PR Futurist | Stuart Bruce | Purposeful Relations - 🚀 PR Futurist #77 🤓 A week in AI | 📱 AI to take 40% of jobs? |🌍 Misinformation in politics |♊Up your AI game

Welcome

If a week is a long time in politics then it's an infinity in AI. The day after we told you the latest news about Microsoft's Copilot it finally released the full power version of Copilot for Microsoft 365 Business and a new paid version for consumers.

We've played with Copilot for Microsoft 365 a lot since then and are talking to in-house teams and PR agencies who suddenly realise they've got to put plans and training in place rapidly, rather than just thinking about it. Stuart has done a quick video showing how to use Copilot to quickly create a PowerPoint deck from a Word document. The links are in the story.

Stuart has been busy again sharing his thoughts on the trends for 2024, this time in an article for Notified. There's also a fascinating podcast with Purposeful Relations advisory board member Professor Anne Gregory talking about how measurement needs to be modernised and improved.

And to prove you can't get away from AI the annual PRovoke Media roundup of the top crises of the previous year includes OpenAi's firing and rehiring of Sam Altman.

Karen Marshall

News

Global PR leaders on the PR trends to watch in 2024

Global CommTech platform Notified has published a comprehensive article on the big PR and communication trends of 2024. It covers everything from artificial intelligence and technology to macro-economics and ESG.

Michelle Garrett "spoke with leaders from across the industry" about the "the trends they’ll be watching this year". Stuart was one of those she spoke to.

Stuart was also one of the 10 PR experts who contributed to Prowly's 2024 predictions report.

Karen Marshall

Data, measurement, analytics

PR thinking was developed in the 80s, we need modern models

We all know that the public relations and communications sector needs to be better at measurement and evaluation. Measurement is one of the main things we do with clients at Purposeful Relations. But it's frustrating that so often even the so called solutions are too simplistic and focused on crude ROI or sales objectives.

That works if you're measuring PR and comms for a simple sales or marketing campaign, but it's not enough to cover the broad spectrum of what corporate affairs and public relations professionals do.

In this podcast Professor Anne Gregory explains why this crude approach is already out of date, before lots of comms people have even learnt how to do it well! Anne is on Purposeful Relation's Global Advisory Board.

You can listen to Anne talk to Doug Downs on his Stories & Strategies podcast, or read the transcript.

Stuart Bruce

Crisis communication

PRovoke Media's Crisis Review of the top crises of 2023

Every year I look forward to PRovoke Media's three part Crisis Review where it takes a look at the top crises of the previous year.

If you've done one of my crisis communications training courses you'll be familiar with it as I usually use its crises as case studies or discussion points. Some of the crises we've mentioned in previous issues of PR Futurist or I've written about on my blog such as the Spanish FA.

Part one is linked in the title and inevitably includes Elon Musk's bizarre behaviour at Twitter or X as we're meant to call it. It also includes Open AI's firing and rehiring of Sam Altman, the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Bud Light falling foul of the culture walls.

Part two includes the CBI's 'bad boardroom behaviour' problems, Indian conglomerate Adani's fraud crisis, Zara's exploitation of Gaza, the BBC gagging its top presenters, and Coutts 'debanking' UK politician Nigel Farage which forced the resignation of its CEO.

Israel's attack on Gaza figures heavily in part three and includes the boycott campaigns of Western fast-food brands because of their perceived pro-Israeli stances, or in McDonald's case for actually supplying meals to the Israel Defence Forces. The CEO of Web Summit was forced to quit for suggesting Israel was guilty of war crimes. It also looks at greenwashing by airlines like Lufthansa and Disney's culture war issues.

Stuart Bruce

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Thanks to Stephen Davies for pointing out that the subscribe button had disappeared from the newsletter. Stephen's blog is always a good source of tips on AI for comms.

Thanks in advance.

Stuart Bruce

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Research and reports

IMF claims AI will hit 40% of jobs

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has published a meaty report that says AI is set to affect nearly 40% of all jobs. In advanced economies it will be up to 60% of jobs.

You can download a full copy of the Gen-AI: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Work report on the IMF website.

Stuart Bruce

Two-thirds of comms professionals unprepared for the impact of AI

New research reveals two-thirds of communications professionals feel unprepared for the impact of AI on reputation and crisis management. The research by global PR consultancy Golin also reveals 97% feel concerned and a quarter describe the threat as significant.

Big global companies are already investing significantly in AI, while smaller and mid size agencies are mainly still working out what to do about AI.

Stuart Bruce

CommTech tools

Microsoft Copilot finally launches for Business accounts - and a Pro personal version

AI moves fast. In the last issue we told you that you could use Microsoft Copilot to get free access to GPT-4 instead of paying $20 for Chat-GPT Plus.

The next day everything changed as Microsoft finally released Copilot for Microsoft 365 for business accounts and launched Copilot Pro for consumers. It also removed the restrictions on Enterprise accounts so any company can sign up for just the number of accounts it wants.

This means everyone now has access to Copilot and lots of companies just aren't ready. The opportunities offered by Copilot are huge, but so are the risks of getting it wrong. Organisations need to have robust policies, plans and training in place to ensure they are getting the maximum benefits.

Copilot is available in most Microsoft office programs and we've been exploring PR and comms uses for it in Outlook, Teams, Loop, Whiteboard, PowerPoint, Word, OneNote and Excel. It still isn't available in Planner or To Do, but it's due for release imminently.

In this video (on TikTok, LinkedIn and YouTube) I show how quick and easy it is to create a PowerPoint presentation from a Word document.

