The 2020–2021 Asia-Pacific Communication Monitor (APCM), a flagship research study of corporate communication and public relations in the region, kicks off on this week to explore issues, trends, and the experiences of practitioners.

This will be the third in the biannual Asia-Pacific Communication Monitor (APCM) series, following previous studies in 2015 and 2017. The Communication Monitor, which is organized globally by the European Public Relations Education and Research Association (EUPRERA) and partners, is now a global study, with Communication Monitor studies conducted regularly in Europe, North America, and Latin America covering more than 80 countries.

The Asia-Pacific Communication Monitor is organized by EURPRERA in conjunction with the Asia-Pacific Association of Communication Directors (APACD) and local partners. The partners in 2020–2021 are Truescope, an innovative real time media intelligence platform; PRovoke Media (Media Partner); and Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (Academic Partner).

The research study is led by four leading academics: Distinguished Professor Jim Macnamara from the University of Technology Sydney (UTS); Professor May O. Lwin from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU); Dr Flora Hung-Baesecke from UTS and formerly from Hong Kong Baptist University and Massey University, New Zealand; and Professor Ansgar Zerfass from the University of Leipzig, Germany and leader of the global Communication Monitor series.

In addition, the study is supported by collaborators from universities and communication and public relations associations in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The Asia-Pacific Communication Monitor is expected to gain detailed insights from more than 1,000 corporate communication and PR professionals across more than 20 Asia-Pacific countries.

Issues and topics explored in the Communication Monitor include the main communication channels used by practitioners today; application of new technologies; strategic issues facing practitioners; key competencies perceived as necessary for the future; ethical challenges; and gender equity.

Distinguished Professor Jim Macnamara, who leads the APCM, said “the survey is unique in its breadth and the level of support it receives from professional associations as well as universities across the region, which results in an enormous amount of information about practices in the region and trends looking forward.”

Professor May O. Lwin, Chair of the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication & Information from NTU said “we are interested in examining the diversity of responses across the Asia-Pacific region and comparing the regional responses with other parts of the world such as Europe in the wider Communication Monitor landscape.”

The survey will close in the first week of November 2020 and the results will be published online in the first quarter of 2021.