Public Sector
Successfully delivered a wide range of communications plans that informed citizens on government policy though media and digital.
Coordination
Ensuring the Taoiseach and Department of the Taoiseach brand key messages take priority. Crisis communications strategies put in place where necessary.
Regular meetings with the press advisers and officers in Government Departments to discuss current issues and PR events pertaining to each Department and to coordinate overall Government Communications Calendar.
Regular contact with the press officers in the political parties in Government to make sure that nothing is amiss when passing work from civil servants to political staff and back again.
Liaising with officials in the Department regarding current topical issues and key policy updates. They provided the content for speeches, replies to media queries and freedom of information requests. Also, when multi-Departmental action is required such as Emergency Planning, which deals with severe weather events.
Liaising with officials in other departments such as in the Minsters’ Officer and Protocol divisions regarding public engagements and State visits.
Constant contact with Officials in International Governments and Organisations when working on joint events, for example the European Union and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Briefing
Prepared replies for current issues for use during media appearances and distributed them to the Taoiseach and all Ministers.
Prepared research and the PR itinerary and also arranged logistics for Department Officials and Political Correspondents in advance of them travelling with the Taoiseach, for example for the World Economic Forum at Davos.
Media Relations
Drafted and issued Government Statements and issued Press Releases on behalf of the Taoiseach. Then published online.
Collated the weekly public engagements from all the Ministers’ diaries and issued them to all media.
Liaised with the Speechwriting Unit and the Taoiseach’s Office. Checked final version for errors. Issued to relevant media. Then published online.
Collated interview requests and media appearances and assigned them to colleagues to check availability of the Taoiseach or rostered Minister and follow up.
Dealt with media queries. Requested information for reply from Department Officials.
Managed all Government Press Centre bookings. Ensured technical and catering teams were on hand. Ensured correct graphics and nameplates were on display. Ensured associated documentation was copied for journalists and ready to be published online. Precision planning and coordination were essential, particularly for example, on Budget Day, where it is a day of back-to-back press conferences.
Issued invitations to the media for announcements, photo-calls and press conferences.
Accredited media for large scale events, for example, Presidential Inauguration or North South Ministerial Council. Arranged press pools with colleagues where space was an issue at event locations.
Managed media lists and integrated digital media contacts.
Briefed and assisted international media on large scale events, such as State Visits, and on issues where Ireland were on a global stage, such as St. Patrick’s Day travel, and on issues that involved other governments and organisations, for example the Economic Adjustment Programme for Ireland.
Media organisations included: Bloomberg, Dow Jones, The Wall Street Journal, CNBC, Cable News Network, The Guardian, NHK Japan, AFP, Daily Telegraph, NRK Norway, Le Figaro, PA, Mega TV, Deutsche Welle TV, Sky News, ARD German Radio, BBC News, Euronews, ABC News Australia, RT, France 24, Financial Times.
Media Monitoring
Monitored political programming and created transcripts when required, in both English and in Irish.
Checked online news and social media for mentions of the Taoiseach and Ministers. Identified potential issues and notified the relevant Departments.
Digital
Managed the most dynamic parts of the Department’s website: ‘Homepage’. ‘News’, ‘Images’, ‘Media’ and ‘Publications’.
Co-led the digital team and oversaw the merrionstreet.ie project. Development and executed digital marketing initiatives for the Government. Launched the Government on social media.