In Consultancy world, many companies are reporting a strong finish to the year.  Lack of activity around the middle of 2009 meant there were a few reductions in size but the consumer world of consultancy PR seemed to hold up rather well and the corporate consultancies are finishing the year well.  There were winners and losers of course - and some were in both camps, such as Porter Novelli, who picked up Southern Cross and all of Microsofts work (previously held by both Porter Novelli and Consultus) but failed to keep Westpac who are now using  Star PR for some work going forward.   Haystac added to their staff of one, having launched mid-year, and Eleven PR continues to show a strong performance with a net two staff added this year.   BBG lost Southern Cross but picked up a major project for Eden Park.   In a move reflecting the trend towards experiential PR, Mango appointed experienced Group AD Steve Kane to the new position of Creative director - experiential in what is probably a first for the world of PR consultancy.

So - all in all - a tough year, everyone has worked incredibly hard but most are happy with the way the year is finishing and are pleased it is coming to an end!  It looks like the world of Corporate PR is loosening up a little as well as some companies realise that they have under-resourced the communications function and have had to resort to contract staff or supplementing existing resources after some pretty robust restructuring.

So how are things shaping up for 2010?  Not bad if current demand is any indication, with many consultancies looking for experienced staff at a senior level, partly the result of people who avoided moving earlier in the year because of job uncertainty now being willing to put their toe in the job market to see what's out there now that confidence seems to be on the up.

A Merry Christmas to all you blog followers in PR land and for those who want to start 2010 with a sniff around the job market, don't forget to email me - michelleboag@momentum.co.nz or call on 021-940884.  Have a great break - you certainly all deserve it!

Word on the street is that Pead PR has won the NOKIA pitch, although no-one is confirming or denying at this stage.  Incumbent PPR, Draft FCB and Impact PR were in the pitch.   Watch this space for confirmation.

Steve Fisher, former Managing Director of Baldwin Boyle Group has popped up at PPR (Professional Public Relations) a few months after his departure from BBG.  An interesting senior acquisition for PPR, which surely must have a business development strategy behind it given Fisher's previous responsibilities.  It will be interesting to see how PPR fares in the Microsoft pitch (see next item).

Expect a result next week from the Microsoft pitch which involved incumbent Consultus on the product side and Porter Novelli on the corporate business, plus PPR (Professional Public Relations) who were also invited to pitch.  Likely outcome is one consultancy to handle both product and corporate - we'll let you know as soon as a decision is made.  The X-Box business handled by Pead PR is unaffected.

Don't know if it is something in the water but the PR recruitment world has gone crazy this week - 5 briefs from 4 consultancies and 4 new corporate briefs for communications people  that have come into the Momentum offices in just a few days indicates a level of activity that is either a one-off blip or a good sign for the industry.  Regardless of what it is, we at Momentum are now looking for very senior industry advocates in both Auckland and Wellington, account directors in both Auckland and Wellington, financial PR specialists, account managers in Auckland, a Communications and Event Executive in Auckland, internal communications specialists, comunications contractors and a part time senior practitioner in the energy sector in Wellington.  Keep those CVs rolling in!