Reflecting on my recent promotion to senior account executive, I realise I owe a great deal to PLMR Genesis’ graduate training programme.
I joined the company with memories of my graduation yet to fade and, despite having some PR experience under my belt, the training program gave me the solid grounding I needed to drive my professional skills to the next level.
On World Youth Skills Day I wanted to share how PLMR Genesis’ graduate training program has been central to my development as a PR professional.
The experience
Across 20 sessions, I was given a thorough 360° tour of the core principles of PR and comms, led by team members with decades of combined experience and expertise. PR and comms is a broad and diverse industry, and the sessions gave due diligence to a large array of topics ranging from PR strategy, media engagement, and photography, to SEO, UX, CRO and email marketing.
What I found most helpful was the level of insight and interactivity embedded into each session. Modules were delivered on a one-to-one basis and encouraged a dynamic approach with plenty of discussion. This meant sessions never felt like a lecture and truly felt like I could take charge of my own learning. This was supported by tasks set after each session. These fed into my day-to-day work, allowing me to cement my learnings and ask for further feedback if I was ever unsure of how to best apply it.
The learnings
I learnt a lot over the course of 10 weeks and it helped me find my feet at PLMR Genesis. Some topics reinforced my existing expertise, such as media engagement and organic social media, whilst others were completely new and presented opportunities to expand my skillset. Discovering the best ways to approach crisis communications, or the key measures of a successful public affairs strategy were welcome ways to broaden my horizons. On top of exploring new skills, the program also taught me things about myself. Before joining PLMR Genesis, I’d never had an eye for event planning or management but the dedicated session on the building blocks of what makes a great exposition or conference scratched an itch I didn’t even know existed.
The results
A year on since my first training session, how did it affect my current role at PLMR Genesis?
The fast-paced nature of agency life is an exciting challenge, the graduate training programme really helped me get to grips with the ins and outs of my role and gave me the foundation to deliver my best work. I have been able to provide clients with impactful PR and marketing, achieving positive media coverage, supporting, and managing events, and delivering professional advice with confidence and expertise. This, ultimately, led to my promotion to senior account executive!
Starting a new role can always be a scary thought, especially in an industry with the breadth and depth of PR and comms, but there is no doubt that the graduate training programme helped me overcome these anxieties and become a better, more rounded professional.
