It is not the end, it is only the beginning...

Hi Bloggers and Friends, For my final post let sit down and talk about my internship at Publico Creative and Universal Media.

My Internship at Publico Creative and Universal media was has been a great and inspiring experience. As mentioned in my previous blogs, being at Publico provided me the opportunity to  get on my feet in the PR field and  apply my knowledge as a first practical and enriching experience to complete my studies in public relations and communication. Of course it was not easy everyday to meet the targets but it was for me a challenge because clients expected that I go the extra mile like the other employees. Being at the agency helps me to learn how to implement marketing strategies, conduct reports and research’s, prepare interviews and draft speeches, interact with high personalities and one of the highlights of my internship was to be in the media relation and advertising team of an international personality who came to Mauritius for a media conference and a huge presentation which marked Mauritius by is arrival to the island.

As communication is a valuable asset in public relation, for Publico communication is very important. Internal and external communication is very important as Neila Govin said  ‘without a good internal communication there are no good external communication’. At Publico all departments for example, the account managers, art directors and the general manager always need to be on the same wave length. The agency promotes that good internal communication reflects the way they work altogether in the agency  which results in good external communication with clients. This strong corporate culture helped me a to increase the way I work and it enhances my effectiveness to handle issues.

My internship has given me the chance to explore a variety of roles, allowing me to develop valuable skills that employers look. But, It was not only a professional internship but also a human experience. I would like to thank all the team that is the management team, the art directors, the media department, the messengers, the receptionist and the chef, who from my first day there, did their best to give me a warm welcome and encourage me to go further. I will not forget the other intern who made my internship so special.


For all these reasons I’d really like to express my sincere gratitude to Publico Creative ( Universal Media)  and all the team there and wish you all the best for the future. I hope that you enjoy reading my final blog about my experience in a creative atmosphere as I mentioned in my first blog. If you have any question in regard to my internship just leave a comment.

Kind regards

Sharonne Delia 

" Intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education" - Martin Luther King, Jr

My internship adventures at Universal Media

Hi bloggers

So, my third blog would be about my experience at Universal Media which is a part of Publico Creative as they handle all the media channels that Publico needs to work with. The working environment there is quite different as everything needs to be done quickly and effectively.

I got a lot to do there every day between media clippings, media plan, and contacting the different newspapers of Mauritius, it was a very good and nice experience there.

My job was mainly to send the necessary documentation and information to media contacts that the company have and making new contact using my communication skills to increase the relationship between (the example) the clients and the company. My job there was to find the  local newspaper reporters who are responsible for different newspaper advert space.

When some information are not clear, my duties at Universal Media was to call the news editors of the newspapers, radio stations or MBC and clarify the issues.

Before any inquiries by the media, I was briefed by the director as anything you say to the media may end up in a story. The media have been shown to be a primary source of information, but "it can be the best friend or worst enemy." During meetings I was there with the team as a Media advocate as my job was to work to attract publicity for organizations, to know that the media can get a public or social policy message across to the largest audience possible in the least amount of time.

So, This is a small overview of my duties at Universal Media. Thank you for taking the time to read my post and I am open to questions.

Kind regards

Sharonne Delia 

" Intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education" - Martin Luther King, Jr

‘We are a team here, not a hierarchy!’

Hi everyone,

Hope that your internship is going fine.

My Internship provides really good work experience opportunities for me. As the previous week I was able to apply my knowledge on the different issues that arouse everyday. Several tasks were set for me to complete, thus encouraging me to overcome all the problems that turn out. As the days passed, I developed a strong desire to learn more about the PR field as the environment that I work is so challenging and demanding.

Since my arrival at Publico Creative, everyone did their best to ensure that I get the best possible work experience in public relation/communication and create unforgettable memories for me. My second week was full of challenges as I learned to set up a complete media plan for a huge event. It was not easy everyday as I had to work at the same pace like the other employees but they helped me a lot in achieving my targets and monitor me when needed. 

Publico Creative front view of the building.

My General Manager called Cora Korimbocus told me that in the organization, the interns were partially left on their own the first week to let them build up themselves within the organization values as it is important for new comers to understand the way Publico Creative works.Now after one week, I acquire the organizational culture and understood well my role in the organization. Now I can say that being there made me have more passion for PR and help me to work as hard as they do which results to being committed to a high level of client service.

Every day is a new day full of tasks at Publico and it helps me to build up a strong personality which increased my organizational skills and professionalism in my work. It raises my ability to do several tasks at the same time and to work in a team spirit as stated by the GM “we’re a team here not a hierarchy”

As I told in the previous paragraph, I worked on media plan each day. Publico ltd is set up of two organisations (department) which are Publico Creative (marketing and communication) and Universal Media (public relation and booking). So, when my duties were fixed up at Publico creative for the internal communication and direct contact with customers, I was sent to Universal Media in the media department to be able to manage with the press. It is for me a good experience to see how these organisational culture work out together as their approach to the everyday issues are different.

