“This year, the CIPR will focus absolutely on the central commitment of our royal charter”

Being incorporated by royal charter means CIPR members sign up to professional standards and a code of ethics, giving membership a specific meaning. It also requires the CIPR to allow its internal affairs to be regulated by the Privy Council and any change to our Charter needs the agreement of the queen in council. This means the CIPR is governed in a way that is consistent with public policy.

Last year we overhauled our royal charter, by-laws and regulations. The aim was to strengthen the decision-making structures in the organisation. This meant focusing powers on the board of directors, actually taking those 10 individual directors of the chartered body (with the same responsibilities as a company director); slimming down the CIPR’s council from more than 50 members to a maximum of 30; and changing the process of accession to council so that all of its members are directly elected by the membership of the institute.

CEO Alastair McCapra, who started in November 2013, drove this through from concept to completion in under a year and we are proud of being the only chartered body to have engaged our members in this process by using wikis.

Any corporate communications professional knows that rules, guidelines and policies have enormous strength; I know this from my time at the NHS and in public transport. But I also know those things set down to help us can become cumbersome and hinder our ability to respond quickly, or with passion and compassion. I would find myself talking about red tape and bureaucracy; not about enabling policies. The CIPR is, because of the significant changes we have made now able to respond quickly to members and is fleeter of foot.

This year, the CIPR shall continue to shift its focus to professional standards. We will focus absolutely on the central commitment of our royal charter. It’s a change in emphasis for the outlook of the organisation and will mean that some people will choose to leave membership. Change does that. But I am confident more people will choose to join us as we set out to embody the standards they aspire to. And other professional bodies will recognise our professional work alongside theirs and I hope there will be more corporate communicators sitting around the board tables of limited companies, chartered bodies, charities, public bodies, LLPs and social enterprises across the UK.

The analysis that, “PRs represent clients who want certain messages to go out” glosses over the fundamental role of public relations – building relationships – which is a strategic mission that depends on a dialogue between an organisation and its key audiences. That might seem like an outdated, limited and mistaken analysis to you and I, but this was the central assertion that appeared in an article in the Financial Times. Media relations is a critical part of PR, but it must not be allowed to continue to define us – professional status further demonstrates we are much more than media managers.

A better, stronger CIPR is good for those of us who believe public relations has an important future as a profession. Our future role is in enabling better business decisions by building resilience in organisations and through creating effective relationships. This strategic mission depends on a highly qualified, skilled and accountable profession to make it happen.

Sarah Pinch is president of the CIPR