Public Relations Managers

ANZSCO ID 131114

Overview

Snapshot

Employed
6,400
Future Growth
N/A
Weekly Earnings
N/A
Full-Time Share
83%
Female Share
69%
Average age
40

Summary

Public Relations Managers manage the public relations activities within organisations.

Also known as: Communications, Corporate Affairs, Corporate Relations, PR, or Public Affairs Manager.

Specialisations: Community Relations Manager, External Relations Manager, Media Relations Manager.

A bachelor degree in public relations is usually needed to work as a Public Relations Manager.

Tasks

  • Establishes nature of publicity required and ascertains the style of presentation.

  • Allots assignments and appraises submitted work for publication.

  • Examines all available resources and selects, assembles and prepares publicity material.

  • Determines media to be used, and revises and arranges material for presentation or publication.


Outlook

Employment Outlook

JSA produces employment projections to show where likely future job opportunities may be. Employment projections data are only produced for occupations at the broad four digit Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO) level. While data are not available for this occupation, projections data are available for the parent occupation, Advertising, Public Relations and Sales Manager, under the outlook section.


Earnings and hours

Working arrangements

  • Around 83% of people employed as Public Relations Managers work full-time hours, in all their jobs combined. This is 17 percentage points above the all jobs average (66%).

    Full-time workers work an average of 45 hours per week in their main job. This is similar to the all jobs average (44 hours per week).

    Sources:Full-time share and full-time hours: ABS, 2016 Census, customised report. Compared to the all jobs average.


Industries

Main industries

1
Public Administration and Safety
20.4%
2
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services
15.6%
3
Financial and Insurance Services
8.7%
4
Education and Training
7.1%
5
Other industries
45.7%

Regions

Employment across Australia

NSW

39.5% All occupations: 31.6%

VIC

27.0% All occupations: 25.6%

QLD

11.8% All occupations: 20.0%

SA

3.9% All occupations: 7.0%

WA

7.5% All occupations: 10.8%

TAS

1.3% All occupations: 2.0%

NT

0.6% All occupations: 1.0%

ACT

8.4% All occupations: 1.9%

Employment by State and Territory (% Share)

State Public Relations Managers All Jobs Average
NSW 39.5 31.6
VIC 27.0 25.6
QLD 11.8 20.0
SA 3.9 7.0
WA 7.5 10.8
TAS 1.3 2.0
NT 0.6 1.0
ACT 8.4 1.9



Worker profile

Age and gender

Age In Years
40
All Jobs Average is 40
Female Share
69%
All Jobs Average is 48%
  • The median age of Public Relations Managers is 40 years. This is the same as the all jobs average.

    A large share of workers are aged 35 to 44 years.

    Females make up 69% of the workforce. This is 21 percentage points above the all jobs average of 48%.

    Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile and gender share compared to the all jobs average.

Age Profile (% Share)

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.
Age Bracket Public Relations Managers All Jobs Average
15-19 0.1 5.0
20-24 2.4 9.3
25-34 28.0 22.9
35-44 35.6 22.0
45-54 23.5 21.6
55-59 5.9 9.0
60-64 2.8 6.0
65 and Over 1.7 4.2
Median Age 40 40

Source: Based on ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Age profile of workers in this job compared to the all jobs average.


Employment Pathways

Education, training and experience

A bachelor degree in public relations is usually needed to work as a Public Relations Manager.

Visit

  • Course Seeker to search and compare higher education courses.
  • ComparED to compare undergraduate and postgraduate student experiences and outcomes.
  • My Skills to compare Vocational Education and Training (VET) courses, providers and student outcomes.
  • AAPathways website to explore Retail Services VET training pathways.

Highest Level of Education (% Share)

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.
Type of Qualification Public Relations Managers All Jobs Average
Post Graduate/Graduate Diploma or Graduate Certificate 27.2 10.1
Bachelor degree 51.9 21.8
Advanced Diploma/Diploma 8.3 11.6
Certificate III/IV 2.9 21.1
Year 12 7.4 18.1
Year 11 0.9 4.8
Year 10 and below 1.3 12.5

Source: ABS Census 2016, Customised Report. Highest qualification completed by workers in this job (in any field of study). Qualifications needed by new workers might be different from the qualifications of workers already in the job.


Skills and Knowledge

Employers look for Advertising, Public Relations and Sales Managers who have strong people skills, who can communicate clearly and are reliable.

Skills

Skills can be improved through training or experience.

  • 64%

    Speaking

    Talking to others.

  • 63%

    Coordination with others

    Being adaptable and coordinating work with other people.

  • 63%

    Persuasion

    Talking people into changing their minds or their behaviour.

  • 63%

    Writing

    Writing things for co-workers or customers.

  • 63%

    Monitoring

    Keeping track of how well work is progressing so you can make changes or improvements.

