PR Firms Requirements When Hiring Experienced Professionals

Navigating today's communications job market requires strategy, preparation, and insider knowledge. PR recruitment expert Brooke Kruger joins host Peter Woolfolk to pull back the curtain on what makes candidates stand out in a fiercely competitive landscape.

From her unique vantage point as founder and CEO of KC Partners, Kruger reveals the dramatic shift in the communications hiring landscape since 2020. What began as an unprecedented boom through mid-2022 transformed into a challenging market with more candidates competing for fewer positions. Now showing signs of recovery, Kruger offers a roadmap for professionals seeking to advance their careers despite these challenges.

The conversation explores why seemingly minor details can determine which candidate receives an offer when several qualified applicants reach final rounds. From thorough interview preparation and thoughtful follow-up to properly briefing references, Kruger highlights the critical steps many candidates overlook. She also addresses the significant return-to-office trend, with approximately 95% of current searches requiring 3-4 days of in-person work weekly.

Both host Peter Woolfolk and Kruger share how their early political campaign experiences provided exceptional training for communications careers. The pressure-cooker environment of campaigns teaches problem-solving, adaptability, and meticulous attention to detail – skills that transfer perfectly to PR roles. They discuss how continuous learning remains essential in a rapidly evolving field, particularly regarding emerging technologies like AI that complement (rather than replace) human communication expertise.

Whether you're seeking to hire top communications talent or position yourself as a standout candidate, this episode delivers actionable insights from someone who's been successfully matching the right people with the right opportunities for over 18 years. Listen, share with colleagues, and leave a review if you find these insights valuable for navigating your communications career journey.

Information on NEW podcast website.

Chapters

• 1:06 Welcome to Public Relations Review
• 2:15 Meet Brooke Kruger of Casey Partners
• 4:07 The PR Recruitment Process Explained
• 9:26 Current PR Job Market Challenges
• 12:48 Common Candidate Mistakes and Solutions
• 19:58 Campaign Experience as Career Training
• 24:53 Finding the Right Fit in PR
• 28:09 AI's Role in PR Careers

Transcript

Announcer: 0:36

Welcome. This is the Public Relations Review Podcast, a program to discuss the many facets of public relations with seasoned professionals, educators, authors and others. Now here is your host, peter Woolfolk.

Peter Woolfolk: 0:56

Welcome to the Public Relations Review Podcast and to our listeners all across America and around the world. Now, apple has ranked this podcast among the top 1% of podcasts worldwide and recently Feedspot listed this podcast as number 13 on its top 70 best public relations podcasts in the United States. So thank you to all of our guests and listeners for your continued support and if you enjoy the podcast, please leave a review. Now question to my audience Is your firm looking to hire top public relations talent? Are you a public relations professional looking to move higher? If so, what are firms looking for in talent and PR professionals, and how do you successfully prepare yourself to be a top-level PR candidate? Well, my guest today has answers for you. Her public relations recruitment firm is small by design and their entire team has extensive experience in the communications industry. Each candidate search is unique and their entire team has extensive experience in the communications industry. Each candidate search is unique and their team has two decades of expertise in providing top talent to every client. They have a unique vantage point to evaluate communications talent, having either one done the work themselves, or two, their close collaboration with individuals in the roles they are hired to fill. Or two, their close collaboration with individuals in the roles they are hired to fill Now, with over 25 years of experience in communications and executive recruiting, my guest is a seasoned professional in this industry.

Peter Woolfolk: 2:25

She began her career in public affairs in Washington DC before relocating to San Francisco. Later she spent six years at top PR firms, ketchum and Byte Communications. She began recruiting in 2005 and later founded Casey Partners in 2009. She has been placing top communications talent for over 18 years. So I welcome Brooke Kruger, founder and CEO of Casey Partners, and she joins me today from San Francisco, california. Brooke, welcome to the podcast.

Brooke Kruger: 2:58

Thank you for having me.

Peter Woolfolk: 2:59

Well, look, let's first ask what made you. You've been in public relations for a long time, so how did you decide that you would start a PR placement firm?

