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The Many Avenues in A Communications Job

Organizations want their communications people to be well-versed in every possible avenue affecting communications, such as:
  • communications strategy, planning & implementation
  • writing, editing, managing written materials
  • issues management, crisis management
  • internal & intranet communications
  • public relations
  • media relations
  • promotions, publicity
  • development & production of creative materials
  • marketing
  • visual communications & graphic design
  • web development & design
  • social media
It's not until you arrive at your position and see where the organization's needs really are and what they want to emphasize in practice that you truly know what you'll spend most of your time doing. 
For example, I was hired to do a communications job where I thought I'd being doing things like: 
  • Developing strategies and plans
  • Writing key messages for senior executives and management
  • Issues management & briefings
  • Communicating with employees on behalf of management
Instead, and after a number of months, I realized it was more of a tactical marketing job where I did things like:
  • planning campaigns for promoting programs with stickers, bookmarks & postcards
  • designing posters, flyers and digital screens
  • buying advertising
  • promotion through social media
These ah-ha surprises are not necessarily a bad thing, in fact, the multiple avenues of activity in communications jobs can boost your marketability for the next job, as you learn new skills and grow in new areas.

As a communications rookie, it's important to have a jack-of-all-trades versatility in all of these areas to be able to smoothly move between platforms, disciplines and activities so employers see your value. 

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