MIAMI—The fourth annual Independent Public Relations Firm Forum—designed to help PR agency principals from around the world stay ahead of the ever increasing pace of change—will take place ahead of the Global Public Relations Summit in Miami this October, under the umbrella title, “Retooling for the Future: Getting Your Firm Ready For What’s Next.”

The Forum is sponsored by thenetworkone—which helps clients build bespoke international agency networks—with support from US law firm Davis & Gilbert and independent PR agencies Atrevia (Spain), Global Strategy Group (US), and Strategic Public Relations Group (Hong Kong). It will take place on Monday October 26 at the St Regis Bal Harbour hotel in Miami.

Four intense sessions will focus on:

The Insight Imperative: As a wide range of creative agencies compete to create the central strategic idea, success will depend on the ability to draw the smartest and most relevant insight out of the available data. What sorts of data do agencies need? Who will interpret it? How will they discover the key insights and develop them into multiplatform creative?

From Creative to Creators: PR firms have always been creative, but now they need to be creators—of content across multiple platforms—as well. That transition will require the ability to integrate new kinds of talent, from animators to videographers. Do agencies hire these people, partner with other firms, or build a network of freelancers? And how do they integrate these people into their existing talent pool?

Storming the C-Suite: Effective stakeholder engagement—employee communications, crisis management, investor relations, regulatory policy and more—is a critical issue for the C-suite and the board of directors. How do PR people ensure they are ready to take a seat at the highest table, to speak the language of management, to add the kind of value CEOs are looking for, and to become trusted advisors on a par with lawyers, accountants and management consultants?

Build It, Hire It, Buy It, Partner For It: Presented by Davis & Gilbert, this session is designed to focus on the various financial and structural ways firms are expanding: from acquisitions, to acqui- hires, to joint ventures, to incentive arrangements with home grown talent.

 

The four sessions focus on areas—attracting to talent, developing new capabilities, earning the respect of senior management—identified as major obstacles to agency growth inthe global survey that accompanied our recent World PR Report.

Tickets for the Independent PR Forum are on sale now, and available at a discounted price before our early-bird deadline of June 30. Tickets can also be purchased as part of an overall Global Public Relations Summit package.