DEEP TALKS WITH GLOBAL PR LEADERS

JOSÉ ANTONIO LLORENTE

Founder and executive president of LLYC

“We believe in communication that, in short, forms part of the solution to many of the challenges of our time”.

When I delt for the first time with José Antonio Llorente I was expecting to find a communicator, but I found mainly a business man. Actually, José Antonio are three persons in one: a business leader, a communicator and an innovator. Regarding the third one, perhaps José Antonio would have preferred to talk about disruption instead of innovative evolution, but I believe he has the capacity to change the mindset of a PR professional step by step, almost without realizing that he is changing your way of thinking and acting… smoothly.

José Antonio Llorente is the smartest PR leader I have ever met. His answers show why LLYC, the company he founded and managed, is leading the Spanish and Latin American market.

José Manuel Velasco (JMV): You have an extensive background in the PR business. But why did you become a PR professional?

José Antonio Llorente (JALL): I began my career as a journalist, but then had the chance to work at the communication department of the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE) at a very critical time for the association and for Spain, which had just recovered its democratic system. I loved this experience; this allowed me to discover that communication has many more facets than journalism: being able to develop all (or many) of these seemed like a very attractive professional challenge to me.

JMV: Could you share a short story or anecdote related to your vocation?

JALL: The first project I worked on when I joined a communication agency for the first time was related to thermal insulation based on extruded polystyrene. Although this may not sound very attractive a priori, what is true is that I loved the experience. When you are involved in projects and you see that your work can generate a major impact on the business, the work we undertake becomes very enriching. In my case, polystyrene, fair from scaring me off, made me fall in love with the profession.

JMV: What does the PR profession give to you?

JALL: The ability to work on very diverse projects that you constantly learn from, as well as the opportunity to connect with very different publics and problems. It also provides a direct connection between what the client proposes and the results, which are very tangible in the communication sector.

JMV: Choose a key moment in your professional career.

JALL: Undoubtedly when I founded LLYC (Llorente y Cuenca) in 1995 together with my partner Olga Cuenca. At that time, I was the CEO for Spain and Portugal of Burson-Marsteller – the agency that was ranked number one in Spain and in the world. Leaving the company to develop my own project was a personal quest… which turned out well in the end.

JMV: Define the purpose of the PR profession.

JALL: At LLYC, we consider that our purpose is to improve the world around us because we are convinced that honest, intelligent, innovative and effective communication helps generate confidence and understanding between people, companies and institutions, pillars on which economic and social progress is based. We believe in communication that, in short, forms part of the solution to many of these challenges of our time.

JMV: Do you feel the profession is truly globalized?

JALL: I would say so. The world has opened up a great deal and, aside from the language barrier, it is easy to pay heed to the trends and to what is happening. We live in a small global hamlet.

JMV: How does digitalization impact on the PR job?

JALL: Very significantly. Ten years ago, our profession was already mature. However, the society stemming from the development of exponential technologies has converted our profession into a baby that is taking its first steps. This makes it tremendously attractive when professionals, as we recommend at LLYC, embrace disruption.

JMV: What do you think our main challenge is?

JALL: To have an open mind and be flexible to accept that what we have been doing in recent years will probably not be important in five years’ time. And also to be able to incorporate the necessary talent that comes with new ideas. We must have the desire and commitment to involve ourselves in knowing how to do something, when we do not even know what it is yet.

JMV: Is the PR function threatened by marketing?

JALL: No, I do not fear other disciplines. I believe that the world we live in and the one we are heading to is blurring the barriers to entry into disciplines. We can now undertake marketing by connecting the right talent with the professionals with a background in this field. The smart thing is to find a way to not just do these two things, but many more, and to truly hire and bring together talent from different disciplines so that we provide our clients with the range of disciplines they need.

JMV: What do you think our main challenge is on the ethics side?

JALL: I would highlight the commitment to truth and the facts. The ability people have nowadays, both at an individual and a group level, to generate content and spread it, offers a great many possibilities to those who wish to do things ethically, but also to those who do not wish to do it ethically. That is why it is important to generate an ethical culture in the profession and to establish clear rules and mechanisms to protect people from bad practices.

JMV: Do you think “truth” is threatened in the digital world?

JALL: Not at all. The “truth” is only under threat from people that wish to violate it. Technology in itself is not to blame; it is down to each person to make the right use of it or not.

JMV: What do we have to do to elevate the profession? That means, for example, to be recognized as a C-Suite function.

JALL: To be better each day in a competitive environment that is heightening. And that is not easy; it requires effort, dedication, investment… But that is what we should aspire to.

JMV: What attitudes does a PR manager need?

JALL: An open attitude, listening, seeking to understand and learn. I also feel that flexibility is fundamental.

JMV: And skills?

JALL: Emotional intelligence, empathy, a capacity for verbalization and the generation of content.

JMV: How are PR associations and professional bodies evolving or should they evolve?

JALL: Associations are the reflection of the profession, of sector practices. If we want to make a difference, we must place the most brilliant people to head up these associations. If we convert them into an irrelevant bastion of those who do not play a leading role in the world of communication, they will end up being irrelevant.

JMV: What is the main demand of a member?

JALL: Personally, I perceive a great deal of demand for learning, for enhancing knowledge, but I feel that this is not the leitmotiv of an association. It is under the individual responsibility of each professional to improve their training. The role of associations should be to advocate the profession: to ensure that the role of communication in society is understood and appreciated.

JAM: Do you think academia is serving the needs of the profession at the right pace?

JALL: I believe so; universities have made a great deal of progress in their relationship with the world of business. While there is still some degree of disconnection, this is more based on prejudice. My most recent contact with academia has shown me a world much more connected with the current reality than I thought. I would say that the professional world is currently less familiar with the academic world than vice versa.

JMV: What would you say to a trainee on his/her first day of work?

JALL: That communication is a profession that offers great and very significant career possibilities: today, whoever wants to be successful needs to use communication smartly. What do you need to do to have a successful career? Work hard, seek to improve each day, know how to make use of technology, be creative and focus on results.

JMV: And the same to a senior manager over 50 years old.

JALL: That they need to make a huge effort at transformation. The concept of ‘vintage’ is not appreciated in today’s world of communication. Experience is, but inevitably mixed with knowledge and the handling of new techniques that are essential to triumph in the profession nowadays.

JMV: Please share a quote with us which impacted you the most.

JALL: Years ago, I was struck by an emblematic phrase in our profession: “If you don’t say what you are, others will tell you what you are not”. Then came another phrase that also struck me: “Silence is not profitable”. The phrase I would choose nowadays is the following: “Social conversation is the driver of today’s society”.

JMV: Recommend a book to the Global Alliance community.

“Comusicación”, by Adolfo Corujo.