Up close and personal with Bo-ning Yang, GolinHarris VP in Beijing

Bo-ning Yang recently joined GolinHarris as a co-leader of the Beijing office. He brings over a decade of issues management experience in mainland China, and his career achievements parallel the rise of some of the Chinese economy’s most rapidly developing sectors, in which he’s led extensive branding, CSR and business development activities. Breakthrough caught up with Yang to get the inside scoop on how he’s built his PR expertise, what he thinks China’s PR strategy should be and more.

	Bo-ning Yang Why did you choose a career in public relations? My career started in education—I was teaching English, but I wanted to move into the business world. I began looking at my strengths in education and considering how they could translate to business. I identified my English communication skills as my biggest strength, and then sought a career path that would best utilize this capability. A friend of mine who used to work in PR told me about the field. At the same time, I did a personality assessment test, and when the results indicated that I should consider a career in marketing or PR, I started thinking seriously about doing so. The test results felt like a scientific reinforcement of the sense I already had that this line of work was what I should be doing. So all in all, knowing my strengths, speaking with my friend and taking that test drove me to the field. How did you build your expertise in the field? I built my expertise through a combination of methods. One was learning by doing—getting to know the business of a company, its culture, strategies and so on—and learning from colleagues and from observing how my boss accomplished his work. My work in PR gave me the opportunity to interact with the most senior level people—company CEOs, presidents and other leaders. You watch what they do, how they behave, how they interact with media, how they handle the tough questions. And you observe how they talk to their employees—sometimes you’re there when they’re angry, and you get to see how they handle their temper. These are observations that I took valuable lessons from for my own career. Besides learning from doing and observing, I also read a lot. I don’t read from “Page 1” to “Page X,” though—I zoom through and note topics from the table of contents, summaries and indexes to file away. When a relevant issue or event arises, I’ll return to those pieces in depth later on. I’ve also built my expertise from conversations with others, from making friends with all sorts of people—PR professionals, company executives, media, pop stars, government officials and so on. What are the biggest global trends in public relations right now? Actually, the biggest global trend is that PR itself is becoming more and more global and real-time. For instance, something happening in Brazil hits the news the next morning in Bejing. Or something horrible for a company in Germany can also become big news here in China. With information becoming so global, fast-moving, international and real-time, we in PR are challenged to come up with new ways and stategies to deal with the issues. Technology has also changed PR quite a bit. In the past, it was more or less just one-way communication. Now, with Web 2.0—social media, blogging and so on—people can share their opinions and thoughts very easily and publicly. This Internet technology has served to mobilize opinion leaders and massive responses. PR practitioners have to figure out how to handle this technology, especially when there is a crisis. So the overall trends, I’d say, are globalization and technological development. Both combine to make what used to be locally available information suddenly international—and to make physical boundaries disappear. How is PR evolving in China? Well, for one thing, there is more PR in China—more companies, more individuals recognizing the importance of PR … though to different levels of understanding, of course. Also, PR is more professionally conducted. PR activities are managed in a more sophisticated manner. And there is more interaction between Chinese PR professionals and the rest of the world. With multinationals operating in China and sometimes using local firms, this makes for more cross-cultural interactions. PR has a long way to go in China—it’s still very new here. What kind of role is the Internet playing in PR in China compared to its growing dominance in the rest of the world? Internet plays no different role here than it does elsewhere—it’s fast, it’s huge and its credibility is questionable. Given what it is today, we need to adopt new measures and a new approach to deal with the Internet’s speed, size and information. PR practitioners must be prepared to make quicker responses and to make better use of Internet. We must not be afraid of its capabilities—we should try to use the Internet as an important way to influence other people. How is PR work in China unique with respect to media and government relations? PR practitioners have to understand the media landscape in China—it is different, very different, from the United States for example. We have to navigate within the Chinese media landscape to get the best out of our PR activities and, at the same time, respect local practices. It’s the same when it comes to government relations. Working with media and government officials here can be very time-consuming, delicate work. You have to be very patient. You have to be knowledgable—you don’t just eat and dine. I always apply Mao Zedong’s quote, “Revolution is not a dinner party,” to PR in China. In PR here, you invite people to eat, of course, but you also do much more than that to build relationships and accomplish your goals. I’m a strong advocate for a knowledge-based PR—having a good understanding not only of your clients, but also of government policies and the nation’s practices. You have to know all this before you can come up with a good PR plan. And once you have a good plan, you also have to ensure that it is practical and works. What kind of PR strategy would you advise for China as its influence and position expands on the global economic and political stage, especially in light of the upcoming Beijing Olympics? Engagement—China must engage with the rest of the world. It must communicate to the rest of the world in a language they can understand. As it becomes stronger and stronger and plays a bigger and bigger role on the international stage, China needs to adopt a mentality and attitude that’s open to both praise and criticism. Its strategy must be: “Don’t get angry. Be mature and deal with the issues. Engage with everyone—communicate with the rest of the world in a language and manner that overcomes differences.” China is experiencing growing pains. That’s a metaphor I’d use to describe this. When you grow up and you’re stronger, you get more attention and feedback, including compliments and criticism—you have to hear both. What advice do you have for people considering a career in PR? I use a Chinese phrase—I’m not sure if it translates well—“If you want to be a PR professional you should be as graceful as a fair lady and as hardworking as a housemaid.” The point is that you shouldn’t just look at the glamorous side of PR, because there is a lot of hard work and you have to learn a lot. You have to manage your own ego and temper. If you want to have a profession in PR, apart from being intelligent and smart, your attitude is very important. Also, a PR person should become a good connector—should know who to reach out to for every question and every answer around an issue.

