Why is it good for us Hungarian PR people that a Hungarian professional is the new head of the ICCO? What are his plans after the appointment and when will he be satisfied with the results? András Sztaniszláv, the newly appointed interim CEO of ICCO, answered IdeaBank’s questions.
The ICCO (International Communication Consultancy Organisation) is an organisation whose members are national institutions representing PR agencies in certain countries (Hungary is represented by the MPRSZ, for example). I was asked to take on the position of CEO, of the ICCO at the beginning of the year. I have to manage an office of currently 3 people, and I am responsible for liaising with our members and external strategic partners. This is the first time that the ICCO has appointed an independent CEO as they are aiming for growth and wish to create a new operational strategy.
My role is mainly to strengthen the organisation internally and oversee certain key external projects. As with the MPRSZ, I want to make progress in 3 areas:
1. Professional development: what the ICCO is doing to develop the PR profession, preparing a joint campaign with UNDP on climate disaster, consultancy partners with the Council of Europe (mainly in the areas of sustainability, artificial intelligence), participation in Cannes Lions Festival, Global Summit, CMS – agency quality assurance programmes
2. Member services: competitions, sharing experiences and knowledge
3. Organisational development: the organisation has grown in recent years, but the administration has not followed suit, so the task is to develop internal, operational processes and strengthen the office.
I’ll start here in reverse order: I want an office that works in an orderly fashion, with KPIs and targets, with a clear division of tasks and the necessary documentation. In terms of membership, besides the obvious need for expansion, an important goal is to be as active as possible. In our current joint project with the UN, it is wonderful to see PR professionals from over 50 countries working together to make the campaign a success – we would like to see many more similar projects. We already have a lot of professional development programmes, but it is important to improve both the quantity and quality of these, and in order to do this we need to have a financially stable footing. My current role is an interim position (managing a period of change), which will be successful if the organisation has the right strategy and stable resources to develop.
The first and most obvious advantage is that I will be informed firsthand about all ICCO projects, so Hungarian PR professionals will be able to join them easier. I think it’s an important sign to global markets that we have success stories and exceptional professionals in smaller regions like CEE who have made progress and now we are representing our brand on the international stage. This also enhances the reputation of professionals in the region. And of course it will make it easier to showcase the region’s successes on the global market, putting the spotlight on some successful projects. I am preparing one such project this year, which I hope you will report on in the future.
Strategic communications consultant, head of several communications organizations, mainly deals with stakeholder and reputation management for Hungarian and international clients. András commutes between Budapest and London, runs an agency and owns two start-ups. He is currently the President of HUPRA, a member of the international chapter of the CIPR in the UK, and CEO of ICCO from 2024. In 2020, he was the first Hungarian to achieve CIPR Chartered PR Practitioner status.
Another interview with András Sztaniszláv can be read HERE.
