, influence and guide your organisations approach to strategic communications. Matt also shares some of his lived experience of being in the minority across the industry and how that has influenced and inspired his career direction.

Connect with our guest Matt Geer on Linkedin

If you're trying to communicate with young people within your target audience, or are hoping to engage them within your work, this episode will help you understand how to better listen, engage and empower young people within your work. 

We speak with Rebecca Roberts, founder of Thread & Fable and specialist in youth audiences about her Engaging Youth insight reports and what top tips she has for better connecting with young people through marcomms. If you've read much in the media about youth audiences, you'll have been told they're hard to reach, have short attention spans and are snowflakes (even more so than Millennials were) - Rebecca tackles why stereotypes are not only untrue but are unhelpful in understanding the real context of what it's like growing up in the UK and how comms are well placed to improve the conversation. 

Women in PR Northern Ireland was born out of a CIPR panel discussion in Belfast, organised by Sara, which explored the barriers affecting women working in the communications industry. It was clear there was an appetite for that conversation to continue. Michelle was on the panel and approached Sara afterwards. And so, the independent initiative that is now Women in PR was started. Research reveals that while women hold over 60% of all PR jobs, the majority of senior leaders continue to be men.  At the core of our vision is inspiration and aspiration - helping to promote the changes needed to support gender balance, nurturing female talent and supporting aspiring leaders. Our membership comes from across the public sector, in-house agencies, consultancies and independent practitioners. 

In this captivating podcast episode, we're introducing Sonya Gonzalez Mier, a talented brand strategist and the esteemed author behind the book mar·ket·ing. Together, we'll explore Sonya's path to becoming a TikTok Creator and her unwavering dedication to democratising marketing knowledge for everyone.

Join us as we delve into the perceptions of our industry from an outsider's perspective, shedding light on the key challenges that newcomers, clients, and entrepreneurs encounter in the realm of marketing. In this episode, we will discuss the hurdles marketing faces with today's generation and provide actionable solutions to attract and retain exceptional minds, nurturing the future generation of marketing experts.

50 years of comms and better lives at NCHA (Nottingham Community Housing Association)

Nottingham Community Housing Association, known as NCHA, has been around since 1973. From small beginnings, they’ve grown organically and now house more than 20,000 people across the East Midlands. They provide over a million hours of care and support services a year, and have an ambitious development programme for new homes.

This year, it’s their 50th birthday, marking half a century of delivering better lives for local people. 

In this podcast, three guests from NCHA will be talking about how the role of the Communications and Engagement team has developed in third sector organisations. They’ll be covering what the priorities need to be to make sure these organisations thrive for another 50 years.

🎙️ Welcome to the Threads vs. Twitter Debate! 📣

 In the fast-paced world of social media, communication professionals are constantly seeking new ways to engage with their audiences and deliver impactful messages. Today, we dive deep into a captivating debate that has been brewing in the digital sphere: Threads vs. Twitter.

 Join us on this thought-provoking podcast as we explore the pros, cons, and endless possibilities of these two powerful communication tools. We'll dissect the unique features, functionalities, and strategic advantages that Threads and Twitter bring to the table, all while catering to the interests and needs of comms, marketing, and PR professionals.

Matt Navarra is one of Europe’s most well-known and in-demand social media consultants. With 20+ years of industry experience. Matt has worked with some of the world's most popular brands including Meta, Google and United Nations. 

It feels good to give something back, and as Comms practitioners, we have many transferable skills that can help other organisations. Volunteering your time can not only give you a warm feeling inside but also offer you an insight into how different sectors operate, as well as helping you to grow your professional connections.

Our guest, Damian Vizard is a Strategic Communications Business Partner at Tai Calon Community Housing in Wales. Damian is a communications and marketing professional with over a decade of experience working in the Housing Sector and a member of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR). He is passionate about change communication and is a visual communications expert. Before moving into the world of Housing, Damian ran his own business for three years, offering multimedia solutions. He is a Husband, a Dad of two, a drummer, a retro gaming nerd and an amateur barber.

