Blog: A year in review

2024 has been a busy year at Hughes. We have been lucky to work with great clients and given the chance to work on some fascinating and high-profile projects. Our aim to work with great clients, do great work, and have fun doing it has been fulfilled.

The most enjoyable part continues to be the positive impact our work and collaboration with clients has had on their organisations.

There are a few observations from our work during the year that we think are worth sharing. They are likely to be highly relevant to most organisations and will continue to be a focus for many in 2025 and beyond.

Inevitably, they reflect the environment in which organisations operate and the challenges and opportunities they present.

1. Great employers build happy teams

Attracting and retaining talent remains a challenge for most organisations regardless of their industry or the role they are looking to fill. This year, we have seen a much greater focus on internal communication to inform and engage employees. This has been coupled with more clients developing or reviewing their Employee Value Proposition.

2. Plan for the worst, hope for the best

This has long been our mantra at Hughes. This year, the ongoing and heightened risk of cyber attacks and greater recognition of the impact of a major crisis has seen more clients proactively engage us to develop and test their crisis communications plans.

3. Buying and Selling

It has been a year of business transactions with several clients making strategic decisions to acquire for growth or divest businesses or business divisions that don’t align with their future business plans. Ensuring you have a well-developed and executed communications plan when buying or selling is essential for managing reputation, reducing uncertainty and supporting business success.

4. Traditional media isn’t dead, it’s evolving

Much has been written about the slow death of traditional media. However, in an age of misinformation and disinformation, the media plays a vital role, and our clients still recognise its importance in good times and bad. There’s no doubt though that traditional media continues to evolve and adapt, and accordingly so do we and our clients, but the fundamentals of effective communication remain.

5. Strategy remains key

Having a clear PR strategy aligned to their business plan remains important to our clients, but those plans need to be flexible. Being strategic means remaining agile and adapting to a changing situation and environment while staying focused on your objectives. This is even more vital when managing an issue or crisis.

Finally, we thank all our clients for another amazing year. We’re always grateful for the opportunity to share in their successes and can’t wait to see what 2025 brings!

Simon Hatcher

Hughes | Consultant