Enterprise and Entrepreneurship in Public Relations

Entrepreneurs are the dreamers and doers among us turning light bulb moments into new and exciting businesses, products and services. Their goal is to create change that challenges the traditional moulds of their industry and allows them to work in an environment forged by their own rules and values.

As Dr Marcus Powe, RMIT University’s Entrepreneur in Residence defines it, entrepreneurialism is the ‘process of creating or seizing an opportunity and pursuing it regardless of the resources under your control’.

Essentially, entrepreneurship is risky business. And in Public Relations, its no different.

For the purposes of this article I will be discussing enterprise and entrepreneurship within the area of my professional specialisation, Public relations and how it operates in the industry.

In the field of Public Relations there are several entrepreneurs making their mark. In Australia, two of my personal favourites are Roxy Jacenko and Sally Urquhart who each bring their unique style and leadership to their business and the industry.

PR Entrepreneurs — Roxy Jacenko and Sally Urquhart

Roxy Jacenko is one of Australia’s most prominent entrepreneurs and businesswomen in Public Relations. Her ‘rule breaking approach’ to business is envied throughout the industry and has made her company Sweaty Betty PR and her talent for Public Relations in high demand. At only 24 years old she founded Sweaty Betty and in just 10 years has managed to alter the PR landscape forever and establish herself and her business as a leading Australian enterprise. Her motto, ‘Why walk when you can run?’ has resulted in the development of talent and digital influencer agency The Ministry of Talent, hair accessory brand Pixie’s Bows and three fiction books about life in the industry; Strictly Confidential, The Rumour Mill and The Spotlight. Roxy’s capability of thinking of bold ideas and then executing them flawlessly has enabled her to change the game and re-write the rules of PR, communications and talent management.

Like all successful entrepreneurs she ‘pushes the boundaries to generate fresh and unexpected ideas’ that make her work innovative and inspiring. For Roxy what makes her dynamic is that ‘good enough will not be good enough in [her] eyes’. Her energy and commitment for Public Relations and all her businesses is what makes her such a successful entrepreneur in the Australian PR landscape.

Full interview at http://www.beauticate.com/who/roxy-jacenko-entrepreneur-and-author)

For more information about Roxy Jacenko and her many successful enterprises; http://theministryoftalent.com/portfolio/roxy-jacenko/

Sally Urquhart, director and founder of LittleBig Marketing and PR is also changing the mould of communications by bringing a down-to-earth attitude to her business that clients respect and love. The business was founded by her when it became clear that small businesses, ones that make Australia so vibrant, were finding it extremely difficult to secure the marketing assistance they needed at a price they could afford. Her approach and flexible mindset of catering to both small and large clients, budgets and projects makes the business both little and big. Her devotion to the craft and her open approach to clients and business has allowed her to be successful and grow her business in just 7 years.

For more information about Sally Urquhart and LittleBig PR and Marketing; http://littlebigmarketing.com/

What makes people like Roxy and Sally different is there ability to surface from the craziness of their own businesses and look for changes in their environment and the media to create change in their own work. This kind of behaviour is what makes entrepreneurs successful and progressive in their respective industries.

According to Guy McManus and Marcus Powe, entrepreneurs who can zoom out and look at the bigger picture are more likely to be successful in their business. However, they also contend that it is also those same entrepreneurs who are able to zoom in and focus on emphasising and executing the small details that will ultimately run the most successful enterprises. In Public Relations, and in commercial industry in general, you cannot have one without the other. When you fail to consider the driving forces of the political, economical, technological, mega trends, globalisation and the societal any likelihood of creating success in the industry is low.

Although these understandings are relatively universal, what motivates each entrepreneur can be very different.

For more information and to read ‘The Entrepreneurial Process’ by Guy McManus and Marcus Powe; https://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=wT7obqtTMpkC&oi=fnd&pg=PA4&dq=marcus+powe&ots=au6D10Gn9m&sig=fFkXts8b5x25tAgy0t5yr9mtt-k#v=onepage&q=marcus%20powe&f=false

Not all Entrepreneurs are made the same…

According to Joe Abraham, founder of BOSI Global and author of ‘Entrepreneurial DNA’ not all entrepreneurs are programmed the same way. In a study of over 1,000 entrepreneurs research confirmed that entrepreneurs fall into four categories of ‘entrepreneurial DNA’; Builders, Opportunists, Specialists and Innovators. Each has different strengths, weaknesses and tendencies that make them predictable to Abraham.

Builders — success is valued on the growth of infrastructure and building a business fast; they are master recruiters of talent and investors but have a controlling or obsessive compulsive temperament.

Opportunists — success is valued on the money they make or intend to make; they find well-timed business opportunities and are impulsive decision makers.

Specialists — success is valued on personal income; they are analytical and dislike risk, they usually find their business and profits plateau once targets for personal income are met.

Innovators — success is valued on the impact of their product/service on the world; they find business opportunities through discovering, inventing, designing and tinkering and will usually avoid engaging in business discussions because of this predisposition.

Abraham’s extensive research indicates that entrepreneurs are all wired and built to create and manage businesses in different ways. They succeed in a variety ways based on their own personal expectations of themselves and their businesses.

To purchase Joe Abraham’s book; http://www.amazon.com/Entrepreneurial-DNA-Breakthrough-Discovery-Strengths/dp/0071754512

Entrepreneurship and Public Relations

Public Relations is an essential contributor to enterprise strategy development. Enterprise strategy defines what an organisation stands for and the key values that motivate businesses every decision. PR seeks to explain these decisions to its customers and the marketplace of the industry in order to institutionalise the brand/product/service that they represent.

This collaboration, between Public Relations and Enterprise strategy sees the interest of key stakeholders being built into the purpose and function of the organisation; as Freeman and McVea contend. PR assessment occurs at this point to understand current societal issues, publics and the expectations of key players in the business in an attempt to find new ways to adapt to the environment.

The promotion and management of enterprise strategy by Public Relations allows for the expectations of societal and stakeholders to be included in the development of sustainable business and Corporate Social Responsibility, according to Benita Steyn and Lynne Niemann.

Enterprise strategy, entrepreneurship and Public Relations work together to adapt and challenge the communications industry by keeping the goals and visions of the organisation at the forefront of their work.

For more information about the strategic role of PR in enterprise strategy; http://www.sciencedirect.com.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/science/article/pii/S0363811113001252

http://www.emeraldinsight.com.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/doi/pdfplus/10.1108/13632541011034574