Do you think your customer base (either existing or prospective) have an outdated or incorrect viewpoint of your sector? If so, it can be holding back new business and leading to a sense of internal inertia. How does a organisation go about changing this though, especially if they’re a sector that’s regulated. This is where communications and marketing can help. In this conversation John shares his top tips and best practices that you can use, no matter how traditional your sector is, to stand out in a meaningful way and help push things forward not just for your organisation but your peers too and help benefit your bottom line and internal culture. 

Being able to love what you do is a luxury and an honour. Working in comms – whether that’s being a jack of all trades, specialising in PR or marketing or digital – is an opportunity to be able to experience different sectors, meet incredible professionals and work on topics you’d never thought possible. No career is perfect, but it’s what you learn along the way that matters, from the first campaign fail or joining an organisation that was the wrong fit. It’s how we share that learning with others and how we must continue to invest in our own learning – comms doesn’t stand still, so why should our understanding of it?

Francesca is an award-winning, chartered PR practitioner, who has been working as a senior leader for eight years across public and private sector organisations. She has been working as a comms professional for 16 years. 

How we work has changed significantly over the past few years, with most organisations moving from the office to remote working, and now to a hybrid model. These changes have meant we’ve had to work even harder as communicators to keep people connected, informed and engaged. 

 In this podcast Chloë delves into the concept of organisational belonging, why it’s important and the role of internal communicators in building it. She also discusses changes she led on at RHP Group to adapt their communication strategy to meet the needs of a hybrid workforce. The strategy has not only enabled people to stay connected and informed, but it’s also helped to foster a sense of belonging no matter where, when or how someone is working.

 Listen for some practical tips on how you can adapt your communications strategy for a hybrid world, and in turn help build organisational belonging. 

Now in its 4th year with thousands of downloads, scarlettabbott is back with their annual World Changers report. From harnessing rebel voices to bring positive change, to acknowledging that employees are being asked to dig deep (again), to the keys to keeping employees sweet and everything in between, scarlettabbott expertly guides HR and IC pros through the 10 most important trends impacting the world of work this year.

Passionate about human behaviour, our guest this episode Lindsay Kohler, bridges the gap between academic theory and consultancy to create insights employers can actually use to increase engagement and drive meaningful change.

Connect with Lindsay on LinkedIn here.

Right now, social media represents an unprecedented growth opportunity. But tapping into this new paradigm won’t be easy, especially so for B2B businesses. B2B’s have historically been behind the curve and guilty of seeing social media as just another ‘channel’ to distribute their content.
 
 But, if B2B's want to power growth in this new era, this mindset needs to change.

The fastest-growing and most-loved businesses on the planet all have realised the transformative potential of social media, and it’s opening up a great divide between those that ‘get it’ and those that are still marketing like it’s 2012.

It’s time for B2B’s to cross the chasm to unleash the power of social media, to build trust, and create demand at a scale that’s never before been possible.

In this episode we are joined by Andy Lambert, who has over 12 years experience in creating markets, building profitable businesses, and leadership roles in industry-leading SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) organisations. In March 2022, Andy encapsulated his learnings from scaling start-up business in the best-selling book, SOCAIL 3.0.

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Passionate about brand, creativity and putting people first. Lynda is resolute on the need for true equality and diversity. Lynda has led Brand, Communications and Social Impact at family building and engineering company, Sir Robert McAlpine since 2017 as one of ten people on the business’s executive leadership team. She is the Executive sponsor for SRM’s Gender Equality, LGBT+ & Ability Network.

In this episode, Lynda and podcast host Asif Choudry discuss why communications work is seen as withcraft, how it feels to be a CommsHero in the construction industry and the strengths of comms professionals.

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Katie Sandey is the communications and marketing manager for Cheltenham Borough Council and now, Cheltenham Borough Homes, as part of a new shared service.

In this episode, the tables are turned. Katie is the one asking Asif the questions.  Katie has never made a podcast, or done the interviewing, until now.  It was a ‘yikes’ moment for her, but also I realised for Asif.  He had never been in the hotseat.