Brooke Kruger: 3:08

That's a great question. So I began my career out of college in DC. I worked on campaigns and in public affairs and I moved to San Francisco and joined a PR agency Ketchum, and then Byte and there were certain aspects of PR that I loved client services, new business, getting results but I always felt like there was something missing and I would look in my background and what I would layer up to and I would look at my boss's jobs and think this is not for me. But I still wanted to be a part of the industry and use my skill set well and so I kind of fell into recruiting in 2005 and really found my calling of placing PR candidates within companies and I started my own business in 2009, which is KT Partners, and we focus exclusively on communication search. We place PR and communications candidates with agencies, corporations, startups and VC partners.

Peter Woolfolk: 4:09

Well, let me say this I'm from Washington DC and I worked on Capitol Hill. So when you say public affairs- in.

Peter Woolfolk: 4:15

Washington that means working for the government. So you know, particularly if you work on Capitol Hill and I worked on Congress I mean you work hard, you learn a lot and you don't have time to make mistakes. Or if you do make them, you overcome them very quickly and you just learn so much more in a very, very short period of time. So I certainly salute you as having had Washington DC as a training ground for public relations absolutely so now, how have you go about identifying clients and how do they find you?

Peter Woolfolk: 4:46

how does the first of all, how do you go about a identify? How have clients found you to say look, here are some of the people we'd like to get onto our staff?

Brooke Kruger: 4:55

so I I've been doing the same thing for 20 years, which is finding communications candidates and placing them within companies and really finding a perfect match for people. Because I worked in the industry before and I know the jobs that I'm hiring for. Having worked in them or worked with their bosses or people managed me, I have a pretty strong network and so I mean I would say you know, my network is actually everything. So a lot of my business comes to me from repeat customers and through referrals. So companies come to me and, given my industry expertise and, having worked and been doing this for so long, they know that I can quickly find them the right candidate for their role. I'm also really able to evaluate, you know, what my clients are looking for and then really connect with candidates to make sure this is the type of job they want to do and they're doing the work that truly motivates them.

Peter Woolfolk: 5:51

Well, let's talk about the range of jobs that you try to fill. I mean, what are the ranges there? Are they starting positions for someone maybe right out of college, or do you have senior openings where you know? Let's say, if we're in Washington, you might be the media public affairs officer for maybe one of these Senate committees or House committees up there? What ranges of jobs do you fill and do you have a request for?

Brooke Kruger: 6:17

Another good question. Well, I've filled all levels of comms positions. My focus is really the senior position, so the head of comms, the CCO, the VP of comms positions. My focus is really the senior position, so the head of comms, the CCO, the VP of comms, someone who's leading the communications function or a function within the communications org, whether it's a director of corporate communications, a director of employee comms, product communications and then we also do fill the positions that support those roles. Most of our positions land between 15 plus years experience, but we also fill, you know, positions with five plus years of experience, as they would be supporting those senior comp leaders.

Peter Woolfolk: 6:53

Now, when the search begins at some point, you've gotten your marching order, so to speak. Here's the person. We want you to sign the contract or whatever, From that point until the time you show somebody is hired that you presented. How much time goes between the starting point and the ending point, if you will?

Brooke Kruger: 7:12

At Casey Partners we like to quickly find our candidates, quickly find our clients, the right candidate, and so when we start a search, we usually send candidates within one to three days. And we are able to do that, having worked on so many different searches and having such a strong network that we can quickly understand what's going to be the right fit. Now, once we have candidates in play, you know it can usually take between six to eight weeks to close the job. There are certain market conditions and things that make a search take longer, but we like to fill jobs between so how have you been able to identify candidates that you might want to present?

Peter Woolfolk: 7:49

How do you create your pool of candidates that you have in waiting, so to speak?

Brooke Kruger: 7:54

At Casey Partners, we're constantly talking to candidates and trying to understand what motivates them, what they're looking for, what kind of work is going to bring them joy, how many people they manage, what kind of organization do they thrive in, what size company. So we're constantly talking to new candidates and really trying to understand. You know what makes them tick. So then, when we get a search, we always have initial candidates in mind and we have similar searches that we worked on. So I never, ever, feel like when I get a search I'm starting from ground zero. There's always other searches I can recall and candidates I've worked with in the past to begin a search from.

Peter Woolfolk: 8:34

Now you're located in San Francisco. How about the clients you serve? Are they around San Francisco and beyond? What's the geographic location there? How is that set up?

