everywomanClub member and Modern Muse Pippa Isbell is Chief Executive of PRCo Ltd, the integrated Public Relations and Digital consultancy, with offices in London, Paris, Milan, Munich, Dubai, Moscow and New York. Pippa joined PRCo in January 2011 from Orient-Express Hotels, where, as Vice President, Corporate Communications and a member of the Executive Committee, she was responsible for public and investor relations throughout the world and established and ran a network of 13 international agencies. She joined Orient-Express in 1998, having started, built and sold PIPR, her own highly successful travel and leisure specialist public relations consultancy. Founded in 1987, PIPR became the largest independent travel and leisure specialist, numbering among its clients the Thomas Cook Group, Avis Rent A Car and the Spanish Tourist Office. Pippa has over 30 years’ experience of public relations in the travel and hospitality industry. Hotel clients at PIPR included Inter-Continental Hotels and Resorts, Forte, Hilton International, Jarvis Hotels and Millennium and Copthorne. Exclusive to everywomanNetwork members, Pippa shares her experiences on tough conversations, how she prepared for a tough conversation and advice she would give to someone facing a tough conversation.
How do you prepare for having tough conversations?
I always make sure I do my homework, look at it from both sides and anticipate the reaction of the other person.
Can you recall a tough conversation that had a positive impact on your career? If yes please tell us what it was and why.
I can’t recall a specific instance that would make a good example, but I think every tough conversation creates the opportunity for a positive impact if you are honest with yourself about it. Was the criticism valid? Did you miss a trick? Could a situation have been handled better? You can learn from everything that goes wrong, however simple or complex and that is a positive.
How did it make you feel at the time?
Tough conversations have made me feel a whole range of emotions from angry to vulnerable but it is important to try and introduce some objectivity. Why are you angry? Is the criticism unfair or justified? What positive actions can you take in either circumstance? What is it making you feel vulnerable? What do you fear? How can you make sure you don’t find yourself in that situation again?
Can you recall a tough conversation that went badly?
I remember vividly a tough conversation once with an analyst representing an investor in a public company I worked for. He was asking difficult questions in a very aggressive way. It was December and no doubt we were both very tired at the end of a long hard year. It was important to get our message across to him but he did not seem to want to hear it and I was on the defensive. At some point I had had enough and snapped at him. I was instantly appalled at my lack of professionalism and he was so surprised to get such a human reaction, that it brought us both up short and we managed to get the conversation back onto a more productive level.
What advice would you give someone about preparing for a tough conversation?
It is human instinct to try and defer tough conversations. No one likes to have them but my advice is get on with them as soon as you can. If it needs to be done, tackle it today.
What advice would you give someone who has been on the receiving end of a tough conversation?
Be honest with yourself and ask yourself honestly if you were dealt with reasonably and fairly. If not complain, but make sure you go through the appropriate grievance procedures if they exist. If it was fair, work out what you need to learn from it and never repeat the same mistakes.