In this special episode, we find out about Asif’s story, how it all began, some stand out moments for him and what he values the most about the community that he has grown.

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Faizah Idris is a Marketing Executive at Johnsons Workwear, the UK’s number one workwear, protective wear and workplace hygiene services provider. 
 
 She has eight years of marketing experience, specifically in social media management and content creation, marketing campaign planning, digital marketing, influencer marketing, and internal communications.

Faizah has always been a creative person, and knew she wanted a career which lets her use her energy and enthusiasm – she actually wanted to be a kid’s TV presenter when she was younger!
 
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At a keynote at the PRCA conference in 2021, the most senior government communicator in the land called for a new breed of 'superhero communicators able to combine hard data analysis with brilliant story-telling and artistry'. But research suggests that a large portion of professionals don't yet feel comfortable using data in their roles. Alex Waddington started re-skilling himself in data two years ago, leading to a dramatic change of career direction. He talks about the ups and downs of his journey - and why he now wishes he'd paid more attention in maths lessons at school.
 
 Follow Alex on social:
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Adam is a junior marketer currently working in local government.

During stints in retail and then sales, Adam studied for his level 4 certificate for the Chartered Institute of Marketing before going on to work for them directly as a Content Coordinator.

 He now works for Bracknell Forest Council as a Communications Executive where he has led on such projects as Equalities, the Homes for Ukraine scheme, and the response to COVID-19. During this time he became a Chartered Marketer.

In this episode, Adam will discuss how learning and development helped him in his career, offers his tips for learning around a busy lifestyle and suggests why everyone has the ability to learn, and why businesses should encourage them.

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Can you communicate complex science when you’re not a scientist? How do you guard against greenwash? And is there any way you can work in climate change communications without becoming downhearted about the scale of the challenge at hand?

 Join the Science Based Targets initiative’s Luisa Pastore as she shares the secrets of successful climate change communications, talks about how to make the move into sustainability comms and reveals that even at the close of the hottest year on record, there’s still cause for hope. If you care about the planet – and that should be all of us – this episode is a must-listen.

Must-read resources:

• The whole truth and nothing but: how to accurately communicate your science-based targets - Science Based Targets
•  Green Claims Code – Check your environmental claims are genuine
•  Green Jobs Barometer - PwC UK

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In 2023 - its 75th anniversary - CIPR will be reasserting its founding purpose, to help improve society through effective, ethical communications. It also plans to prepare its Chartered Practitioners to take up positions as Board members and Trustees to have a greater role in the governance of organisations in future.

Our podcast guest on this episode is Steven Shepperson-Smith, President of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, as well as being a Fellow of the Institute and a Chartered PR Practitioner. Steven is Vodafone Group's PR lead for Africa, charged with raising the profile of its portfolio of telecom brands - including Vodacom and Safaricom - and products - including M-PESA, the continent's leading fintech platform - to the international community. Steven has also set up Vodafone Group's international reputation management programme. Steven has worked in PR for over two decades including senior management roles both in-house and in agency.   

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Clarissa Langham is an Internal Comms Professional who started her career in Journalism before discovering a passion for Internal Communications. She’s recently joined AQA’s Internal Comms team from the NHS, where she managed internal comms and engagement for the largest hospitals merger in the country and then during the pandemic.

As comms pros, we often promote wellbeing resources to our internal colleagues and wider audiences. Clarissa talks about the importance of resting and recharging for comms heroes, how taking breaks can actually be productive, and the ‘4 Cs’ – different types of rest she focusses on to rebalance.

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Laura Sutherland is the Founder and Director of Aura. She is a senior communication and business consultant and a Chartered practitioner with 20+ years’ experience in integrated public relations and communication.

 Aura’s Synergy Framework was developed and launched as a way of helping businesses accelerate to a sustainable future by better integrating strategic communication and sustainable development.

 Her vast experience coupled with an enviable ‘toolbox’ have attracted clients from start-ups to a billion-dollar nuclear waste company.