Brooke Kruger: 8:44

So I've been based in the San Francisco Bay Area for 20 plus years and we do a lot of searches within tech. So many of our searches are local to the Bay Area but we work across the country. We also have a lot of searches in New York and LA as well and other markets. Obviously, during the pandemic, remote was very, very popular and candidates were being placed all over. I will say in the last one to two years the return to office is real. Almost all of our new searches I would say 95% of them, require three to four days in the office. Right now, remote is now not there. Still are remote searches, but it is not the norm right now. Most searches do require return to office, but that could be in the San Francisco Bay Area, new York, la, chicago, other markets as well.

Peter Woolfolk: 9:32

You mentioned the return to office. What is the major reason that you are seeing that companies are asking people to spend most of their time in the office, compared to working remotely?

Brooke Kruger: 9:41

I think that before the pandemic most employees were in the office, five to working remotely. I think that before the pandemic most employees were in the office five days a week. I think working from home one day a week was a rarity and the pandemic changed everything and everyone was working from home and it works for some companies. I work from home every day, so I get it. But other companies are realizing that in-person time is valuable for collaboration and training and, you know, with junior candidates. I was talking to someone last night at a communications event in San Francisco about how just critical it is for the junior people to be in the office and be learning from others and learning by osmosis and hearing how people are doing calls and reacting, and so I don't think companies need to go back to five days a week. And so I don't think companies need to go back to five days a week. I'm not saying that at all, but I think most companies feel a few days in the office is going to be valuable for their team.

Peter Woolfolk: 10:31

Let me ask you now how are you helping potential candidates? What are you seeing from your viewpoint? What are some of the shortcomings of some of the candidates you might be looking at and what do they need to improve? What are some of the major areas you think that perhaps some candidates need to improve in before they could make a solid presentation for a new job?

Brooke Kruger: 10:54

So we are in a very, very tight job market for the communications industry. From fall 2020 to May 2022, the communications industry boomed. Every company was hiring, they were growing huge teams and there was a lot of opportunity out there. And then, in maybe the summer of 2022, especially in the tech industry layoffs started. They just didn't stop. Teams were cut, people were told to do more with less and there were not as many positions available to be hired for, and then people weren't leaving their jobs if they weren't laid off.

Brooke Kruger: 11:28

So there was just inflection point in the industry where nothing was really moving, and so what happened was more and more people lost their jobs and there was a bigger candidate pool competing for a smaller amount of jobs. So what I have seen I saw stops and starts in 2023, and then in 2024, it's really been consistent since, I would say, fall 2024. And so there still are more jobs out there. Again, the challenge is there's a lot of people looking for jobs, so it's a very competitive market, and so what candidates need to do is really prepare for the interviews and I know everybody will say they prepare for an interview.

Brooke Kruger: 12:05

But I always want to advise candidates if you're interviewing for a company, you obviously need to. Everyone knows go, put your best foot forward, go in there. Understand why you are interested in the job. What qualifies you for the job? Something as simple.

Brooke Kruger: 12:19

A lot of people read a job spec, apply for a job and then they probably don't ever look at the job spec again. You really need to be looking at the job spec and matching your experience and have examples of everything they're asking for. And I'm finding the people who are getting the job today are usually in a final round with two to three really highly qualified candidates. Sometimes industry expertise is winning out, sometimes it's something you can't control, but what candidates need to do is always put their best foot forward, be available, be flexible, be responsive and just really. You know everybody does want a job in this market and they are trying to do everyone's trying to do their best that they can. And you know there's obviously other factors when you're interviewing and you know people are in jobs. But I've seen people lose out on jobs for minor mistakes that could have been prevented.

Peter Woolfolk: 13:12

And when you say a minor mistake, give some examples of what were considered minor mistakes.

Brooke Kruger: 13:18

I knew you were going to say that. So I think employers want to see genuine interest and enthusiasm on why you want the job, and that can be shown through interview prep. So a minor mistake would be or let's not say minor, just a mistake would be not fully preparing for the job. And now a trend in job processes there's four or five rounds of interviews, mm-hmm. I truly believe in a thank you note. A thank you note does not need to be a novel, but if you meet with someone for an interview, send them a follow-up and thank them for their time.