Sharon Sim-Krause visits Singapore office

The GH Singapore team had the honor of hosting Sharon Sim-Krause, executive vice president of the GolinHarris office in San Francisco, when she visited this spring.

Born and raised in Singapore, Sim-Krause moved to the United States in her teens to pursue her studies. She later founded San Francisco-based Panache Communications in 2000. Within six years, the boutique firm grew into an award-winning agency serving top-notch technology, Asian and Asian-related companies. She eventually merged Panache with GolinHarris in late 2006.

During her fruitful stay in Singapore, Sim-Krause shared invaluable insights on account and client servicing with the team, and she helped lead the pitch for Singapore Apparel. She also told her career story of how she stumbled into broadcast TV, subsequently landed in public relations and eventually carved out a niche for herself providing PR consulting services for Asian and Asian-related businesses.

Of course, it was not all hard work and no play during her visit to Singapore, a renowned food paradise on the world map. Makan (Malay for eat) sessions were aplenty, with team members always eager and excited to take their guest out for a feast of local food.

Sim-Krause’s bubbly personality, passion for life and exemplary leadership truly inspired the Singapore team.

To learn more about Sharon Sim-Krause and Panache, click here.

Sharon Sim-Krause with the farewell scrapbook created by the Singapore Team	Sim-Krause with the Singapore Team

Creativity training sharpens skills in Tokyo and beyond

CMG’s Ann Marie Morris, VP Learning & Development, toured offices across Asia Pacific in April to share her knowledge of skills in the workplace with eager audiences representing GolinHarris and IPG sister companies.

In Tokyo, sessions included “Six Thinking Hats,” “Creativity at Work,” “Elevator Speeches,” “Presentation Skills” and “Professionalism at Work.” The interactive sessions held in English gave consultants a fresh outlook on planning and delivering pitches as well as servicing clients. “Elevator Speeches,” designed to hone the skills of selling oneself convincingly and effectively in the space of two minutes, was perhaps one of the highlights—especially as professional etiquette in Japan calls for avoiding conversations in elevators! In retrospect, three days of solid and stimulating training provided a unique opportunity for staff development, and the Tokyo team benefited from Morris’s time and energy in planning and executing these first-rate sessions.

Ann Marie Morris, CMG VP, learning and development	The Tokyo team participates in creativity training

Stepping up in mainland China

Rita Ting	Vichy Liu	Catherine Wang

At the GH office in Beijing, Rita Ting will now be applying her strong creative and client management skills in the role of account director for the lifestyle team. She was recently instrumental in strengthening GH’s presence in the market by helping win high-profile clients such as Swire Properties.

In Shanghai, Vichy Liu and Catherine Wang will serve as account directors for the lifestyle and corporate teams, respectively. Liu, a veteran at GolinHarris, played a key role in winning the Broadway China and A1GP accounts as well as in securing Hansgrohe for the third consecutive year and making it a flagship brand for GH in Shanghai. Catherine Wang is a new addition to the team. She brings over 12 years of experience in sales and marketing in the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) and healthcare industries and a wealth of corporate work at other agencies.