In this episode, Laura speaks about her Synergy Framework, and how any business can use this to kick start their sustainable strategy.

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Gill is a career and mindset coach who has walked the walk when it comes to PR jobs. She helps PR and Comms professionals who are at a career crossroads with how they want the rest of their life to shape up.

 From crisis comms, TV publicity and tech PR during her 10 years at the BBC to consumer, charity and arts PR elsewhere, Gill has first hand knowledge of the pressures and peculiarities of the day job.

 And she knows just how the very attributes that have made you good at what you do can be the very things that start getting in your way as you head towards the leadership level.

 She says: “I believe when people are opened up to possibilities and start being kind to themselves they can make more progress. When people have their head down, just getting through it all, they don’t even notice how stuck they are until there’s a crisis of some ind.

 I want my clients to feel understood, listened to, depressurised, slowed down, more peaceful, capable and strong. I want them to feel confident about the career decisions they are making and recover from traumas they have experienced in their line of work.”

 Don’t stay stuck in Groundhog Day, and don’t blindly head into burnout just because you didn’t take the time to understand your situation a little better.

In this podcast, listen to Gill's own experience of 'Groundhog Day' and how you can help your employees who may be feeling stuck in a rut.

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At last they’ve got it! In this complex world, CEOs are turning to their public relations leaders more than ever. They know they need someone to protect their organisation and to challenge when there are risks and issues down the track. That someone is their public relations leader who hold up a mirror so that organisations see themselves as others see them. Someone who isn’t afraid to be truthful about what needs to be fixed and how to do it. These leaders are informed and bold, they ‘do’ communication superbly, they are networked and influential, but most of all they keep their organisations safe. Find out how in this podcast with Professor Emeritus Anne Gregory PhD, a former Chair of the Global Alliance (GA) for Public Relations and Communication Management and a past President of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR), which she led to chartered status. A Board level appointee in public relations consultancy, for hospitals and Universities, she also runs her own consultancy, Practix Limited. 

 Professor Gregory is a member of the CIPR’s Board and #AI in PR Panel, leading work on the impact of AI on the profession.  She teaches and advises on public relations leadership, planning, ethics, evaluation and capability, including for the UK Government, the World Health Organisation in Australasia, Scandinavia, Asia, Africa and Europe.

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Our next guest is Angharad Planells, Head of Business Development and Culture at Gloucester titan Radioactive. Former journalist Angharad found her way into PR after spells at the BBC, national media and commercial radio stations. Now with more than a decade in public relations.

 Moving from years of strategic comms roles into a leadership role is a bigger shift than many people anticipate. Many people, and it’s not unique to the comms industry, learn and hone the skills they need to be an effective leader while on the job, more often than not making mistakes along the way. 

 In this episode, Angharad Planells talks about the most valuable leadership lessons she’s learned (some the hard way!) during the last 18 months, why taking time to work on herself makes her a better leader, and why the best thing every leader can do is to get out of the way.

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Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our websitewww.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for 

If you like getting down with digits and sexy with the spreadsheets, our next podcast is for you. Darryl Sparey is MD and Co-Founder of Hard Numbers, the (AMEC, PR Moment, PRCA and UK Agency of the Year) award winning, performance-driven communications consultancy. Hard Numbers combines killer creative with commercial acumen to create campaigns that drive a demonstrable return on investment. 

In this episode, you’ll learn all about the hard numbers (see what we did there) of measurement and why these shouldn’t be forsaken for the fluffy elements of PR, comms and marketing.

Follow Darryl on social media:
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Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our websitewww.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. 

 Tickets for #CommsHeroWeek are now available from our website! Tell a friend!

Jan Fitzgerald is a communications and media specialist. For the last 12 years Jan has worked largely across internal communications for remote workforces in transport, retail and construction. 

She specialises in content production, channels strategy and development, print vs digital alignment and insights analysis. Jan’s particular interest is in how to overcome remote workforces and targeting the less engaged. She loves working in internal comms because of the diversity and variety that every day brings in terms of people and work. There’s never a dull moment!

