FEBRUARY 2024

PERSONAL REFLECTION
10335 PROFESSIONAL ORIENTATION
STUDENT ID: u3264675
WORD COUNT: 877
Assignment 1: Personal Reflection

My interest in the world of media and audience engagement was established from early
childhood memories and experiences, growing up with aspirations to be a performer and
communicator through the arts. A constant influence throughout my life has been a feeling
of inspiration connected to communication and storytelling through performing arts. As I
explored this interest throughout my adolescent years, I grew to appreciate communication
channels and wanted to incorporate storytelling in my future career.

For most of my life I had worked towards my dream of becoming a professional performer,
until I wasn’t certain performing arts was my aspired career anymore. Following this
reflection and graduation from high school, I commenced an entry level position in the
Australian Public Service (APS) to gain corporate experience and develop transferrable
professional skills to start my career.

My professional role has provided me with insightful experience as to how corporate

communication and media operates, and from this has inspired me to extend my knowledge
through the communication pathway at the University of Canberra. Pairing practical
opportunities from my employment with fundamental studies at university is an invaluable
way for me to further my understanding of media and communication. As I complete my
degree, I anticipate my studies will enable me to develop skills and improve as a corporate
communicator, and my professional experience will support my learning at university.

Corporate communicators are responsible for internal and external communication activities
on behalf of an organisation or department, with a focus on maintaining reputation and
public trust (Joubert, 2019). My current experience in the APS highlights the importance of
the role of a corporate communicator, producing credible communication for the
department in both reactive and strategic capacities. Corporate communications can be
segmented into four main functions: public relations, marketing, crisis management and
internal communications (What is Corporate Communications?, 2023). The operation of
media and communication in a department relies on these functions to create and achieve
an intricate strategic plan that ensures the longevity and credibility of the department
through various forms of communication across extensive audiences (Corporate
Communications: What It Is, Why It Matters and 5 Main Functions, 2023).

Critical thinking, relationship management, digital literacy and effective writing are among
the range of skills required to thrive in the public relations and corporate communication
industry (14 Critical Skills All Communications Professionals Should Be Cultivating, 2021). My
professional experience and workplace mentors have demonstrated that effective
communicators possess a strategic and creative skillset, able to present factual and technical
information in an engaging way to ensure a message is understood by audiences as
intended. Alongside theoretical skills, communicators exercise empathy and strong
personable qualities in their work to appeal to the nature of humanity and remain unbiased
(14 Critical Skills All Communications Professionals Should Be Cultivating, 2021).

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I believe my skillset is well suited to the communication profession, however, recognising I
am at the beginning of my career, there is so much to learn. As reflected in the skills audit
completed in week four, my written and verbal communication skills have proven effective in
my current role through both internal and external stakeholder management. Another
important quality I believe in as a communicator are intrinsic human values, such as
empathy, human dignity and emotional intelligence, to enable connection and
understanding of an audience that departmental products are directed to. These skills are
essential to ensure that proactive and reactive communication products developed are
factual, engaging for an audience and consulted widely to align with a department’s strategic
rationale.

Understanding the priorities and styles of a department when creating media and
communication products has been a challenge for me since commencing in my role. From
drafting media releases, to consulting on department-wide communication plans,
comprehending the qualities and standards of products to align with organisational and
strategic objectives has not come easily for me. I anticipate this will become easier as I gain
more experience in the field, and am fortunate that in my current position, I have many
mentors and resources to develop my understanding. As styles and strategic objectives
change, it is important for corporate communicators to adapt and implement new practices
to maintain the reputation of the department and uphold public trust through media and
communication products. To face this challenge and adapt to communication styles, utilising
my initiative, problem solving and collaboration skills as outlined in the skills audit will
ensure my work remains consistent with stakeholders and upholds the integrity of the
organisation.

Another challenge for corporate communicators is preventing ineffective communication,

particularly within internal messaging and engagement. With a wide range of stakeholders
across an organisation, it is difficult to distribute key messaging and strategic narratives to
ensure all work undertaken by the department is efficient and consistent. To face this, it is
important to find a balance between distributing high priority communications, key strategic
messaging, and good news stories within the department to maximise the reach and interest
for the intended audience. My professional experience has highlighted the importance of
advocating for a coherent and department-wide approach to delivering outcomes and
serving the Australian public through communication. Implementing a variety of internal
communication channels for messaging, such as email, interactive resource pages and
videos are likely to appeal to a wider audience and improve engagement.

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References

14 Critical Skills All Communications Professionals Should Be Cultivating. (2021, November

12). Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2021/11/12/14-

critical-skills-all-communications-professionals-should-be-cultivating/?sh=4f7a13a32872

Corporate Communications: What It Is, Why It Matters and 5 Main Functions. (2023, March

11). Indeed. https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/corporate-

communications-functions

Joubert, S. (2019, July 18). What is Corporate Communications? Functions, Careers & Skills.

Northeastern University. https://graduate.northeastern.edu/resources/what-is-corporate-

communications/

What is Corporate Communications? (2023, February 17). DeVry University.

https://www.devry.edu/blog/what-is-corporate-communications.html

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