John Morgan receives Communication/Journalism Alumni of the Year Award

Greater China Regional Managing Director John Morgan was recently honored with the Communication/Journalism Alumni of the Year Award from his alma mater, Shippensburg University, in Pennsylvania, USA. The award, which honors communication/journalism graduates for their professional achievements and commitment to the field of communications, was also bestowed on Eduardo Mack, communications manager at Brazil’s Globo TV.

Recognized both for his success with GolinHarris and the significance of his work in the China market over the past eight years, John penned the following letter to be read on his behalf at the awards ceremony (summarized here): 

John Morgan

Greetings from the other side of the world, here in Hong Kong, in the People’s Republic of China. First of all, thank you very much for this prestigious honor. If you had told me 20-some years ago that this Pennsylvania boy would become a Korean-American-Chinese PR professional—representing everything from Ronald McDonald and Starbucks Coffee to a Chinese bank and one of the largest conglomerates in Hong Kong—of course, I would have never believed you. But such is my life today.

Let me share a few thoughts on what happened since I graduated from Shippensburg in 1986, in my life and career, to explain how all this happened.

I’ve been practicing public relations my entire professional career. My advice to young people today trying to get into the business is very simple: Find great mentors and learn all you can from them, and the rest will fall into place with persistence over time. My first PR mentor was Shippensburg’s own Al Mason. I learned a great deal from Mr. Mason, much more than the fundamentals. He instilled in me that public relations could be and should be a noble profession, it can make a positive contribution to business and in society—and if you’re going to practice it, practice it at the highest levels of integrity and with impeccable standards. And, then just have fun with it. I haven’t always been perfect in this business, but I’ve always loved and respected it. I'm very fortunate that my long-time employer shares this same passion, and they allow me to surround myself with people who share these same values. 

Over the past 20-plus years, I’ve seen the profession transform from a perceived “nice to have” to a boardroom fundamental, as fundamental as the products one manufactures and sells in the open marketplace. Building and protecting a company’s reputation is just as challenging as any R&D effort. At no other time in history does winning in the court of public opinion matter more than it does today. A reputation takes years to create but can be tarnished in an instant. What we do every day in PR does indeed matter, and what we do in the darkest of times can make the difference between a temporary product bruise and a corporate fatality. 

It seems from the moment I graduated in the summer of ‘86, I’ve been jumping from one adventure to the next. For the first 10 or 12 years, I lived and worked in Philadelphia, New York and Washington, D.C. in PR positions at industry trade associations, cable television networks and finally at the global PR agency GolinHarris.

Later, when I moved to Hong Kong, I learned firsthand what it meant to be an ethnic minority. In my case, the experience has been liberating—and, frankly, I have no idea why. I live in a community which is 97% Chinese. But I feel more at home here than I’ve ever felt in any place in the world. I refer to myself today as Korean-American-Chinese because that’s really who I am. My wife is Korean, I am now a permanent resident of Hong Kong, and of course I’m still very proud to be an American. 

I reside in Hong Kong and serve as the regional managing director for GolinHarris in Greater China, responsible for our operations in Hong Kong, Mainland China and Taiwan. In any given month, as I work across Asia Pacific, I can say hello or good morning in a half dozen languages, from the Chinese dialects Cantonese and Mandarin to Korean, Thai and Japanese. But that’s all I can really say in those languages, a simple hello, good morning or thank you. I always make it a priority to make the effort to connect with people in any way I can, and paying respect to their cultural background is always a good start. Then, as we say, “PR is PR … let’s get on with it.”

Living and working here, I interact with optimistic, progressive and international-thinking people every day. They care deeply about family, business and their country’s role in the global community. They succeed and fail like anyone else in the world. But it’s also abundantly clear that this is their time in history … they are the generation who will help China transform the world in a very profound way. 

So, that’s my story. Though I’ve been living abroad for nearly a decade, I’m not really sure where I’ll be in five or 10 years. I could be in Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul, Chicago or right back there in Pennsylvania. But wherever I am, I will benefit from one of the smartest investments of my life: a communications degree from Shippensburg University.

Sincerely,

John Morgan
Class of 1986