By Edward M. Bury, APR, AM (aka The PRDude)
Actually, Rob Biesenbach, the subject of today’s question and answer profile, made his mark in this space way back in 2014. As noted in this post, Rob led a compelling breakfast workshop on a subject now so equated with modern public relations — the art of storytelling. Since that day nearly a decade ago, I’ve connected with Rob at various events here hosted by PRSA Chicago and other organizations. Plus, I gain from reading his regular column published in the PRSA Strategies & Tactics magazine. A few weeks ago, we shared conversation on two subjects close to our hearts: The state of public relations and rock and roll. When asked to join the roster of Q & A feature subjects, Rob did not hesitate. What follows are insightful responses to five questions delivered in Rob’s straightforward, evocative, and conversation style.
1. Your business centers on guidance designed to improve communication skills for business leaders. What prompted you to launch your own company?
The last time I worked for someone other than myself was as a VP at a PR firm. It was a great experience, but I found that the higher up I went in the agency, the less time I was able to spend on the actual work of creating, which is what I really love and which I’m best at. Instead it was about managing staff and client relationships, participating in meetings and task forces and all the other responsibilities that go along with upper management in any organization. So to get closer to the work, I decided to go out on my own and I’ve been doing that happily ever since. I spend most of my time now creating, whether it’s a new keynote speech, a workshop module, an engaging audience experience, a book, video or article.
2. Please offer a snapshot on the kind of services you provide.
I deliver keynote speeches, lead workshops and conduct one-on-one coaching with leaders who want to become more persuasive and authoritative communicators. That means helping them put down the PowerPoint, tell their story and communicate like humans should. So storytelling and presentation skills are my two big areas of concentration within the communication discipline. I also write books that tens of thousands of readers have found helpful to their businesses, their careers and their lives. That last one is no exaggeration. A reader I met this summer at a workshop was in tears telling me how using my approach to crafting her story actually led to a huge revelation for her — about who she is as a professional and as a person. It was really gratifying.
3. Like many communicators, you had an impressive career in the agency world at Ogilvy and at the Ohio Attorney General’s Office. Do you miss working in more “traditional” public relations positions?
No. Even at the agency I wasn’t doing “traditional PR,” like media relations. My focus was on what was then a very non-traditional area: internal communications. It’s hard to believe now, but it was pretty unusual — even revolutionary — back in the mid/late ‘90s. In fact, we didn’t even know what to call this new thing we were doing. We named it “Workplace Communication.” But people inside the organization were slow to understand and embrace it. So I was a bit of an outlier anyway, which was another sign that my days in “traditional” PR were numbered.
4. One cool insight I learned is that you participated in the legendary Chicago improv group, Second City. How did your work there translate to work you do for clients or during speaking engagements?
First, I should stipulate that I studied for several years at Second City’s Training Center. So I was a student — not appearing on one of the main stages like John Belushi, Tina Fey, Keegan-Michael Key and other stars who got their start there. But my time there led to an almost 15-year career as a stage, commercial and film actor — which I did on the side while running my business! At some point in that journey it occurred to me that everything I was doing on stage and in front of the camera could be applied directly to the problems my business clients face. Both acting and business require us to communicate clearly and vividly, to tell stories, to bring energy to a room and much, much more. So that became the basis of my speaking and coaching business: using lessons from the world of show business to help people succeed in their business. In addition, the performance skills I learned have vastly improved my ability to present my content in a way that’s lively, engaging and fun. Finally, my intensive study of storytelling, which included two years of sketch and screenwriting, made me both a better storyteller and a better teacher of the storytelling craft.
5. Now, let’s get down to rock and roll! In a recent conversation, we learned we both are passionate about music. Please share thoughts on the most memorable concert you attended.
2012 was a big year for me. I was planning a December wedding (my first — and last!), while my father was in his final, sad stages of a years-long battle with Alzheimer’s Disease. A week before he died, I was with him in Washington. Then I returned to Chicago, where I had tickets to see Bruce Springsteen at Wrigley Field. It felt relatively trivial at the time, but it was life-changing. During one extended song, Springsteen repeated this refrain over and over: “Are you missing anybody?” Of course, foremost in his mind was his recently departed friend and band mate Clarence Clemons. But it felt like he was speaking directly to me (and probably thousands of others there that night). Then he said, over and over, like a mantra or a spell, “Think of who you’re missing, and let ‘em stand alongside you a while.” And honestly, for a moment it felt like my father was right there. A few songs later, the skies opened up and it started pouring down rain. It didn’t stop, and neither did Bruce. He kept right on playing, and he greeted the storm with the song, “Waiting on a Sunny Day.” It was like a cleansing ritual. Or a baptism. A week after the concert, my father died. Three months later, I got married. At the reception I gave a toast to my father, to my new bride and to our friends and family, closing with, “To the rainy days we’ve seen, and the bright, sunny days that always follow.” Then we played the song. It felt like closing one chapter of my life and starting another. My dream is tell Bruce this story one day.
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