In this episode, we hear about the Linkedin conversation, which sparked the reason behind this podcast. Jan posted a really interesting set of analysis from some research that she conducted about print and the use of print and internal comms. Jan is a huge advocate of print and explains that in this day and age, digital is not always the most sustainable or appropriate option for the audience. 

There’s also a CommsHero podcast first, but we’ll let you listen to Jan to announce her BIG news…

Follow Jan on social media:
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Tickets are now available for #CommsHero week, 19-23 September. The week long virtual event with over 35 sessions live streamed and available on demand for a year. Great value at £180 and you can find out more at www.commshero.com 

This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. For more details visit their website Joinblink.com

Lewis Williams is a PR professional from South Wales, currently working in-house in local government.

 Lewis started his #CommsHero journey four years ago as a postgrad Masters in PR and Communication Management. He is now gearing up to start a new role as Senior Communications Officer for NHS Blood and Transplant, England’s blood and organ donation service.

 Having recently blogged for the U.K. Government Communication Service to reflect on his time as an intern as part of their diversity internship scheme, in this episode he talks about how important this was to his career to date.

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Tickets are now available for #CommsHero week, 19-23 September. The week long virtual event with over 35 sessions live streamed and available on demand for a year. Great value at £180 and you can find out more at www.commshero.com 

This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. For more details visit their website Joinblink.com

After becoming a father in 2014, Frank quickly discovered how challenging it became to find time for exercise or afford the luxury of a gym membership and started focussing all his energy into providing a solution for clients to access Award Winning Personal Training anywhere in the world!

He's even trained Ruth Langsford for her appearance on BBC Strictly Come Dancing, and he's got a fantastic portfolio of celebrity and high profile clients. I might ask him later to namedrop a few, if he doesn't break any confidentiality agreements. Also, he's an award-winning trainer as well. And he's won awards for his great work, including most recently winner of Reigate & Banstead High Street Hero Award 2022, and 15 years experience in the health and fitness industry.

In this episode, CommsHero podcast host Asif Choudry and Frank Sinclair discuss the importance of exercising for your mental health, the challenges people face to keep motivated, how the pandemic has effected personal trainers and how Frank markets his personal training business.

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And you can follow us on Twitter @CommsHero

If you're listening on Spotify and Apple, please do leave a rating and review.

This episode of the podcast is sponsored by Blink, the world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers and for more details, visit that website, join blink.com. 

If you’re a Digital PR pro, chances are you’ve learned a thing or two from our next guest who pretty much invented the internet. Andy Barr founder of 10 Yetis previously worked in-house on multi-media campaigns for the likes of AXA, Unilever, First Group, Whitbread and Midlands Electricity Board. His talents span effective crisis communications, award-winning media campaigns and creating highly engaging content across video, social media and PR. Our very own Mr. Worldwide has also advised the UK’s two largest political parties on digital campaigns and worked with Chinese government delegations on reviewing their approach to communications.

He has built a team of more than 25 skilled individuals at the agency and dedicates any time that he has to growing the business and delivering great results for clients. Andy is renowned for his hot takes on all things PR and communications and brightens up the industry with his daily GoGetEm morning tweets. In this episode, we chat to the Digital Demigod about all things Twitter. Is the Twitterverse as sinister as some make out or is it a beneficial tool for both communications and brand?

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Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our websitewww.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. 

 Tickets are now available for #CommsHero week, 19-23 September. The week-long virtual event with over 35 sessions live streamed and available on demand for a year. Great value at £180 and you can find out more at www.commshero.com

Our next guest will also be appearing as part of our stellar #CommsHeroWeek line-up. Katrina Wilcox is Head of Marketing and Communications at Housing 21, a leading not-for-profit provider of housing and care for older people. Katrina’s extensive experience in marketing and communications has been gained through a 20+ year career working across the healthcare, housing, education, manufacturing and publishing sectors. Her passion lies in working for purpose-led, not-for-profit organisations and she specialises in strategic planning, integrated campaign management, internal communications and employee engagement.