  • 61%

    Active listening

    Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

  • 61%

    Reading comprehension

    Reading work related information.

  • 59%

    Critical thinking

    Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

  • 59%

    Social perceptiveness

    Understanding why people react the way they do.

  • 59%

    Judgment and decision making

    Figuring out the pros and cons of different options and choosing the best one.

  • 57%

    Complex problem solving

    Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

  • 57%

    Management of personnel resources

    Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, and choosing the best people for the job.

  • 57%

    Negotiation

    Bringing people together and trying to sort out their differences.

  • 55%

    Active learning

    Being able to use what you have learnt to solve problems now and again in the future.

  • 54%

    Systems analysis

    Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect it.

  • 54%

    Systems evaluation

    Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

  • 54%

    Time management

    Managing your own and other peoples' time to get work done.

  • 54%

    Management of financial resources

    Figuring out how money is needed to do something, and keeping track of the money that's being spent.

  • 52%

    Serving others

    Looking for ways to help people.

  • 52%

    Instructing

    Teaching people how to do something.


Knowledge

These are important topics, subjects or knowledge areas.

  • 86%

    Customer and personal service

    Understanding customer needs, providing good quality service, and measuring customer satisfaction.

  • 81%

    Sales and marketing

    Showing, promoting, and selling including marketing strategy, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

  • 80%

    English language

    English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

  • 76%

    Communications and media

    Media production, communication, and dissemination. Includes written, spoken, and visual media.

  • 64%

    Administration and management

    Business principles involved in strategic planning, leadership, and coordinating people and resources.

  • 61%

    Personnel and human resources

    Recruiting and training people, managing pay and other entitlements (like sick leave), and negotiating pay and conditions.

  • 60%

    Clerical

    Word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office work.

  • 56%

    Computers and electronics

    Circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

  • 52%

    Education and training

    Curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

  • 42%

    Economics and accounting

    Economics and accounting, the financial markets, banking and checking and reporting of financial data.

  • 37%

    Mathematics

    Arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, or statistics.

  • 36%

    Sociology and anthropology

    Group behaviour and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures and their history and origins.

  • 35%

    Psychology

    Human behaviour; differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; research methods; assessing and treating disorders.

  • 34%

    Law and government

    How our laws and courts work. Government rules and regulations, and the political system.

  • 30%

    Production and processing

    Raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and ways of making and distributing goods.

  • 27%

    Telecommunications

    Transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

  • 27%

    Public safety and security

    Use of equipment, rules and ideas to protect people, data, property, and institutions.

  • 18%

    Technical design

    Design techniques, tools, and principles used to make detailed technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

  • 16%

    Foreign language

    Foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.

  • 14%

    Medicine and dentistry

    Diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities, including preventive health-care measures.


Abilities

Workers use these physical and mental abilities..

  • 68%

    Oral expression

    Communicate by speaking.

  • 66%

    Oral comprehension

    Listen to and understand what people say.

  • 66%

    Speech clarity

    Speak clearly so others can understand you.

  • 66%

    Written expression

    Write in a way that people can understand.

  • 61%

    Deductive reasoning

    Use general rules to find answers or solve problems logically.

  • 61%

    Speech recognition

    Identify and understand the speech of another person.

  • 59%

    Written comprehension

    Read and understand written information.

  • 59%

    Near vision

    See details that are up-close (within a few feet).

  • 57%

    Problem spotting

    Notice when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong, even if you can't solve the problem.

  • 55%

    Brainstorming

    Come up with a number of ideas about a topic, even if the ideas aren't very good.

  • 54%

    Originality

    Come up with unusual or clever ideas, or creative ways to solve a problem.

  • 52%

    Sorting or ordering

    Order or arrange things in a pattern or sequence (e.g., numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).

  • 50%

    Inductive reasoning

    Use lots of detailed information to come up with answers or make general rules.

  • 48%

    Categorising

    Come up with different ways of grouping things.

  • 48%

    Mathematics

    Choose the right maths method or formula to solve a problem.

  • 45%

    Selective attention

    Pay attention to something without being distracted.

  • 43%

    Memorization

    Remember things like words, numbers, pictures, and procedures.

  • 39%

    Far vision

    See details that are far away.

  • 39%

    Multitasking

    Do two or more things at the same time.

  • 37%

    Flexibility of closure

    See a pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) hidden in other distracting material.


Activities

These are kinds of activities workers regularly do in this job.

  • 97%

    Communicating with the public

    Giving information to the public, business or government by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 88%

    Building good relationships

    Building good working relationships and keeping them over time.

  • 82%

    Planning and prioritising work

    Deciding on goals and putting together a detailed plan to get the work done.

  • 82%

    Communicating within a team

    Giving information to co-workers by telephone, in writing, or in person.

  • 78%

    Giving expert advice

    Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups.

  • 77%

    Thinking creatively

    Using your own ideas for developing, designing, or creating something new.