Brooke Kruger: 14:13

That is again another way to show interest. If you are working with a recruiter, you'll follow up after each interview. I always say this, but don't make people track you down. My clients will come to me and be like, okay, we have these four people, how's everyone feeling about it? And if I have a candidate who's not even responding to me, I don't know how they're feeling about it. So it's a lot of process and thought, but you want to truly show interest and enthusiasm in the position. The other thing I think about that's happening right now is references are really important and you need to prep your references, and that means telling your references why you're interested in the job and why you think they'll be a good fit. I had a couple of positions in the last year or so where references decided on the offer and it wasn't that the person got a bad reference, just the reference, wasn't fully aware why they even wanted the job and that didn't. That didn't read very well mm-hmm.

Peter Woolfolk: 15:12

Well, I have been in public race a very, very long time and one of the things that really helped me was learning as much as I can about public relations and things associated with it. You know, give you an example I was encouraged at one time to consider doing some radio work, simply because of my voice. It never came to my attention, so I decided well, what the hell, let's give it a go. What I learned more so was not only being able to handle a radio station, but also how to produce on radio, how to edit in radio and those kinds of things. I like that.

Peter Woolfolk: 15:46

That led to another thing. As a matter of fact, it was I also ran across an opportunity in one of my jobs to learn how to uplink and downlink satellite programs. So you know, I've got all these kinds of qualifications and television, I believe it or not. I went to the guy who first meeting I ever had, like this was the guy who found it I didn't know much about it at the time because it was so long ago who founded Black Entertainment Television. Well, he was at a. We spoke at an event. I said well, let me come and talk to you. I'm talking to him about marketing things.

Brooke Kruger: 16:20

He said well, that's good for you but what I'm looking for is somebody to produce the show. So I said, can I get back to you? I mean, I think you make a really good point because we're talking a lot about getting jobs, but another thread is like how to keep a job in this market. You know, we are in a new era. It's been described as this big boss era, where there's not huge culture and people are.

Brooke Kruger: 16:43

You know there's high demands, and so I always say, like figure out how to do your job and the jobs around you. Be available, be flexible, be adaptable. Sounds like that's what you were doing. They I was just saying they were asking you to do one job and they said what about producing? And you figured out how to make that work.

Peter Woolfolk: 16:58

You know that's a really. I'm really happy to hear you say that, because that's that's the thing of it. You know, I learned as much as I could about as many things as I could, because Because one of the things that you know having learned how to produce a TV show and downlink satellite and all those kinds of things and radio that when I got on Capitol Hill I was problem solving One congresswoman you know her normal would set up with a radio station in Texas, I think, let's say nine o'clock every Monday for instance, whatever it was. But anyway, when you have a committee meeting you've got to go. So I called the producer ahead of time and said look, can we just record the show the way we normally would, maybe Sunday or whatever else, or Friday afternoon, and then you'll have it Monday. And he said fine, that's great, we'll do it that way.

Peter Woolfolk: 17:45

I had another member of Congress who was down in Brazil and I had called for some sort of a climate control, whatever it happened to be. So I called he was from New York. So I called the three big news stations in New York and asked him would you be interested in talking to the congressman directly from Brazil? They said oh, absolutely. And I said oh, by the way, we'll pay the bill. And all of them said absolutely. So I got him through on three major radio stations. And how we did that, doing those kinds of things when I was in the administration. I was at the Department of Education and the assistant secretary was due to make a presentation somewhere out in Wisconsin. Well, the snowstorm prevented flying. So you know, I knew of a satellite set up at the Labor Department two blocks away made that happen. So you know, we trudged through the snow Saturday night and, boom, got it done. So it's about solving problems for people as well. You know, doing a job is, yes, but it's problem solved.

Brooke Kruger: 18:45

Absolutely, and I think people always ask like what are the number? You know one skills that communicators need today, and I think number one is being a good storyteller, but number two is being a problem solver. You have to be able to think two steps ahead, and when your clients and executives and stakeholders are asking you for something, it's like what are they asking for, why, and then what could happen? You know, you just always want to be scenario planning in your head and the world moves so fast right now. You really do need to think two steps ahead.