In this episode, we ask the question: what if we could inspire young people by sharing the multitude of options available in a comms career? With so many young people wanting a purpose driven career - one where they can really make a difference – working in not for profit, third sector or charity comms, or a career in comms in general, could be something to aspire to.

Follow Katrina on LinkedIn

Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our websitewww.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. 

 Tickets are now available for #CommsHero week, 19-23 September. The week-long virtual event with over 35 sessions live streamed and available on demand for a year. Great value at £180 and you can find out more at www.commshero.com. 

Our next guest crossed over from the dark side. Former Sith Lord (slash journalist) Glenn Bowley began his communications career in a housing association in St Helens before moving to Lancashire Constabulary as a press and PR officer. In 2013, Glenn was seconded to the Home Office to manage the media on the criminal investigation into the Hillsborough disaster. His brief was extended further to incorporate some stakeholder management. In 2019, Glenn joined the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) as Head of Communications.

 The DBS - created in the merger of the Criminal Records Bureau and the Independent Safeguarding Authority - is approaching its 10th birthday. Glenn’s role entails having oversight and responsibility for internal, external and strategic comms, and DBS’ editorial and design function, as well as growing its public profile.

 In this episode, Glenn talks about the power of communication, community and how teams that #CommsHero together, stay together.

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 Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our websitewww.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. 

 Tickets are now available for #CommsHero week, 19-23 September. The week-long virtual event with over 35 sessions live streamed and available on demand for a year. Great value at £180 and you can find out more at www.commshero.com

Nosheen Haque is a communications specialist based in Manchester. Nosheen has over 10 years’ experience of working with a variety of brands and organisations using PR and digital marketing to drive engagement, growth and brand value across a multitude of private and public sectors.

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Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our website www.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. 

 Tickets are now available for #CommsHero week, 19-23 September. The week-long virtual event with over 35 sessions live streamed and available on demand for a year. Great value at £180 and you can find out more HERE.

This episode developed over on LinkedIn, when Ally and Asif discovered a shared love of the tomes: Lost Connections and Stolen Focus, both written by Johann Hari. We know Asif loves a printed book! These books interrogate the impact of digitalisation and social media on our lives, and our ability to focus and make deep and meaningful connections. With a radical new way of thinking about depression and anxiety, what does this mean for marketers, and how can we use these lessons to build relationships with our stakeholders?

Ally Cook is an experienced and confident content creator, copywriter and communicator, with a demonstrable track record of working across print and digital publications to deliver strategic results. When Ally worked for the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), she managed the content & engagement team, she was responsible for delivering a content strategy that met the needs of the CIM’s 25,000+ members and the wider marketing community. She is now the Community Content Manager at WeAre8.

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Resources

Johann Hari - Lost Connections

Johann Hari - Stolen Focus 

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Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our website www.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. 

 Tickets are now available for #CommsHero week, 19-23 September. The week-long virtual event with over 35 sessions live streamed and available on demand for a year. Great value at £180 and you can find out more HERE.

In this podcast, like typical Yorkshire folk, we make the most of BOGOF, with not one, but two guests from Yorkshire Housing.
Our guests  this episode are:

Hannah Jowett MCIPR is Head of Communications and Brand at Yorkshire Housing. She’s passionate about building comms teams where people can thrive and bring their ideas and creativity to life. 

 Nick Atkin is a highly successful Chief Executive with a track record of leading organisations through transformational change and driving performance improvement, with a focus on maximising the untapped potential from businesses and people. Confident and energetic, the inspirational leader embraces technology to deliver customer centric innovative working practices and solutions.

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Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our websitewww.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. 

 Tickets are now available for #CommsHero week, 19-23 September. The week-long virtual event with over 35 sessions live streamed and available on demand for a year. Great value at £180 and you can find out more HERE.

Michelle Okwudiafor leads internal communication and engagement at Total Energies. A member of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, she holds a master’s degree in International Development from the University of Turin (ILO training centre) and a bachelor’s degree in Law from the University of London.  

