Informational Interview with a Corporate PR Pro :: COMM 4363

For this assignment in COMM 4363, you will choose and interview a corporate public relations professional — as opposed to someone who works for an agency, and then write about this interview.

In the Week 4 section in MyFire, submit a Word file with your 500-word (minimum) recap of the interview. In addition to the recap, you’ll need to provide me with the PR professional’s contact information (name, title & company, phone number and e-mail address).

Due Date: See our course in MyFire

Though a face-to-face interview is preferred, a phone or webcam interview is acceptable. An interview that is e-mail or text-based only is not acceptable.

Schedule your interview at least a week before this assignment is due, preferably two. PR professionals sometimes have unpredictable schedules, and it’s possible that you may need to reschedule.

Include an introductory paragraph that introduces the PR professional, including title and company, educational background, etc. Mention your connection to the professional (how you found him/her) and how you conducted the interview (face-to-face, phone or webcam).

Questions/Topics you need to include:

• What’s a typical week like? (If no week is typical, then what was last week like?)
• Tell me about a project you worked on that you are especially proud of.
• What do you do to keep current in the PR industry?
• What do you wish you would have known before starting your career in PR?
• How important is writing in your career?
• If you’ve ever worked for an agency, how is agency life different from corporate PR life?
• What three tips would you offer someone just starting out in PR?
• After interviewing this person, are you (the student, not the practitioner) more or less likely to want to have a career in PR? Why?

Some questions you may wish to ask:

• Did your education prepare you for working in PR? How?
• What has surprised you the most about working in PR?
• How has PR changed since you entered the field?
• How does technology affect your daily work?
• When your company is hiring for an entry-level PR position, what makes a candidate stand out?
• What professional organizations are you involved in? (For example, PRSA, IABC, etc.)
• Ask for feedback on your resume
• More informational interview questions

Some things you may wish to do:

• Include a photo of your interviewee. (This can be a photo he or she provides or one that you take yourself.)
• Link to your interviewee’s LinkedIn profile and/or blog.
• Conduct the interview using Skype and two webcams. Record the interview with Vodburner, and post the interview at your blog.

Questions?

[NOTE: This must be an informational interview that you conduct this semester. Do not “recycle” an interview that you conducted during a previous semester.]