Nandita Lakshman, Founder and CEO, The Practice

PR is all about facts and not whitewashing facts.

Nandita Lakshman began her PR career in 1993 with Genesis PR. She was responsible for starting and spearheading the company's technology-focused division as well as operations in the South. Nandita has been instrumental in developing strategies for leading multinationals like Intel, IBM Software Group, 3M etc during her the course of her career. In her stint at Genesis PR, she was instrumental in launching the Indian operations of Volvo, Symantec, and Varity Perkins.

Over the years, Nandita amassed invaluable experience in the areas of crisis/issues management, media relations, brand building, product/company launches and is also the Chairperson, PRCAI, Southern India. Although broadcasting is her passion, she hasn't had the opportunity to pursue it recently; Nandita was an anchor for All India Radio and a popular radio jockey for several music request shows.

In conversation with Jasmeen Dugal, Nandita Lakshman - Founder and CEO of 'The Practice', underlines the conflicting interests between a client and a PR firm, the role of PR, and the potential of the Indian PR industry.

Q. How does PR compete with other below-the-line marketing activities? PR does not compete, only complements other marketing activities and vice versa.

Q. What is the unique selling proposition of your firm? It is more a combination of strengths that made us the first PR firm in the country to win a global PR award on an organizational level. I think the fact that we won an award in the "New Consultancy of the Year" category (instituted by the PR Week) in our third year of existence speaks volumes about our focus as a business entity.

'The Practice' is not just a PR firm; we are a business entity like any of the clients that we handle. We are extremely aware that we are in a business that impacts organizations that shape the economy, policies,trends etc and therefore, play a very responsible role in the entire business ecosystem.

Q. How is handling corporate communications or PR for a small and mid-sized client different from handling a large client? The issue is not of size, but of the need and requirements of each client for PR initiatives. We can say this with conviction because at 'The Practice', we've had the experience of handling start-up ventures as well as some very high-profile clients. For any successful PR campaign, our experience tells us that there has to be as much commitment and clarity of thought from the client's end as is expected from the firm's end. There is no difference in any firm's approach to developing a PR strategy for a small or big client - we put in the same amount of research, creativity and planning into every account.

Q. How do you deal with conflicting interests between a client and a PR firm? Since both sides know their business well, how do you bridge the gap between your and their objectives? Conflict of interest could arise from a client's competition seeking to work with you. We do not work with clients in the same domain, so that addresses this issue.

Additionally, conflict of interest may arise due to a difference in opinion in the way an issue needs to be handled. In such cases, we are clear about one thing - there should be no conflicting interests when it comes to presenting or communicating facts. PR is all about facts and not whitewashing facts. We are consultants first; implementation is incidental to our profession. If at any time, we feel we are being made to compromise on ethics or beliefs based on which 'The Practice' has earned its reputation and credibility, we will not hesitate to part ways with the client. Fortunately, in our tenure we haven't encountered any such incident.

Q. Is Ethics in PR business followed in true spirit? Ethics in PR business, and for any other business for that matter, is indispensable. It is important that any deviation from ethics is addressed immediately and action taken. As custodians of the "image" of our clients and the management of companies that we may represent, there are no two ways to practicing ethics in PR.

Q. What are the ideal attributes for a good PR professional? It is important to be able to relate to the environment in which you operate and to LISTEN to theories, suggestions or contrary viewpoints. Good writing skills (and I rate that over verbal skills), the ability to grasp, multi-tasking, awareness of what's happening around are all operational skills that contribute to one's success.

What I rate the most, though, is the ability to retain one's objectivity, no matter what the pressures are and be consultative even if you are an in-house PR executive. It is important to see the right from wrong, what makes for a PR opportunity, and urge the management to see the other side of the story ... the side that may not always be the ideal picture.

Q. How do you measure the results of a PR campaign? We are making a concerted effort in making our clients value the "inputs" that we provide in the course of the planning or implementing stages. It has become a norm to evaluate only the "output" and that limits PR evaluation to quantity. As a PR firm, client acknowledgement that we are good consultants and our inputs offer an edge over the competition's communication is very critical for us. Else, we cease to be a "thinking" firm, a label we are proud of.

We are increasingly urging clients to think "quality" rather than quantity through extensive message analysis, message delivery effectiveness etc.

Q. Is there anything in the pipeline? The focus at 'The Practice' this year is on consolidation. We've launched HR and Knowledge Management Initiatives and are focusing on training extensively. We want each year to be a landmark year at 'The Practice', and if we won our first International award last year, we would like to continue our quest for International best practices in PR and also show the world that we have some great things going on here!

Q. How do you differentiate yourselves when you go out to pitch for the clients? Since all our business comes through referrals, clients are already aware of the quality and value that we bring to the table. That aside, our carefully chosen client list and our client retention record is a reflection of our knowledge in the technology space and our ability to deliver respectively.

Q. Do initiatives like the PRCAI PR summit help? If yes, how? Yes, it does ... for one, when an industry comes together under one roof and is willing to discuss issues and challenges openly, it is a good sign. So far, ironically, the public relations fraternity has been most uncommunicative amongst themselves. That has changed and personally, I have had some pleasant experiences. But the challenge is to introduce new issues and help put Public Relations into an altogether different league, where it truly belongs. Its time we as an industry did some effective PR for ourselves.

Q. In India, is the role of PR going to remain in media relations or it will go beyond that? Media is an important tool to reach out to the mass or even a niche audience. In that, the importance of media relations in a PR campaign will continue. However, the important thing to note is that we are also recognizing media as an important target audience. We must remember that the media is our consumer too, and that the brands that we represent touch these segments in more direct ways than mere press releases do!

Looking ahead, there will be more aspects of PR that will form part of a campaign. Financial PR, Internal PR and Crisis Communication will soon get their due, but there has to be concerted efforts by PR firms to push these services as well as increased awareness of what these services can deliver by organizations using PR services, to help achieve this.

Q. Tell us about any new campaigns you're handling. We've worked on campaigns ranging from impacting consumer trends to influencing public opinion on serious issues like pension reforms. Given the nature of clients that we handle, ranging from hardware (both PC and peripherals), software services and Internet services, the scope for creativity is endless. Our recent experience of handling the 'Global Investors Meet' (GIM) for the Kerala Government was a huge learning experience for us.