Telum is looking to highlight the diverse and vibrant agencies in the Australian and NZ PR agency landscape in upcoming editions of our PR Alert. We want to encourage networking, business opportunities, and to celebrate the great initiatives being worked on. If you'd like your agency to feature, get in touch at alert@telummedia.com

In this edition, we look at Porter Novelli Australia, part of the Clemenger Group, with its origins stretching back 50 years to a pair of visionaries in Washington, DC.

What services does the agency offer?
We’ve been a thriving communications firm for almost 50 years, but the way we practice is in constant change. We’re known for smart, creative and unexpected communication, with expertise across media and stakeholder relations, content development, events and experiences, influencer outreach, community management and issues management.

What size is the agency?
We are a team of nearly 30 writers, designers, creative planners, animators, publicists, editors, researchers, social media specialists, lobbyists, brand experts and corporate affairs leaders. The average tenure for our people is three years, while most of our leadership has been together for more than a decade.

Where does your agency have offices?
Porter Novelli’s main offices are in Sydney and Melbourne. In Sydney, we are co-located with our fellow Clemenger Group companies at Walsh Bay. In Melbourne, we are based in the heart of South Yarra. However, our work spans the country and our flexibility has also enabled some of our people to work remotely for extended periods, in both regional areas and other major cities such as Perth and Brisbane.

Do you have a particular area of focus?
We concentrate our work on our super sectors: health and wellbeing, not-for-profit, education, agribusiness, consumer and lifestyle brands and professional services, and our government work has a heavy concentration in health and Aboriginal affairs. However, one of Porter Novelli’s longstanding commitments is that we do not operate in a silo model - meaning every consultant is given the opportunity to "connect the dots" between industries and enjoy a range of professional experiences that allow them to build a career with us.

Who is the founder and why did they start the agency?
Our beginnings date back nearly 50 years, with Jack Porter and Bill Novelli in Washington, DC, who imagined applying principles of marketing communications to deliver social benefit - in effect, social marketing. They looked for clients with the ambition to make a positive impact, and in doing so, achieve better business results than they thought possible. Our founders’ vision also inspired the creation of jack+bill, Porter Novelli Australia’s pop-up pro bono agency that supports creative and purpose-driven projects in the community.

What is next for your agency? What is the five-year goal?
We’ve long believed in the power of visual creative to shift arguments and perceptions, reach audiences in unexpected ways, and support the content needs of traditional, new and emerging media. As the communications landscape continues to change, our goal is to constantly discover ways to attract, develop and empower our consultants to be forward-thinking and progressive. This means that every one of our consultants is adept at working alongside our creative team and skilled specialists to identify, interrogate and respond to our clients’ communication needs from a non-traditional, more contemporary perspective.

In a sentence, describe your ideal relationship with a journalist.
One that is built on a mutual respect for each other’s craft and the need for great journalism in advanced democracies, while treating every interaction as you would any other business relationship.

Tell us about a campaign you are currently working on or are particularly proud of.
For the past three years, we have been fortunate to play an integral role in Victoria’s path to Treaty. It started with our award-winning work alongside Clemenger Group partners to create Deadly Questions - a campaign to help Victorians learn more about local Aboriginal cultures and Treaty - which successfully set the agenda for the historic first Treaty bill to pass State Parliament in 2018. As the journey towards establishing Treaty in Victoria continues, we have broadened our work to consult for a range of non-government organisations who are critical in our journey to Treaty and truth.

Any key PR trends your agency is keeping an eye on?
Technology and societal shifts are driving unprecedented change in Australian media consumption, and so the way we approach our clients’ needs and deliver our services is also evolving. The most significant change we are driving is encouraging organisations and brands to become even more adept at being their own publishing house (i.e., becoming a “media outlet”). Our approach in 2021 is that earned media coverage must no longer be the end, but the starting point for organisations to generate and share news and information directly with their audiences and stakeholders, while continuing to fill the ”content gaps” facing media outlets today.

What skillsets do you look for in new hires?
We look for curious, worldly and diverse people who want to succeed as a team, yet are confident to take a distinctly different approach. Our consultants are also recruited for their character and fit, from whatever walk of life, not just from our industry. They come from journalism, the performing arts, government and the non-profit sector - we even have a former café owner and a fashion label founder! If you’re interested in learning more about opportunities at Porter Novelli, get in touch with Arj Ganeshalingam at aganeshalingam@porternovelli.com.au