  • 76%

    Working with the public

    Greeting or serving customers, clients or guests, and public speaking or performing.

  • 75%

    Making decisions and solving problems

    Using information to work out the best solution and solve problems.

  • 72%

    Keeping your knowledge up-to-date

    Keeping up-to-date with technology and new ideas.

  • 72%

    Researching and investigating

    Looking for, getting and understanding different kinds of information.

  • 71%

    Influencing people

    Convincing people to buy something or to change their minds or actions.

  • 69%

    Looking for changes over time

    Comparing objects, actions, or events. Looking for differences between them or changes over time.

  • 69%

    Scheduling work and activities

    Working out the timing of events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.

  • 68%

    Coordinating the work of a team

    Getting members of a group to work together to finish a task.

  • 64%

    Making sense of information and ideas

    Looking at, working with, and understanding data or information.

  • 60%

    Coming up with systems and processes

    Deciding on goals and figuring out what you need to do to achieve them.

  • 59%

    Monitoring people, processes and things

    Checking objects, actions, or events, and keeping an eye out for problems.

  • 58%

    Assessing and evaluating things

    Working out the value, importance, or quality of things, services or people.

  • 56%

    Explaining things to people

    Helping people to understand and use information.

  • 49%

    Working with computers

    Using computers to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.


Interests and demands

Learn about the daily activities, and physical and social demands faced by workers. Explore the values and work styles that workers rate as most important.

Interests

Interests are the style or type of work we prefer to do. All interest areas are shown below.

  • 100%

    Enterprising

    Starting up and carrying out projects. Leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes require risk taking and often deal with business.

  • 71%

    Creative

    Working with forms, designs and patterns. Often need self-expression and can be done without following rules.

  • 52%

    Administrative

    Following set procedures and routines. Working with numbers and details more than with ideas, usually following rules.

  • 52%

    Helping

    Working with people. Helping or providing service to others.

  • 19%

    Analytical

    Ideas and thinking. Searching for facts and figuring out problems in your head.

  • 19%

    Practical

    Practical, hands-on work. Often with plants and animals, or materials like wood, tools, and machinery.


Values

Work values are important to a person’s feeling of satisfaction. All six values are shown below.
  • 88%

    Working conditions

    Job security and good working conditions. There is usually a steady flow of interesting work, and the pay and conditions are generally good.

  • 86%

    Independence

    Work alone and make decisions. Workers are able to try out their own ideas, make decisions on their own, and work with little or no supervision.

  • 86%

    Relationships

    Serve and work with others. Workers usually get along well with each other, do things to help other people, and are rarely pressured to do things that go against their sense of right and wrong.

  • 76%

    Achievement

    Results oriented. Workers are able to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

  • 71%

    Recognition

    Advancement and the potential to lead. Workers are recognised for the work that they do, they may give directions and instructions to others, and they are looked up to in their company and their community.

  • 67%

    Support

    Supportive management that stands behind employees. Workers are treated fairly by their company, they are supported by management, and have supervisors who train them well.


Demands

The physical and social demands that workers face most often are shown below:
  • 100%

    Electronic mail

    Use electronic mail.

  • 100%

    Face-to-face discussions

    Talk with people face-to-face.

  • 98%

    Telephone

    Talk on the telephone.

  • 96%

    Contact with people

    Have contact with people by telephone, face-to-face, or any other way.

  • 95%

    Contact with the public

    Work with customers or the public.

  • 94%

    Being exact or accurate

    Be very exact or highly accurate.

  • 93%

    Teamwork

    Work with people in a group or team.

  • 93%

    Impact of decisions

    Make decisions that have a large impact on other people.

  • 92%

    Frequent decision making

    Frequently make decisions that impact other people.

  • 92%

    Unstructured work

    Have freedom to decide on tasks, priorities, and goals.

  • 90%

    Freedom to make decisions

    Have freedom to make decision on your own.

  • 89%

    Spend time sitting

    Spend time sitting at work.

  • 88%

    Lead or coordinate a team

    Lead others to do work activities.

  • 87%

    Indoors, heat controlled

    Work indoors with access to heating or cooling.

  • 87%

    Letters and memos

    Write letters and memos.

  • 84%

    Time pressure

    Work to strict deadlines.

  • 83%

    Responsible for outcomes

    Take responsibility for the results of other people's work.

  • 74%

    Competition

    Compete with others, or be aware of competitive pressures.

  • 72%

    Conflict situations

    Deal with conflict or disagreements.

  • 69%

    Repeating same tasks

    Repeat the same tasks or activities (e.g., key entry) over and over, without stopping.

Occupational Information Network
O*NET is a trademark of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration.
The skills and importance ratings on this page are derived from the US Department of Labor O*NET Database Version 21.2, 11-2031.00 - Public Relations and Fundraising Managers.


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