Peter Woolfolk: 19:20

Well, the other thing that came out of this is that I started in the Clinton campaign as handling communications for him, as a communications man in the state of Delaware. Well, now I'm dealing with the governor, I'm dealing with lieutenant governors and mayors and so forth and so on. So these people want things done. How can we do this? How can we handle things? And then, when the vice president and first lady came up, there's detail, working with the Secret Service and the communications team. They want to know every detail, all sorts of things. So, being prepared, secret Service want to know what door you're coming in, who's sitting where, all that sort of stuff. So you get comfortable now getting as many details as you can to answer all sorts of problems. The other thing I found out is, when you put in the other project, make sure any and everybody associated with that project is at the table at the same time, because I've seen the wheels come off. Okay, we'll find here. All right, you hand out to joe and tell him this is his part.

Brooke Kruger: 20:14

Well, no for sure. It's interesting you say that about the um, your clinton campaign work, because I started my career working on a presidential campaign as well for senator dole, so we were probably on opposite sides at the time on um, I was an intern in 96. And it's like the camp I look back. That campaign experience is so critical. You're right in problem solving in details, in being prepared, and it's obviously a different era now.

Peter Woolfolk: 20:45

But I'm grateful for that experience and all that I learned on the Dole Camp. Well, you know, and we were, because I mean, that's exactly what I said, you've got to solve problems, you because I'm, as a matter of fact, I think we were in a radio station. I was in there with the lieutenant governor and something was. They were talking about some something. I forget what the details were, but I had to go look that up right quick so I could slip her the answer on the sheet of paper well, but but do you even remember how we had to look?

Announcer: 21:08

stuff up. All right On the 96 campaign.

Brooke Kruger: 21:11

we didn't have emails, we couldn't find our news online. I remember somebody's job was to go to the newspaper stands in the morning at like 4 in the morning and get all the papers and cut the clip.

Peter Woolfolk: 21:25

You know, here's what's interesting about this is that I believe personally and as I listen to you, that having worked in a presidential campaign is one of the best experiences that I had in preparing me for communications work. There's no question about it Detailed deal with senior officials, getting it done, getting it done right, all you know. Don't be bashful about asking people for help, whatever that happens to be. So I wound up actually doing one of my podcast episodes on that. So I reached out to people from different campaigns and I had. What did I have? It was one lady who worked for Newt Gingrich when he ran president and a fellow down in Texas I forget Ross Perot, I think it was. So we had them all on that, talking about the experiences we had. How do we get over hurdles? How do you solve these problems? All these other kinds of things working with the local police when they travel, working with the Secret Service, all of those kinds of things and that wound up being one of the various highest rated episodes that I've had in six years.

Brooke Kruger: 22:30

Oh, I'm going to listen to that. Yeah, I'm going to listen to that. I mean, I was still in college when I'm from Kansas City and my aunt lived in DC and she had suggested I apply to work for Senator Dole in the Majority Leader's Office and I ended up going to work on the campaign and I just loved it. But if I think back on my operating model and how I think like that was such a formative experience and I'm so grateful that I got to do that, especially at such a young age. We had to work with such a great man, senator Dole, who, no matter what side of the aisle you're on, he is just a class act.

Peter Woolfolk: 23:03

Well, and let me say this you know back then I can say that when I worked for the chairman of the House Education and Labor Committee, one of his closest friends was a Republican guy who was on the committee as well, and they traveled together because you know members of Congress, they go around the country.

Brooke Kruger: 23:23

It's very different. It's a very different climate now, and I don't we don't want to talk politics now, right, but but but it's a very different. It was very different. That's all I'll say. I'm grateful for my experience and what I learned on the campaign and I can't wait to go back and listen to that episode.

Peter Woolfolk: 23:38

Well, you know and that's exactly what I tell people, Having worked in a political campaign, you will learn a lot more in that campaign, for whatever number of months you do, perhaps than you might get in graduate school, because it is so intense. You're working with so many different people. You know I'm working with the government, all those kind of folks, and you've got to learn details because the Secret Service has a lot of questions to ask. They want a lot of information. So you bring that proclivity for having details that you bring into whatever job you have so you can ask as many questions as you need to to make sure the job is run right. Everybody is on the same page, all those other kinds of things. So the political experience is hugely important. It was in mine as obviously in your growth and development.

