April 29, 2023

The School of Communication (SCOM) hosted a roundtable symposium on ‘Challenges and Outlook of the Public Relations Profession in the Post Pandemic Era’ on 29 April 2023. Professor Scarlet Tso, Dean of SCOM, opened the symposium with welcome remarks, and Professor Ronald Chiu, Associate Dean of SCOM and Ms Janice Wong, Lecturer of SCOM, served as the moderators.  Prominent guest speakers at the symposium included Mr Raymond Tam, Executive Director of Corporations Affairs of The Hong Kong Jockey Club; Ms Linda Choy, Corporate Affairs and Branding Director of Mass Transit Railway Corporation; Mr Thomas Chan, Director of Yuan Tung Financial Relations Ltd; Ms Sandra Mak, CEO of A-World Consulting; Ms Esther Chan, Managing Director of Strategic Public Relations Group (SPRG) and Dr Angela Mak, Associate Professor of the Department of Communication Studies at Hong Kong Baptist University.

The Symposium explored the outlook of the PR industry as society gradually returns to normal after the pandemic and the impact of the rise in artificial intelligence (AI) on the PR profession and its education. Participants shared their experiences and agreed that the pandemic accelerated the use of technologies. They also agreed that AI tools such as ChatGPT will be valuable assets to the industry,  yet, interpersonal relationships and networking remain important.

Participants also believe that the new generation public relations professionals will need be versatile in using AI tools, be sensitive to societal and political happenings, be resilient in managing risk, and most importantly, be sympathetic.  Symposium participants from the educational sector reflected that the symposium not only provided a platform for communication with professionals in the industry, but also provided insight into how education curriculums should be adjusted to future nurture talent.