Spokesperson to public relations officer
A spokesperson already meets 65% of what the public relations officer role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
43.8/ 100
1 How much of what a public relations officer is expected to do is already part of a spokesperson’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the public relations officer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A public relations officer role treats 21 of its required skills as things a spokesperson already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- advise on public image
- advise on public relations
- analyse external factors of companies
- communication principles
- conduct public presentations
- corporate social responsibility
What stands in the way is 7 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 34 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A public relations officer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a spokesperson background worth leading with.
- already held forming of public opinion business, administration and law
- already held give interviews to media communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held organise press conferences management skills
- already held establish relationship with the media communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held reputation management business, administration and law
- already held work closely with news teams communication, collaboration and creativity
All 34 carried skills, including the 21 the public relations officer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 26 missing skills fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn corporate sustainability required
- still to learn strategic planning required
- optional, not held company policies optional
- optional, not held cost management optional
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
- optional, not held copyright legislation optional
- optional, not held social media management optional
- still to learn develop public relations strategies required
- still to learn integrate strategic foundation in daily performance required
- optional, not held coordinate advertising campaigns optional
- optional, not held plan marketing campaigns optional
- still to learn build trust required
- optional, not held advise on communication strategies optional
- optional, not held build international relations optional
- optional, not held carry out forum moderation optional
- optional, not held develop creative ideas optional
- optional, not held liaise with quality assurance optional
- still to learn business communication required
- still to learn develop digital content required
- optional, not held analyse internal factors of companies optional
- optional, not held compile content optional
- optional, not held perform business analysis optional
- optional, not held use analytics for commercial purposes optional
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a public relations officer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 corporate sustainability study this
- 02 build trust practise this
- 03 business communication study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 34 skills that carry over
- already held advise on public image skill
- already held advise on public relations skill
- already held analyse external factors of companies skill
- already held communication principles knowledge
- already held conduct public presentations skill
- already held corporate social responsibility knowledge
- already held develop communications strategies skill
- already held digital communication and collaboration skill
- already held diplomatic principles knowledge
- already held draft press releases skill
- already held establish relationship with the media skill
- already held forming of public opinion knowledge
- already held give interviews to media skill
- already held market research knowledge
- already held organise press conferences skill
- already held perform public relations skill
- already held prepare presentation material skill
- already held protect client interests skill
- already held reputation management knowledge
- already held rhetoric knowledge
- already held use different communication channels skill
- already held apply diplomatic principles skill
- already held build business relationships skill
- already held build community relations skill
- already held develop professional network skill
- already held develop promotional tools skill
- already held follow the news skill
- already held give live presentation skill
- already held identify customer's needs skill
- already held implement marketing strategies skill
- already held liaise with politicians skill
- already held speak different languages skill
- already held types of media knowledge
- already held work closely with news teams skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held government representation optional
- optional, not held psychological concepts optional
- optional, not held ethics of sharing work through social media optional
19 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held company policies optional
- optional, not held cost management optional
- optional, not held ethics of sharing work through social media optional
- optional, not held advise on communication strategies optional
- optional, not held analyse internal factors of companies optional
- optional, not held build international relations optional
- optional, not held carry out forum moderation optional
- optional, not held compile content optional
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
- optional, not held coordinate advertising campaigns optional
- optional, not held copyright legislation optional
- optional, not held develop creative ideas optional
- optional, not held government representation optional
- optional, not held liaise with quality assurance optional
- optional, not held perform business analysis optional
- optional, not held plan marketing campaigns optional
- optional, not held psychological concepts optional
- optional, not held social media management optional
- optional, not held use analytics for commercial purposes optional
1 held skills the public relations officer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role analyse the comments of selected audiences skill
11 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn corporate sustainability required
- still to learn business communication required
- still to learn strategic planning required
- optional, not held company policies optional
- optional, not held cost management optional
- optional, not held ethics of sharing work through social media optional
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
- optional, not held copyright legislation optional
- optional, not held government representation optional
- optional, not held psychological concepts optional
- optional, not held social media management optional
Common questions about this move
Can a spokesperson become a public relations officer?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A spokesperson already covers 65% of what a public relations officer is expected to do: 34 skills carry over, 21 of which the public relations officer role treats as required.
What skills does a spokesperson need to become a public relations officer?
7 required skills are missing, plus 19 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by business, administration and law. The single most important is corporate sustainability.
How hard is the move from spokesperson to public relations officer?
Its learning distance is 43.8 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.