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Edelman retains its position as the most admired PR agency among the 2018 Influence 100, according to research into the world's most influential in-house communications and brand marketing leaders.
Full Influence 100 coverage, including Profiles, Q&As and Research here.
For the sixth year in a row, Edelman is the most frequently cited public relations agency when respondents were asked which firm they most admired. Other consultancies with repeat mentions include Weber Shandwick and Brunswick, with Ruder Finn mentioned more than once for its work in China.
Asked to identify companies that managed brand communications and corporate reputation most effectively, the list of nominees showed great continuity from past years, reinforcing the lasting effects of a well-managed reputation. Among the returning names were Unilever, Starbucks, Apple, Tata Group, Netflix, Microsoft and Google. New this year were Ford, Siemens, Samsung, PepsiCo (perhaps surprisingly given the furore over the Kendall Jenner ad earlier this year), Airbnb, USAA, BASF, Danaher, ITC, Wipro, Salesforce and Coca-Cola.
The nominees for most influential professional again featured business leaders as well as marketing and communications heads. The list was also once again dominated by men, with Sheryl Sandberg the only female spokesperson mentioned. IBM's retired chief brand officer Jon Iwata was listed several times in glowing terms, along with former WPP head Sir Martin Sorrell and Richard Edelman. Among others nominated were Unilever's chief marketing and communications officer Keith Weed, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, and Apple's vice president of marketing communications Tor Myhren.
The third phase of Influence 100 research also looked at some of the critical challenges and opportunities facing the marketing communications industry. These include such areas as CEO evaluation, artificial intelligence, data/analytics and diversity.
The number of CCOs who agree their PR agencies must have an ethnically diverse team was down overall to 68%, but the number who agreed strongly was up from 12% to 25%. A further 28% were neutral, up from 19% last year, leaving only a handful or respondents who disagreed with this statement.
However, there is much less conviction when it comes to whether our respondents think the communications industry is committed to recruiting, retaining and promoting people of color: 29% agreed and a further 8% strongly agreed, but 50% were neutral, 11% disagreed and 3% strongly disagreed.
When it comes to gender, 79% of CCOs agree their PR agencies must have a gender-balanced account team, including 30% who agreed strongly. No respondents disagreed with this statement. Just under 53% of our influencers agree the industry is committed to recruiting, retaining and promoting women; a further 29% strongly agree and 16% are neutral, while 3% disagree with this statement.
There’s a less confident response to the questions of whether the industry is committed to recruiting, retaining and promoting LGBTQ people: 45% agreed or strongly agreed it was, but the same number were neutral and 11% disagreed with this statement.
There was the broadest spread of opinion about whether the industry is committed to recruiting, retaining and promoting people from diverse socio-economic backgrounds: just 37% agree or strongly agree that it is, and 26% disagree or strongly disagree.
Full Influence 100 coverage, including Profiles, Q&As and Research here.
Full Influence 100 coverage, including Profiles, Q&As and Research here.
For the sixth year in a row, Edelman is the most frequently cited public relations agency when respondents were asked which firm they most admired. Other consultancies with repeat mentions include Weber Shandwick and Brunswick, with Ruder Finn mentioned more than once for its work in China.
Asked to identify companies that managed brand communications and corporate reputation most effectively, the list of nominees showed great continuity from past years, reinforcing the lasting effects of a well-managed reputation. Among the returning names were Unilever, Starbucks, Apple, Tata Group, Netflix, Microsoft and Google. New this year were Ford, Siemens, Samsung, PepsiCo (perhaps surprisingly given the furore over the Kendall Jenner ad earlier this year), Airbnb, USAA, BASF, Danaher, ITC, Wipro, Salesforce and Coca-Cola.
The nominees for most influential professional again featured business leaders as well as marketing and communications heads. The list was also once again dominated by men, with Sheryl Sandberg the only female spokesperson mentioned. IBM's retired chief brand officer Jon Iwata was listed several times in glowing terms, along with former WPP head Sir Martin Sorrell and Richard Edelman. Among others nominated were Unilever's chief marketing and communications officer Keith Weed, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, and Apple's vice president of marketing communications Tor Myhren.
The third phase of Influence 100 research also looked at some of the critical challenges and opportunities facing the marketing communications industry. These include such areas as CEO evaluation, artificial intelligence, data/analytics and diversity.
The number of CCOs who agree their PR agencies must have an ethnically diverse team was down overall to 68%, but the number who agreed strongly was up from 12% to 25%. A further 28% were neutral, up from 19% last year, leaving only a handful or respondents who disagreed with this statement.
However, there is much less conviction when it comes to whether our respondents think the communications industry is committed to recruiting, retaining and promoting people of color: 29% agreed and a further 8% strongly agreed, but 50% were neutral, 11% disagreed and 3% strongly disagreed.
When it comes to gender, 79% of CCOs agree their PR agencies must have a gender-balanced account team, including 30% who agreed strongly. No respondents disagreed with this statement. Just under 53% of our influencers agree the industry is committed to recruiting, retaining and promoting women; a further 29% strongly agree and 16% are neutral, while 3% disagree with this statement.
There’s a less confident response to the questions of whether the industry is committed to recruiting, retaining and promoting LGBTQ people: 45% agreed or strongly agreed it was, but the same number were neutral and 11% disagreed with this statement.
There was the broadest spread of opinion about whether the industry is committed to recruiting, retaining and promoting people from diverse socio-economic backgrounds: just 37% agree or strongly agree that it is, and 26% disagree or strongly disagree.
Full Influence 100 coverage, including Profiles, Q&As and Research here.