Stuart Bruce

Microsoft Teams now supports 3D and VR meetings

The hype about the metaverse has (thankfully) died down. But that doesn't mean it's gone away. Microsoft's approach to virtual reality was always more realistic than Meta's inflated hype and it has finally released full support for 3D meetings in Teams.

The biggest barrier I still see to immersive 3D meetings is the cost of the hardware and that it's still uncomfortable to wear. To use Microsoft Mesh in Teams you need a Quest headset.

Microsoft lists Accenture, BP, Takeda and Mercy Ships as using Mesh now.

Stuart Bruce

Professional practice

CIPR launches governance consultation

The Chartered Institute of Public Relations has launched a consultation into a new governance structure. It proposes changes to the board of directors, council and president work. It also introduces a 'Nominations Committee'.

I served three years as a CIPR director and have also served on the council, and various other groups. I'm currently a member of the committee for CIPR International.

The strength of membership organisations - the members - is also their greatest weakness. If members are to have a meaningful say and ownership of the organisation then by necessity it means complex structures to ensure they are fairly and democratically run.

I think clarifying the role of the president is an important one as it makes it into a real ambassador role, rather than blurring the lines between with line management responsibilities.

Make sure you have your say.

Stuart Bruce

AI, digital and social

UK government publishes Generative AI Framework

The UK government has published its Generative AI Framework. for the application of generative AI across government departments. It aims to establish a unified and responsible approach to the technology’s safe, responsible, and effective use in government. The Generative AI framework for HM Government has 10 principles for departments to use, with a primary focus on ensuring the ethical and responsible application of generative AI.

You know what generative AI is and what its limitations are.
You use generative AI lawfully, ethically and responsibly.
You know how to keep generative AI tools secure.
You have meaningful human control at the right stage.
You understand how to manage the full generative AI lifecycle.
You use the right tool for the job.
You are open and collaborative.
You work with commercial colleagues from the start.
You have the skills and expertise that you need to build and use generative AI.
You use these principles alongside your organisation’s policies and have the right assurance in place.

It's an authoritative document that will be useful to public relations, communications and corporate affairs professionals who need to understand the wider impact of AI on their organisation, beyond the immediate impact on their team. If you'd like help for your team to catch up, keep up and get ahead then get in touch to book one of our AI for Comms workshops which can also be delivered as lunch and learn or breakfast briefings.

Stuart Bruce

Publicis invests €300 million in AI

Publicis is investing €300 million into AI for its group PR and advertising agencies. We're talking to lots of in-house comms teams at the moment to help them create AI policies and plans, and then to implement them with support and training. We're also talking to some mid-size PR agencies who 'get it', but it's apparent that most mid-size PR and public affairs consultancies don't. As bigger groups like Publicis invest in custom AI, mid-size agencies risk being left far behind.

Stuart Bruce

Bill Gates talks to OpenAI's Sam Altman about the future of AI

On his Unconfuse Me podcast Bill Gates recently spoke to OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. One of the points made is that right now this is "the stupidest these models will ever be”. Altman says OpenAI is expecting five to ten years of "steep improvement" and that this really is the "beginning of the journey",

One reason it's worth listening to is it emphasises that AI isn't a fad, it's your competitive advantage.

Stuart Bruce

McKinsey's questions for boards to ask about generative AI

We keep emphasising to clients how important it is to provide boards with counsel on the reputational implications of AI. This McKinsey article provides some useful insight as it covers the questions that company boards should be asking to help unlock the technology’s value while managing its risk.

Stuart Bruce

Fake Biden robocall is a sign of what's to come

This year is a record breaking election year with more than two billion voters going to the polls. It's not just the Democrats vs. Republicans in the USA, as there are major polls in the UK, India, Mexico and South Africa amongst many others.

Inevitably this means AI will be used positively and negatively with an expected rise in misinformation and disinformation. The latest example is a fake Biden robocall in the New Hampshire primary election in the USA.

Watch out for a lot more of this and make sure your crisis communications plan is ready to cover your organisation being sucked into an AI related fake news story either as a direct attack or collateral damage.

Stuart Bruce

UK government pulls back on using AI to detect benefit fraud

Clients know they want to talk to us for help in using AI within their PR and communications teams, but not as many have realised they need to consider the broader reputational implications.

CEOs and boards need counsel on the reputational implications of AI as shown by this latest example of an organisation getting it wrong. The UK government has had to stop suspending benefits while it uses AI to detect what it thinks are suspicious claims for Universal Credit.

Stuart Bruce

How to and tips

Top tips for Threads

Last week I was at a dinner with Tim and lots of senior politicians, PR and PA leaders. I was surprised to be asked by several people about Threads, Meta's new XTwitter competitor.

All of them were still firmly wedded to XTwitter as the most important platform for current affairs. What was surprising to me was how many of them knew about Threads, coupled with how little they knew about it.

For practical ideas on using Threads this is a useful primer from social media scheduling platform Buffer. Ironically Buffer doesn't actually let you schedule posts on Threads! This is because Threads doesn't have an API (the technology that lets services talk to each other).

However, Publer, the social media management platform we use at Purposeful Relations, already lets you schedule Threads (via a clever workaround that copies posts to the app and notifies you to post).

Stuart Bruce

Get in touch

Up your AI game.

Another fortnight and more indications communication professionals don’t feel confident they have the skills to manage the enormous impact of AI. Purposeful Relations is currently helping in-house teams and agencies to up their AI game. Contact us to discuss what we can do to help and share some of the work we are currently doing in AI. Let’s talk about AI