Monitor 2014: Digital age enriching the job of communicators

The European Communication Monitor is the largest transnational survey on strategic communication worldwide. 2,777 communication professionals from 42 countries participated in 2014. The ECM 2014 edition covers issues like mobile communication, drivers of job satisfaction for communicators, career development, networking and mentoring, influence of new technologies on daily job routines, gender issues, and characteristics of excellent communication departments - based on a new approach to identify outperforming functions.

Based on responses, the monitor reveals that the digital age enriches the jobs of professional communicators, yet many are still struggling to find new working routines. Communicating with stakeholders at any time is the most important aspect of mobile communication for six out of ten communicators in Europe. Although a third of organisations have implemented apps for smartphones and tablets, more than 40 per cent are not planning to use such tools for strategic communication. In contrast, 61 per cent already employ mobile corporate or organisational websites. While 84 per cent state that new ways of communication are enriching their jobs, 73 per cent also say that their daily work pressure is steadily increasing and only 57 per cent know how to handle the constant information flow.

The results have been released by the European Public Relations Education and Research Association (EUPRERA) and the European Association of Communication Directors (EACD), kindly supported by Communication Director magazine and sponsor Ketchum.

They are available online auf der Website des European Communication Monitor.

A flyer with 10 Starting Points (PDF) highlights key results and invites to join the discussion.

The highlights are also presented in a YouTube video.

The ECM 2014 has been conducted by a research group of professors from renowned universities in 11 countries, led by Professor Dr. Ansgar Zerfass. Lucky winners of the special draw of five Lomography Cameras are Heather Turnbach (Switzerland), Mladen Bubonjić (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Charlie Miller (UK), Lillian Phillips (Greece), and Anine Stiansen (Norway).