Members only: why SE10 joined the PRCA

By Greta Solomon
11 August 2010

Whether they're professional associations, nightclubs or secret societies; members-only clubs can seem like a closed shop. If you don't satisfy complex membership criteria, you're unlikely to get a toe through the door.

Yet, being part of a prestigious club can pay handsomely. Take the 'old boy's network', for instance. It has got many a member a job, an invite to socialise with influential people or priceless business advice.

And it's not just the upper echelons of society who ally themselves to groups. Students do it every year at university freshers' fairs and every business person undertakes networking in some way, shape or form. The simple fact is, once you have a club's seal of approval (such as PR Week's Top 150 PR firms) people can instantly establish who you are and what you stand for.

So it shouldn't be a surprise that SE10 has several professional memberships under its belt. We're an international consultancy working with a variety of technical industries, so there isn't one association that embraces all stakeholders. We're members of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) and the Construction Writers Association (CWA). We've also just joined the Public Relations Consultants Association (PRCA).

The majority of PR Week's Top 150 PR firms are members of the PRCA, so we're in good company. In fact, when combined, PRCA members employ around 5,000 people and generate more than £400 million each year in client fees.

What's more, all PRCA members must hold the Consultancy Management Standard (CMS) – the hallmark of PR excellence. It combines elements of ISO9001 and Investors in People criteria specific to a PR consultancy. We'll be working with the PRCA over the next few weeks on this accreditation and then we'll be formally assessed every two years by an independent auditor.

Through our membership we'll become a more efficient, better run business, which is certainly good for our clients. We'll also have new networking opportunities, access to PR industry briefings and a professional body that can represent our interests.

But don't worry – none of this is going to go to our heads. We're not going to suddenly start calling our consultancy SE10 IABC CWA PRCA CMS! Our new string of letters is a just a little shortcut to let you know that we're constantly improving the services we provide.