February 03, 2006

Our decision to host our ICCO Global Summit in India later this year will - hopefully - turn out to be a watershed in the development of our organisation as a true leader in the public relations industry.

My predecessors have each left an indelible mark on ICCO and now my challenge is to take the organisation on to its next level of development.

So why India? Clearly it is one of the world’s most dynamic and challenging places. And based upon our research there is a genuine appetite amongst the global PR agency community to find out more about that country. Finally, as everyone involved with ICCO knows, the local association there is one of the most progressive and professional to be found anywhere in the world. So by matching our members’ desire for greater knowledge of India and the expertise of our colleagues there, we have no doubt that we can stage the finest ever international public relations conference. I very much hope that you and your members will support us in the endeavour and look forward to seeing you all there.

A major inhibitor in the growth of ICCO is our lack of funding. We are hoping that by our staging this event this year we will be able to raise the funds that we need so as to serve our members better in the future.

A further initiative in 2006 is our intention to produce a regular global newsletter, which will be launched by April. Further details will be announced soon but apart from stimulating thought leadership articles, this on-line journal will also include advertising as a further means of enhancing the financial position of ICCO.

I would like to state here our gratitude to the Council of US PR Firms for agreeing to circulate our proposed newsletter to its members. By doing so we can get to the desks of PR executives throughout the United States and help enhance their knowledge of the global industry.

ICCO needs to create a virtuous cycle of value. We need to be more active in providing information, research and other data to our members. But how can we do this when we currently have such limited access to finance? I am determined that we should break the current cycle by creating new revenue streams and then use this income to provide a more comprehensive service.
In March the ICCO Executive Board is being hosted by the Council of PR Firms in New York. We appreciate this very much and look forward to developing more new ideas so we can serve you better.

Apart from our other ongoing activities I am personally keen to explore the possibilities of the ICCO being a conduit for a new, global industry scholarship scheme, whereby some of the leading firms in the developed world will agree to take on students or interns from developing countries for an agreed period of time. I hope to make this a cornerstone of our programme over the next two years.

Our Secretary-General Simon Quarendon is just back from a trip to Singapore and India and Executive Committee member, Jean-Leopold Schuybroek also visited India, South Korea and China in January to wave the ICCO flag. We hope that throughout this year we can further strengthen our reach in Asia and so increase ICCO’s positive influence as standing for the highest standards in the global PR industry.

In March I will be travelling to speak at the 10th Anniversary PR Festival in Moscow. ICCO is committed to supporting our colleagues in Russia in building a local industry that can work closely with clients, international firms and sister associations to the highest ethical standards. The local association in Russia is doing sterling work in this regard and the agenda for their conference speaks volumes both for their achievements to date as well as their ambitions for the future.

Best wishes
John Saunders
ICCO President