Apologies to all for this rather gargantuan first post as I attempt to consolidate three weeks of PR tasty goodness into one paragraph. Ah…Where to start? The beginning is as good a place as any…

Two presentations, a pitch, a personality test, several psychometric tests and an hour long grilling later I find myself at 28-29 Haymarket House, ready to embark on my first 3 week rotation in Edelman’s Healthcare department. While the other five grads were enjoying a juicy lamb shank at Strada for an introductory lunch the week before, I was boarding a plane in Vietnam, dreaming of cooler climes, an English newspaper and a sturdy toilet seat. Consequently, my first day is somewhat daunting as I indulge in worst-case scenarios on my long journey into the big smoke. I needn’t have worried, as I am met with welcome arms by the whole team.

In all honesty, memories of my first day have faded along with my grubby tan and so to avoid this virtual entry reeking of blogg-horea as I try to dredge up banal details of admin formalities, I’ll give you a rundown of my ‘Edel-highlights’ to date.

One of the main accounts I was working for during my stint in Healthcare was for a large association representing the silent vigil of all that is savoury and snack-like in the food industry. Before media monitoring, I barely took note of the amount written about such foods- but after attempting to keep pace with coverage following the outburst of a certain fat tongued celebrity chef, I can’t pick up a paper without scanning the columns for stories about Britain’s penchant for junk-food. Though the aforementioned culinary genius quadrupled the length of my reports on a daily basis, he highlighted the gravity of our nation’s school food problem. But rather than calling parents “tossers”, perhaps he should have bit his tongue a little -after all, there’s plenty of it- and he would have escaped the public haranguing that ensued.

Fortunately Edelman is ready to accommodate employees who require flexible working hours and after Tuesday’s weekly catch-up with Annie, my line manager, we agree that I’ll come in an hour earlier (and leave an hour earlier) to get a head start on the morning reports. This eases my stress levels when I arrive in one morning to find a media explosion fuelled by The British Heart Foundation. Their studies have found that children who consume a packet of crisps a day are guzzling the equivalent of 5 litres of cooking oil a day and consequently every daily has a spread on the issue, with a nauseating snapshot of a young girl necking a bottle of Bertolli’s finest. With my earlier start, Charlotte aka “snack-guru” and I bang out the report before 10 and I bag myself a seat on the train home. Result.

• No Related Post