CiB Radio

Steve Nichols: Hello and welcome to this six-minute programme about CiB, Britain's biggest organisation for business communicators. I'm Steve Nichols from InfoTech Soundstream and later in the programme I'll tell you how you can find out more about CiB.

But first let me introduce Ken Runicles, CiB's new chairman. I caught up with Ken at the organisation's annual conference and awards at Warwick and asked him what CiB offers professional communicators.

Ken Runicles: …Actually, a lot more than people realise I think. One of the great things that CiB has is a brilliant training programme, which is actually very cost effective when compared with anyone else in the training business.

We have Europe's biggest and most prestigious awards scheme. It's a really good opportunity to test your products that you produce against the best in the industry.

The conference we have every year is a tremendous opportunity to a) learn a lot about the industry and b) network with people doing the same as yourself.

The membership - there are 1,000 members in CiB doing similar jobs to the rest of us, all with lessons to learn, knowledge to share, information to find out with experiences to share. So it's a tremendous networking organisation. In fact, the networking part of CiB is what I have found most useful and satisfying.

Steve Nichols: I understand that more than 150 people attended this year's conference. What did the conference offer them?

Ken Runicles: Well, for example today we had presentations about the roles of middle managers in communications and we had a guy from an agency talking about a major research project they had done - fascinating stuff. We then a former chief executive himself - a very senior civil servant - talking about what communications feels like from the CEO's desk. Then we had a the internal communications manager at the BBC talking about major communications work they are doing - a fantastic opportunity to listen to and learn from people who are the best in the industry.

Steve Nichols: It seems to me that boards are taking more interest in communications nowadays. How are seeing that coming through in your own company?

Ken Runicles: Communications has been hanging in there in big corporates. In my own company it has always been at a pretty senior level, but now it is becoming more and more important. I guess that reflects the attitude of the chief exec. And the chief executive of my company is all about communications. He is a brilliant communicator himself and I think right across the piece in industry now communications is getting up the agenda in most corporates. Because, actually as some of our speakers at this conference are saying you do have to take the workforce with you and if you don't talk to them you can't.

Steve Nichols: Years ago there used to a lot of emphasis on the tools of the trade, the skills of the trade. There seems to be more emphasis now on the strategy of communications. Has there been a change in the way communications is perceived?

Ken Runicles: I think the higher it goes up the food chain in corporates the more it has to become strategic. There is still a serious role for professional communicators, journalists like me, to deliver channels that hit the button for people. But increasingly communications is part of the strategy for most companies. Bringing the workforce with you is on most company's value statements and most company's agenda because if you have a motivated workforce who understands what the company's objectives are they can deliver the customer service that the company needs. If they are kept in the dark and they don't really know what the company is trying to achieve how do you expect them to serve their customers properly.

For communicators this is a fantastic time to be in our industry.

Steve Nichols: So if a communicator is listening to this broadcast - they are working in print, working in intranet, working in audio - does CiB cover all these channels?

Ken Runicles: CiB is into everything, as we have to be these days. I'm a print journalist by trade, but like most people in the communications industry I've moved into the intranet, into TV, into radio, into audio on the web. We have the full range of channels in my company and CiB reflects that.

We have a very good monthly magazine, an ezine that goes out to more than 2,750 people a month and we have the Communicator of the Year awards, which is a major activity involving external communicators. Major people - Sir Matt Barrett of Barclays was a recent communicator of the year for us. And it is also aimed at internal communicators.

So we have a whole range of activities that reflect the large range of channels and media that people in our sort of jobs have to embrace.

Steve Nichols: The CiB awards took place last night - a stunning gala performance really all round by Michael Portillo and a lot of awards given out. How do you think that raises the standard of communications in this country?

Ken Runicles: The CiB awards are - everyone uses this phrase - the Oscars of the communications industry. They are the biggest awards in Europe. They are an award worth having. If you are chosen as publication of the year or editor of the year it is something to be really, really proud of because you are being judged against some absolute excellence from other entrants in the award scheme.

So I think the awards are really, really, really important and a way of raising standards in the industry. And yes it is lovely winning, but even if you don't win you get a jolly good adjudication from a highly qualified judge who can help you perhaps improve your standards even more for next year.

Having someone of the calibre of Michael Portillo presenting the prizes says a lot.

The two conference sponsors are BT and Getty Images - two really prestige organisations that we are really proud to have on board with CiB. I think it all really good news for CiB at the moment.

Steve Nichols: Ken Runicles thank you.

If you would like to find out more about CiB visit the web site at www.cib.uk.com or call 0870 1217606 and thanks for listening to the programme.