CEO's, annual reports, equity, oh my! The business industry is fast-paced and tough. Some might even say ruthless. Personally, I find the power of business and branding fascinating. The fact that consumers (including myself) dish out hundreds of dollars for a particular brand over another is crazy. Is it necessary for me to have a $100 Lululemon yoga pants over a $15 Forever21 pair? No, not even a little bit, but I do it. We all do it.
I took two economics courses throughout university (Microeconomics and Sports Economics, which was a great class), which was interesting, but very basic. Last semester, I took an intensive "Business Essentials" course, which was basically a crash course on everything business-related minus accounting (but who wants to do that anyway?). It was stressful, occasionally confusing, and great. I was able to finally wrap my head around developing business plans, branding strategies, and business growth. I am proud that I can now read the finance section in the paper and my eyes don't glaze over. In terms of PR, I can now put myself in the head of a CEO, which can sometimes be a bit of a wild ride.
However, there is nothing more terrifying than being thrown into a group with five strangers forced to develop a strategic business plan for a huge government-based company. I don't care what anyone says, teamwork is a skill. After long team meetings and pushing through struggles, we created a great business plan based on establishing a clear, defined presence online and targeting untouched consumer bases. It was a little empowering, to be honest. After the presentation, I had a nice, long, relaxing nap. It was great.
So what did I learn about business? Three key things:
Business from the PR perspective is exciting and dynamic. Best of luck to all my fellow classmates and their future business adventures!
However, there is nothing more terrifying than being thrown into a group with five strangers forced to develop a strategic business plan for a huge government-based company. I don't care what anyone says, teamwork is a skill. After long team meetings and pushing through struggles, we created a great business plan based on establishing a clear, defined presence online and targeting untouched consumer bases. It was a little empowering, to be honest. After the presentation, I had a nice, long, relaxing nap. It was great.
So what did I learn about business? Three key things:
- The power of a brand can make or break a company. As PR professionals, we need to dedicate our work to making our company brands the highest quality and most desired that they can be. Always think, "we can do better!"
- CEO's are important, but a company would be nothing without the dedication of the entire employee base. Internal communications are just as crucial as external. Employees are brand ambassadors and the fuel of the business engine.
- And finally, you don't get to choose your fellow employees, so you need to find a way to work with everyone, even if they make you want to light yourself on fire. You may find that frustrating team members shine in other ways. Find out what they can bring to the table before completely ruling them out as "useless".
Business from the PR perspective is exciting and dynamic. Best of luck to all my fellow classmates and their future business adventures!