In our Headliners series of conversations, we get under the skin of PR and communications leaders around the world who have made PRovoke Media headlines recently, uncovering what they see as the greatest challenges and opportunities for the industry, where they find inspiration (and how they switch off), what they’ve learned about themselves, as well as the creative campaigns they love and the work they are most proud of.

In this week's Q&A, we talk to ICCO president and Hill+Knowlton Strategies Poland CEO Grzegorz Szczepanski, who last week opened the ICCO Global Summit in his home town of Warsaw, where the umbrella organisation for PR agencies and organisations ratified new guidelines on the use of AI in PR.

What are the greatest challenges and opportunities for the PR and communications industry over the next 12 months? 

Under current economic conditions, maintaining the high relevance of PR for business will be the most significant challenge. Additionally, inflationary wage pressure will make it more challenging than ever to acquire and retain quality talent.

What’s the best PR campaign you’ve seen recently and why? 

The ‘Where to Settle’ campaign by Mastercard and McCann Poland, which won gold in the PR category and platinum overall at this year’s Cannes Lions. It’s a phenomenal example of utilising data in the service of society, featuring efforts to help refugees from Ukraine and stabilise the lives of those settling in Poland.

What work from your team (ICCO) are you most proud of over the past year?

I’m most proud of our partnership with the United Nations Development Programme. After ICCO was successfully appointed as the official partner of the Council of Europe three years ago to help shape European policy on digital information and disinformation, our ambition was to establish a permanent collaboration with the UN. We are now finalising an agreement for cooperation with UNDP, the largest UN agency dealing with issues of most significance for the future of the world. Our collaboration begins with providing PR support for the campaign to reenergise the world towards taking meaningful climate action. This is one of those telling cases where the true significance of PR is demonstrated.

What have you learned about yourself over the past couple of years? 

First, I am a person of human interaction, and working remotely does not work for me. Second, I should always aim for something bigger than myself to achieve genuine satisfaction.

How do you switch off and maintain wellness? 

I am still searching for a satisfying solution for that.

What cultural source (eg book/podcast/movie/TV show/music artist) has provided creative inspiration for you lately?

 ‘Crystallizing Public Opinion’ by Edward Bernays, first published 100 years ago, which helped me formulate the direction in which I believe the PR industry should now aspire, which I colloquially refer to as "bringing PR back to public relations". According to Bernays, a public relations counsel is "a marketing polymath, aware of nuances in the eclectic fields of local politics, new technology, and social movements, utilizing and synthesizing this knowledge to develop a complete communications strategy." Doesn't it sound compelling today?

If I wasn’t working in PR/comms I would be…

An environmental engineer.