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Welcome to the Taylor Bennett Foundation…

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Taylor Bennett Foundation 2018 Winter intake “What’s next?” That was the question on everyone’s mind as we sat in a circle discussing our plans for our return to the UK. I amongst a dozen other graduates had just completed an eight-week work placement in China. This was the first time in my life I was unsure of my future. Up until this point, life was school, sixth form, university and then China. No gap years, no spontaneity. All planned and mapped out. The end of my time in China caused me to confront reality. In a panic, I logged onto my university’s careers portal in search of what was next. That’s how I stumbled across the Taylor Bennett Foundation (TBF). I’d previously worked in marketing communications, so I knew a little about PR, or so I thought before the pre-assessment.  Despite demonstrating how little I really knew about PR, the pre-assessment was great preparation for the assessment centre.  The actual assessment day finished around 4pm. By 4:30pm, an unsaved
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A Guide to PR Publications for Newbies

From my few weeks in the world of PR, my biggest lesson has been discovering the art of reading. In PR, it is crucial to keep up with news and trends to stay ahead of the game. There is a lot of reading material available so knowing where to begin can be daunting. This post will review some of my favourite PR reading materials which will hopefully provide a good starting point for PR newbies. PR Week PR Week is a good foundation for anyone starting out in the world of PR. I initially came across PR Week whilst researching the Taylor Bennett Foundation (TBF). Many TBF alumni have undertaken interviews with PR Week to share their experience. PR week is a great platform because it provides trends and news within the industry. It also shares popular PR campaigns, events and careers. Depending on the region selected, content can be specific to the US, UK or Asia. The segmentation is fantastic because it provides UK focused news. However, if you ever desire to view PR related news from
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The Importance of Professionalism

“Be professional” , we all hear it but what does it mean? Well I can tell you what it doesn’t mean. It doesn’t mean screaming and shouting at your colleagues when you don’t get your way. It doesn’t mean throwing around various items when you find yourself in that same position. And it most definitely does not mean it is okay to walk out in the middle of a shift half way through a busy service because you feel like it. Now these are extreme  cases that believe it or not, I have encountered. Crazy right? I worked with a grown person that I would count as a fully-fledged adult who behaved in all the ways demonstrated above. Now the majority of these instances, luckily, occurred just between colleagues when no customers were around. However, being professional is not only valid when customers are around. One of the most common questions asked during small talk introductions is, “What do you do?” Essentially where we work becomes part of our identity. We share our identity   w
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Five Facts About Me

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Hello Everyone, Welcome to Sylvia’s Communication Corner. This blog will feature posts about PR and general life observations from a recent graduate at the start of her career. I’m kick starting my first post with five facts about me; an informal way for you to get to know the person behind the posts. 1.  Kenya     For those who may not know, Nairobi is the capital of the East African nation Kenya, and it also happens to be where I was born. I moved to England when I was ten months old, so a lot of people like to categorise me as English. My response; I’m too Kenyan for England and I’m too English for Kenya.     2.  Performing Arts     Growing up, I was fascinated with performing arts. I had plans on becoming an actor, more specifically, an actor on Disney channel. That was the dream! Low and behold, you have never heard of Sylvia Githugu so I think it is safe to say that plan didn’t come to past. However, I still really enjoy a good piece of theatre. Favourite pl
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