I started my career as a Psychology graduate in India (Bangalore specifically) doing an internship in advertising for one of the biggest global agencies – quite a jump from the career in forensic psychology that I’d initially intended to pursue. I ended up coming back to the UK at the end of that position and getting my first job in PR as a Junior Account Executive for a B2B tech agency, so my background has pretty much always been in tech communications. It was there that I built up my skillset in media relations and business development, as well as developed a huge appreciation for the tech industry which has kept me always wanting to learn more. I then joined Element Communications in October 2023 as Director of Growth and have loved working with some of the most exciting and fastest growing tech firms in the world.

I split my time between working closely with our clients and leading Element’s own marketing and business development function – so I’d say it’s varied! I could be pitching a story about the use of AI in CRMs to the FT one minute, then creating outbound strategies for our lead generation efforts the next. This way, I get to work with everyone across the agency, and like all of the Directors here, I can be the reliable and safe pair of hands for the clients I work with.

I have a few – they’re all memorable for different reasons so I can’t limit it to just one.

Early in my account management days, I secured a 5-minute slot on BBC Business for one of my supply chain clients, profiling their company growth against the backdrop of politically-driven market challenges. It was a proud moment for me.

I’ve had clients go viral in the mainstream, national and social media with content that I’ve led the strategy and execution on. Helping clients win new deals from coverage that my team has secured is memorable every single time it happens. With my new business hat on, I love to create strategic proposals that help shape and evolve our proposition and the type of briefs we go after, and it’s always rewarding when I’m then able to onboard new clients from those outreach strategies I’ve implemented.

But above all else, I’ve had some really brilliant moments with clients over the years. I’ll always remember singing Mama Mia in a karaoke bar with my client, Rocketphone, at the top of my lungs. A certain “you’re not on mute…” moment will also always make me laugh.

To me, authentic communications means having an opinion and the confidence to share it, even if it goes against the grain.

It’s not about being contrary for the sake of it but leveraging your experience and expertise to weigh in on the biggest topics impacting your industry and customers in a way that actually moves the conversation forward. I think if our clients can offer an alternative view point that might provoke some discussion or help shape the way people are approaching a shared challenge, then there’s far more value in that than if we were to be generating feel-good content that sounds like it could have come from anyone. Luckily, I never have to convince the people I work with otherwise.

I’d say that you’d be far better off if you were to approach a career in PR more holistically. Media relations as an isolated service is becoming increasingly uncommon, and agencies are evolving rapidly, so I’d recommend upskilling early on in broader content capabilities and marketing communications strategies.

Separately, please don’t rely on AI. Even if you find it tempting for news hook ideation, pitch creation and content generation, it’s too easy to become reliant upon it and I don’t believe you can ever truly consult on something without extensive experience, which will really limit you further down the line in your career.