How does it feel to leave public sector comms for private sector PR?

When I announced that I was leaving Preston City Council, after almost eight years of managing their communications (and later policy) service, a lot of people were shocked. More than one person said that they believed if you cut me in half, local government would be running through my veins.

And yet I left, and went to work for the private sector.

Almost two years later, I can admit that there are things I deeply miss about it, and others that have been a relief to walk away from. Similarly, I can confirm that not all of the boogey-man stories about the private sector are true, but some of them are. 

As I have been preparing to launch a consultancy with two business partners who have had senior editorial roles for national, regional, and local media outlets, I have had the opportunity to consider the view from here.

My experience of local government comms was intense. We were at the beating heart of the organisation, beck and call of the political and administrative leadership, and expert plate-jugglers. I know that’s not everyone’s experience, or cup of tea, but I loved it. I loved the pace, the breadth of the role, and even the chaos that often came with it.

Having had time to decompress, and a very different experience since, my view of local government comms has clarified - and none of it is really a surprise.

There is a chasm between strategically functioning comms teams, and purely operational ones - in their remit, sphere of influence, and experience. In my experience, demonstrating your indispensability takes time and can be a hard slog when you are trying to influence unwilling participants. Sometimes it takes external voices to echo what you’re already saying, and point out what you’re already trying to achieve - as frustrating as it is, sometimes in-house means un-heard.

There is always more you could do. 

You can hold standards, but you can’t be precious. Everyone will have an opinion and it’s not worth tearing yourself apart if sometimes their opinion is actually a good one.

One of the biggest components of a head of comms role is relationship management, and it cannot be undervalued. Your relationships, collaborations, and understanding of colleagues/partners/members’ agendas and priorities can unlock opportunities, enable creative solutions and help you navigate choppy waters.

You don’t need me to tell you any of this. But sometimes it’s nice to be reminded that you get it, you’re not alone, and there is support available from other people who have been there. 

Shirah Bamber is a director at Alma. Shirah's blog was first published as The view from the other side of the fence on comms2point0, the website of Darren Caveney, owner of specialist consultancy Creative Communicators. Read the original post.