27-3031.00 - Public Relations Specialists

Updated 2009

Summary Report for:
27-3031.00 - Public Relations Specialists

Engage in promoting or creating good will for individuals, groups, or organizations by writing or selecting favorable publicity material and releasing it through various communications media. May prepare and arrange displays, and make speeches.

Sample of reported job titles: Account Executive, Public Affairs Specialist, Public Relations Specialist (PR Specialist), Public Information Officer, Communications Director, Communications Specialist, Public Information Specialist, Public Relations Coordinator, Corporate Communications Specialist, Marketing Director

View report: Summary Details Custom

Tasks

Respond to requests for information from the media or designate another appropriate spokesperson or information source.
Study the objectives, promotional policies and needs of organizations to develop public relations strategies that will influence public opinion or promote ideas, products and services.
Plan and direct development and communication of informational programs to maintain favorable public and stockholder perceptions of an organization's accomplishments and agenda.
Establish and maintain cooperative relationships with representatives of community, consumer, employee, and public interest groups.
Prepare or edit organizational publications for internal and external audiences, including employee newsletters and stockholders' reports.
Coach client representatives in effective communication with the public and with employees.
Confer with production and support personnel to produce or coordinate production of advertisements and promotions.
Confer with other managers to identify trends and key group interests and concerns or to provide advice on business decisions.
Arrange public appearances, lectures, contests, or exhibits for clients to increase product and service awareness and to promote goodwill.
Consult with advertising agencies or staff to arrange promotional campaigns in all types of media for products, organizations, or individuals.

Knowledge

Communications and Media — Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

Sales and Marketing — Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Computers and Electronics — Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Clerical — Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.

Skills

Writing — Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.

Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Judgment and Decision Making — Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.

Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Time Management — Managing one's own time and the time of others.

Persuasion — Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.

Social Perceptiveness — Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

Coordination — Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

Abilities

Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.

Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.

Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.

Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).

Work Activities

Communicating with Persons Outside Organization — Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.

Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.

Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.

Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.

Interacting With Computers — Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.

Scheduling Work and Activities — Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.

Thinking Creatively — Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.

Developing Objectives and Strategies — Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.

Work Context

Electronic Mail — How often do you use electronic mail in this job?

Telephone — How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?

Face-to-Face Discussions — How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?

Indoors, Environmentally Controlled — How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?

Contact With Others — How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?

Work With Work Group or Team — How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?

Spend Time Sitting — How much does this job require sitting?

Structured versus Unstructured Work — To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals?

Time Pressure — How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?

Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results — How do the decisions an employee makes impact the results of co-workers, clients or the company?

Job Zone

Title	Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
Education	Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Related Experience	A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Job Training	Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Job Zone Examples	Many of these occupations involve coordinating, supervising, managing, or training others. Examples include accountants, sales managers, database administrators, teachers, chemists, environmental engineers, criminal investigators, and special agents.
SVP Range	(7.0 to < 8.0)

There is 1 recognized apprenticeable specialty associated with this occupation:
Public Affairs

To learn about specific apprenticeship opportunities, please consult the U.S. Department of Labor State Apprenticeship Information website.

For general information about apprenticeships, training, and partnerships with business, visit the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Apprenticeship website.

Interests

Interest code: EAS

Enterprising — Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.

Artistic — Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.

Social — Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.

Work Styles

Dependability — Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Adaptability/Flexibility — Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.

Attention to Detail — Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

Integrity — Job requires being honest and ethical.

Independence — Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.

Initiative — Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.

Stress Tolerance — Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.

Cooperation — Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

Self Control — Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.

Achievement/Effort — Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.

Work Values

Independence — Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employs to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.

Achievement — Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.

Working Conditions — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.

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Wages & Employment Trends

National

Median wages (2008)	$24.65 hourly, $51,280 annual
Employment (2006)	243,000 employees
Projected growth (2006-2016)	Faster than average (14% to 20%)
Projected need (2006-2016)	61,000 additional employees

State & National

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2008 wage data and 2006-2016 employment projections . "Projected growth" represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2006-2016). "Projected need" represents job openings due to growth and net replacement.

Summary Report for: 27-3031.00 - Public Relations Specialists