Brooke Kruger: 24:23

Yes, absolutely absolutely.

Peter Woolfolk: 24:25

Well, let me ask you, Brooke, have we missed anything? Because you know I've listened to that you do a lot of things for a lot of people, both for those looking to be hired and looking, and the company is looking to hire Is know we are small by design, as you mentioned, and the recruiters that work at KC Partners.

Brooke Kruger: 24:53

They've all worked in the communications industry, like myself, so I think we are able to quickly assess what our clients want again, but also understand what candidates want too. And I think in a down market, it's just as important to figure out what you want and you want to do in this market and what you're good at doing, because you really want to find the right match. And you know, my greatest joy is when I place someone in a job and they're happy and it's a good match and the client's happy and the candidate's happy Like nothing feels better than that. And I think it's so important for people to kind of take a step back and understand what is the work that they enjoy, what gives them, what motivates them. And if I look at myself, like I love getting results in working with candidates and working with clients, that's what in the workforce makes me kick and thrive, and so I feel like I'm so lucky that I truly found my calling and I get to run a business doing what I love every day.

Peter Woolfolk: 25:50

You know, I think that's very, very important. The other thing that I think that we probably touched on a little bit was learning as much as you can about the organizations you're going to work for, and whatever the job is or project is. Learn as much as you can from as many people as you can, because somewhere along the line that information is going to come in handy it truly does and just what I like.

Brooke Kruger: 26:12

When I take on a new search I really try to go deep with my client and understand the organization, the culture. What kind of person is actually going to be successful there?

Brooke Kruger: 26:20

because, not all people are going to be successful in every company, and that is okay. You may find that you can't work at a small startup, or a big company is too much for you. I found that I worked at a PR agency and it wasn't for me, and so I really do want to try to help people find the right fit for them, and immersing in that company and understanding what makes the company tick is also important.

Peter Woolfolk: 26:41

Well, I think you know you probably answered my last question. That was that if you wanted to say anything to any potential candidates and I think you- may have hit that nail right on the head already.

Brooke Kruger: 26:53

Oh, yes, for sure. Yeah, I mean, it is a tough market, it is a tricky market, but what I would tell candidates is it is getting better. If you look on LinkedIn every Monday, more and more people are getting jobs, more and more people are leaving jobs, which means that jobs are going to be open and companies are adding headcount. The communications hiring market is getting better, but it is still critical to put your best foot forward.

Peter Woolfolk: 27:18

Well, not only that. I mean keep learning as much as you can, because it's also moving very fast, particularly with artificial intelligence and all the other platforms that are out there that you need to get a handle on that, even if it's just a basic handle, to understand how it can work and the benefits that it brings to your particular job, and the shortcomings that it might have as well.

Brooke Kruger: 27:39

Exactly. I mean, we didn't even touch on AI, but understanding AI is critical, and understanding how you use the tools that are going to help you improve your job is critical. And there are certain things that AI won't replace, and I think human connection and really kind of trying to understand what motivates people and makes people pick. But there are AI tools that will help people improve their job as well.

Peter Woolfolk: 28:02

Yeah, and I think people need to understand that. You know AI is there to help you, so you need to get your hands around how it works and how you can use it in real particular, Absolutely.

Peter Woolfolk: 28:13

I use it quite a bit in the production of this podcast. I mean, it's me talking. It's going to do the transcript for this once I'm done. Those kinds of things that save time, so forth and so on. So I would always say to any person learn as much as you can about any job you're going to go into. It really, really does help.

Brooke Kruger: 28:33

Absolutely, absolutely. Well, it was so great to chat with you.

Peter Woolfolk: 28:37

Well, brooke, let me say thank you so very, very much, and let me just say to my guests that you've been listening to Brooke Kruger. She is the founder and CEO of KC Partners out of San Francisco, california, and I want to suggest that you share this information with some of your colleagues about this particular episode and also listen to the next edition of the Public Relations Review, and perhaps we sure would appreciate a review from you. So don't forget to listen to the next edition of the Public Relations Review podcast. Thanks again.

Announcer: 29:07

This podcast is produced by Communication Strategies, an award-winning public relations and public affairs firm headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee. Thank you for joining us.