Tag Archives: Russia

Memories of Francis Ingham

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The cheeky grin was an Ingham trademark

The news is now known. After a short illness, Francis Ingham, the Director General of the PRCA, and Chief Executive of the International Communications Consultancy Organisation (ICCO), has passed away.

Knowing Francis, he would be delighted by all of the praise that he’s been receiving online. And he’s always loved making headlines, be it now or with the expulsion of Bell Pottinger or his comments on Ukraine and Russia.

Francis would be the first to admit he was no saint. In many ways, he was a polarising figure. You either loved him or didn’t, but you wouldn’t not have an opinion of him.

What Francis did have in bucketloads was energy and a belief in his mission. He wanted to make the PRCA the foremost communications association in the world. He expanded the PRCA into the Middle East, Southeast Asia and South America. He’d never shy away from speaking with anyone or turning foe into friend.

This is how we met. I’d criticised the PRCA for how they’d entered the Gulf. Francis could have done what his regional chairman did and complained to my then chair at MEPRA. Instead, Francis reached out, called me, and asked how we could collaborate.

His ability to get people to buy into what he was doing set Francis apart (especially over lunch or dinner with a bottle of red). But he could also be scathing. I knew of many who, in my view incorrectly, blamed him for the fall of Bell Pottinger when he expelled them from the PRCA for the scandal of their work in South Africa.

Francis found himself undone by his own comments on Ukraine and Russia. In speaking his views about the industry and its dealings with Russia, he set into motion a process that would put him under investigation by the PRCA board.

The last time I spoke to Francis was a typical Ingham experience. He called me up about an issue I had with one award nomination, and turned it into a conversation about how I could support him with his own issues.

For everything that has been said about him, one fact is undeniable. For 15 years he has grown the PRCA into a global movement. That will be his legacy, much more than the headlines and the social media praise of the past couple of days. I for one am grateful to Francis for the attention he focused on our profession and the work he did to train and develop countless communicators.

Here’s raising a glass to you Francis.

The Six-Day Working Week, Russian and HK PR people in the UAE

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I feel for anyone who works in the service industry. Ever since the UAE moved from a Sunday-Thursday week to Monday-Friday, the sense I’ve gotten is that those working in the service industry have had to work out how to cater to both local/global and regional clients. For many, the answer has been simple – agencies are having to work out rosters of people working over the six days, from Sunday to Friday.

I don’t know how sustainable this is. Dubai is the hub for the region’s creative agencies, many of whom don’t have offices outside of the Emirate. Will clients across the Middle East accommodate the change in the working week? Or will agencies look to open offices (or move/hire people) in countries which still follow the Sunday-Thursday routine?

For those working with clients across the region, I’m curious to know how you are managing. Is there anything that can be done to make the workload easier, and/or redress the work-life balance? Or has the change in the UAE’s working week not had an impact?

Another observation over the past couple of months is the number of Russians and Hong Kongers moving to the UAE, particularly in the communications industry. More talent is always a good thing; let’s hope our new arrivals find their feet in the region and get acquainted with its cultures and languages.

Am always happy to hear your views. Please do share them in the comments section below.

A Tale of Two Brand Reputations – MNCs in Russia and P&O’s Sacking of 800 UK Workers

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What will the impact of the past couple of weeks be on global brands in Russia? And will P&O Ferries and its parent company DP World come to regret the overnight firing of 800 UK employees? Image by vectorpouch

Reputations are funny things. They take years to build, and can be lost in a moment. In many ways, the past month will become a period of intense research for those wanting to know more about corporate actions and their impact on reputations.

First up, we have the tragedy of the war in the Ukraine. Responding to both public and political pressure, over 400 global brands have pledged to suspend, pull back or stop operations in Russia, according to the Financial Times. For multinationals to move at this speed is unprecedented. What is most striking is the decisions many have come to, namely to risk not being able to do business in what is a sizable market (Russia’s population is over 144 million) for the short to medium term. While sanctions have pushed them in a certain direction, many are also weighing up public sentiment in the West regarding how they respond (some such as McDonalds aren’t just closing stores, but they’re continuing to pay their Russian staff).

Second, we have another crisis. This time the crisis seems to be more of the company’s own doing. P&O Ferries laid off 800 crew from its ships last week. The news was delivered via a pre-recorded video message, and guards were hired to escort staff off the ships. The firm claimed it had to replace British staff with cheaper labor to save the company and make it viable. All this despite the parent company DP World making record revenues of US$10.8 billion in 2021. The saga, which includes political intrigue (Ministers were told the night before about the mass firings and the government did not vote for a bill to protect workers from mass layoffs the previous year) and the inevitable debate about the legacy of Brexit, has seen both P&O Ferries and DP World being hammered in the UK media (there’s no mention I have seen of this story in the UAE’s press).

Both scenarios highlight the challenges facing businesses. The former is forcing firms to take a stance on a conflict, in what could be a precedent for future wars. And the latter is a self-inflicted reputational crisis that P&O Ferries and DP World could have arguably avoided with better judgement (other ferry companies employ foreign labor at a fraction of the cost of UK nationals, the difference is the number of layoffs and how they were conducted). Either way, firms must think about the reputational impact of their actions, especially in a digital world where anyone and everyone can comment in an instant. Just ask DP World’s Chairman and Group CEO about the response to his tweet about speaking with Emirati youth as P&O Ferries security staff were escorting fired workers off the ships… (the responses have been hidden; you can still see quote tweets).