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PR Fellowships are a first for the Channel Islands

By GuernseyAdmin on Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Filed Under: Advertising & PR, Guernsey, Jersey

Isle News, 9 September 2009 – TWO stalwarts of the local PR profession are the first Channel Islanders to be made Fellows of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations.

Mike Sunier, founder of Crystal PR in Jersey, and Steve Falla, founder of Orchard PR in Guernsey, are two of only 300 Fellows within the 9,500-strong membership of the Institute nationally.

CIPR Fellowship is the highest level of membership and is awarded in recognition of outstanding work in public relations and service to the Institute.

Membership is rigorously managed, ensuring that Fellows of the Institute have the relevant qualifications and experience. Fellows must demonstrate commitment to professionalism, and the raising of industry standards and a willingness to be accountable to a code of conduct.

The local Fellows were nominated by Jason MacKenzie, chair of the newly-formed Channel Islands group of the CIPR

Mr Sunier, who began his career as a Jersey Evening Post journalist, has worked in PR since 1982 when he gained ‘in house’ experience in the City of London at the headquarters of Lloyds Bank and Barclays Bank.

He founded Crystal PR, the first dedicated financial services PR agency in Jersey, in 1994 and has since helped in the training of a number of local graduates entering the industry. He earned recognition for developing young talent in 1996 when one of his account executives won the Young Communicator of the Year national award.

After a decade’s experience as a journalist in Guernsey and the UK, Mr Falla began his PR career in 1989 when he joined White Knight PR where he rose to Managing Director. He founded Orchard PR in 1996, co-founding Orchard Events a decade later, and has trained and mentored many individuals who are prominent in the local PR and communications sector. He has been a member of the CIPR international advisory group and sat on the president’s working party for the CIPR 5^th world conference last year.

The two PR professionals have been friends and industry contemporaries since the early 1990s when Mr Sunier headed up the White Knight’s Jersey office.

CIPR President Kevin Taylor said: ‘I am delighted to award Fellowship of the Institute to Mike and Steve in recognition of their contribution to the PR industry and the work of the Institute and in recognition of their individual achievements.’

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