 

Universal Media front view of the building.

I hope that you enjoy reading my post and about how my internship strengthen my knowledge. If you have any question in regard to my internship just leave a comment.

Kind regards

Sharonne Delia 

" Intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education" - Martin Luther King, Jr

Unlearn what you learn?!

Hello everyone!

Hope your internships are going-on fine and you are all having a wonderful experience or at least learning the most from it.

Well, as a start off, I’m Benoit de Lapeyre. I am in my last semester at the Charles Telfair Institute in Mauritius and I am currently in an internship at Imagine Communication. The company is a Media and Public Relations Communication Consultancy firm found in Port-Louis, the capital of the island. The company not only operates in Mauritius but also has clients in Madagascar, Reunion and other countries of the Indian Ocean. The firm deals primarily in media relations, intelligence and documentation, and event coordination, amongst other Public Relations services.

For more detailed information, you can consult the company’s website; 

http://www.imagine.mu/.

It has been almost a month since I started my internship and this whole month could be summed up by a phrase my director, Jean-Marie Richard, said on my first days as an intern;

“You are here to unlearn all that you were taught in school, only to learn again how things are really done”.

When I started my internship, having already experienced previous work environment (though not in the PR field), I did expect things to be different than what I was taught during my university years. However during my first weeks as an intern, I realised that the basic PR knowledge you receive during the course of your studies are simply guidelines, basic stepping stones. They only provide you with a global understand of the PR field. However when applied in the real life, PR becomes much more complex and extensive.

Since our first PR modules we were taught that PR should be a Two-way symmetrical model, but when applied in real life it means that we should understand and interact with the society in which we operate. It requires an understanding of society as a whole; its history, its traditions and its customs. Here in Mauritius, it is even more important taking into consideration our multi-cultural background. The insight I gained after this first month is that PR may be taught in theory but however its application in real life requires experience and on-the-job training to have concrete results.

I believe that we, as future PR practitioners, should have an open yet critical mind when dealing with our studies in the communication fields, even more for international students. As a Mauritian studying for an Australian university, I realised that my studies may provide me with an internationally recognised degree but ultimately as a PR practitioner I will only have the basic knowledge and understanding of PR. I will always require an adaptation and learning period in every context I intend to work in, even more taking into consideration our rapidly changing society.

I also wished to share a remarkable quote which portrays my thoughts;

“The curious thing is that with these exponential changes, so much of what we currently know is just getting to be wrong. So many of our assumptions are getting to be wrong. And so, as we move forward, not only is it going to be a question of learning it is also going to be a question of unlearning.” -- John Seely Brown.

The full article, which also provides a very interesting debate on Tacit and Explicit dimension of knowledge, can be read on the following link;

http://www.creatingthe21stcentury.org/JSB3-learning-to-unlearn.html.

I hope I gave you some interesting food for thought.

So until next time,

Good Luck to you all for your internships.

Begining of my internship in a Creative atmosphere.

Good Afternoon everyone,

I am Sharonne Delia  from the Charles Telfair Institute, Mauritius. I am doing a Bachelor of commerce in Tourism and Events management, Hospitality and Public Relations. I am on the end of my first week at Publico Creative.

Publico Creative is an advertising company operating in the Capital of Mauritius. It is mainly an advertising organisation dealing with all kinds of  media such as billboards, newspaper, radio, brochures and television.  For my internship, I am involved to assist the communication agent entitled as the account manager in the company. As Publico Creative has no separated departments; graphic designers, account managers, copywriters and the creative director work as a whole to make the organisation prosper in a team spirit. 

My first day at Publico was unforgettable I was nervous about my first experience in the PR field as I could finally put my hours of study into practice. I got a very warm welcome from everyone there as they were very friendly and made me feel comfortable. I got the chance to hear about the organization, their policies and culture, as well as get a good sense of the type of work I will be doing.

For my first week, I carried out some research work linked to a conquest done by a company, one of the clients of Publico. It enables me to upgrade my knowledge on how to assist and organise a conquest ( event). 

I had the opportunity to go and assist the communication agent in a photo shoot and to go to a recording studio for a client's advertising where my role was to act as intermediary between the client and the company.

I assist to my first meeting of the whole company to make a point on the different works being held in the company. This meeting is help to improve employee relation and communication between everyone in the company and everyone gives their point of view about the issues that arouse during the previous week. 

I hope that you enjoy reading my first week experience in a creative atmosphere. If you have any question in regard to my internship just leave a comment.

Kind regards

Sharonne Delia 

" Intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education" - Martin Luther King, Jr