 In this episode, she interrogates the events that have led to 2022 being described by many as ‘the year of the employee’. From the pandemic, to global racial protests, and the Great Resignation amongst others, these events have fertilised the ground for companies to begin to focus on the issues that matter most to the workforce. Issues including flexibility, improved employee experience, trust in leadership, diversity, and inclusion are high on the priority list of employees. Companies that fail to focus on their employees may be at the losing end of the table. But given this shift in power, what does an inclusive workplace look like and how can we as communicators help to drive the inclusion agenda in companies?

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 Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our websitewww.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. 

From dusty relics to post-modern pieces, our next guest works at the intersection where past meets present and future. Lisa Middleton is Head of Marketing and Brand at National Museums Liverpool, having joined the organisation in 2015.

In this episode, Lisa explores what it is like to be in arts marketing. Museum comms is more than exhibitions, and encompasses vast collections, amazing venues, and commercial offers such as shops and cafés. Don’t be surprised to see a Bridezilla on your next visit; museums also hold events, including weddings! Learning and participation activities are also a huge part of the museum proposition, which means knowing your audience and being agile is an essential part of the role.

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Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our websitewww.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

Mentoring is one of the most underrated keys to nourishing one’s growth. For any young professional trying to enter the industry, a mentor can help open a number of doors they may not have known existed which can be even more crucial to people from underrepresented backgrounds.

 Our next guest in the podcast took part in a leadership mentoring programme for underrepresented women in the PR industry that she says ‘changed her life’. Shalini Gupta decided to pay it forward and has since been mentoring underrepresented PR graduates. She is passionate about helping develop the next generation of communicators and young leaders in the industry to help them fulfil their true potential.

In this episode Shalini is joined by one of her first mentees, burgeoning #CommsHero Ilyana Rajwani, an internal comms intern in the financial sector, to discuss all things mentoring: learnings; the importance of having diverse role models and how by bridging the gap early in the lives of underrepresented young professionals, it can really help them spread their wings and take flight.

Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our website www.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. 

So deeply entrenched in #CommsHero is our next guest, it is hard to believe that he isn’t on the Resource payroll! Having held roles in business associations, renewable energy, and higher education, Ed Thomas is now in the housing sector, leading all communications and marketing strategy and campaigns at The Wrekin Housing Group, a social housing and care provider that drives social value and makes a difference to people’s lives across Shropshire and Staffordshire.

 A storyteller, trust builder, reputation manager, communicator and marketer – he is also dyslexic.

 With ever increasing understanding of dyslexia, the traditional views are being dismissed. Dyslexic brains excel in critical thinking, emotional intelligence, creativity and communication, skills amongst the most in demand by employers for the 21st century workplace. In this episode Ed tells us about his journey with dyslexia and how he capitalises on his dyslexic superpowers. Cape optional, though he never leaves the house without his.

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Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our websitewww.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers.

In this episode, founder of Horizon Comms Dan Holden, talks about how when it comes to conferences and events, we still have a gap in representation even though the comms community is full of diverse voices. Having posted on LinkedIn after declining an event invitation due to a lack of representation on the speaker panel, it was clear from the supporting comments there is a need for us to be challenging event organisers to change. Where does this change start and what role can we play as individuals and organisations?

Social media:

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Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our websitewww.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers. 

Our second guest of the season is seasoned #CommsHero, Stu Kaley, Associate Director of Customer Experience (CX) and Operations at The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM).  

With a career that began in music retail and took him to London, Stu developed a passion for everything customer and operational customer-focus. He then moved into the food industry and worked on multi-brand (owned and franchised) customer experience strategy across the UK and Europe, developing his love of CX even further. 

He joined Asif - a CIM member since 1997 (wait…that can’t be right!) - to talk about changes afoot at The Chartered Institute of Marketing.

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 Fancy getting in the hot seat and sharing your CommsHero wisdom? Contact Asif Choudry

 You’ll find this podcast on Spotify, Apple and on our website www.commshero.com. Please leave a rating and review.

 This episode is sponsored by Blink. The world's first enterprise app designed exclusively for frontline workers.