The PR Glass Ceiling Keeps Most Women Out of Leadership Roles. Talia Beckett Davis is Working to Change That.
For more than a decade, Talia Beckett Davis has blazed a trail for women in the Canadian PR industry and here in the states. She’s the owner of Pink Pearl PR — which works with luxury brands targeting female consumers — and FEMpreneur, an agency helping female entrepreneurs thrive through personalized coaching. If that isn’t enough, Talia is also the founder of The Organization of Canadian Women in PR and its cross-border cousin, The Organization of American Women in PR.
Talia is passionate about improving opportunities for women throughout the PR industry, which shines through during a lively discussion with host Amy Rosenberg in this episode of the PR Talk Podcast.
Combatting the Gender Gap in PR
Amy and Talia kick off their conversation by talking about the challenges women face in the PR industry. Although women hold the majority of PR jobs, they don’t reach leadership roles as often as men do. And as Talia’s research reveals, women in the PR industry are also frequently paid less than men for the same kind of work.
The reasons for this disparity are complex. As Amy and Talia note, women are socialized to care for the needs of others ahead of their own. While this approach works well in client relationships, it doesn’t help women advocate for themselves as they advance their careers.
Women in the industry also didn’t have a dedicated professional organization, focused solely on women in PR, they could turn to for support as they combatted these gender inequities. Talia believes women are often more comfortable discussing issues like managing family obligations, personal development and career aspirations when surrounded by other women. Without that support system in place, women in the industry were at a real disadvantage.
With those needs in mind, Talia moved to create opportunities for women in PR to connect in ways they never could before.
Women Supporting Women
In 2016, Talia launched The Organization of Canadian Women in PR with an advisory board and three local chapters. The group found immediate success, so Talia shifted her attention to the needs of Women in PR throughout North America. A year later, she launched The Organization of American Women in PR with an event held in Times Square. Both organizations have been growing ever since.
The organizations exist to support women in PR through live and online career-development opportunities. After conducting research, Talia learned that 26% of women in PR said they weren’t confident about asking for raises and promotions. That compares with only 13% of men who felt the same way. Talia’s organizations are fighting this trend by providing courses on topics like how to build confidence, how to get paid what you’re worth, how to start a consultancy and how to get more clients.
The organizations also hold online challenges that aim to propel women into positions of leadership with daily learning and action-items. Along the way, the two groups create powerful communities women can access as they navigate and succeed in every phase of their PR careers.
More From Talia
Listen to the entire episode to hear more from Talia and Amy’s discussion, including insight on what it’s like balancing work with motherhood, as well as Talia’s tips for maximizing efficiency amid a busy life. You can also subscribe to the PR Talk Podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play and Spotify to hear insight from a host of industry leaders, all-stars and friends.
You can also find more from Talia Beckett Davis on the web. In addition to her work running multiple agencies and two successful professional organizations, Talia still somehow finds the time to write. She’s the author of three ebooks, which are all available for download from womeinpr.com. Talia also curates a PR job board which is accessible online and filled with great opportunities for women throughout North America.
About the guest: Talia Beckett Davis
Talia Beckett Davis is the Founder of Canadian Women in Public Relations and American Women in Public Relations (Women in PR North America), a networking organization that brings together senior PR and media practitioners across the Americas. Talia is the Owner and Managing Director of Pink Pearl PR, an agency that specializes in baby, kids and women’s lifestyle products. She is the host of the Fempreneur Podcast and creator of the online coaching platform Fempreneur.com In addition, Talia is the Vice President of Communications at RE Royalties, a company that finances renewable energy projects. She serves as a judge for the Stevie Awards for Women in Business, PR and marketing awards category.
Talia has worked with some of the largest brands in North America to help them get featured in high profile media outlets. NASDAQ recognized her as a PR Influencer, and PR Week highlighted how she is helping women in the PR field succeed.
Talia has a Master’s Degree in International Relations from the University of London, England, a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications from Royal Roads University and a Marketing Management Diploma from Kwantlen Polytechnic University. She also spent one year living and studying abroad in Finland at Helsinki Metropolia University.
Connect and follow Talia on social media:
This episode of PR Talk is brought to you by PRSA Oregon
Throughout Oregon and Southwest Washington, PRSA provides members with networking, mentorship, skill building and professional development opportunities – whether you are a new professional fresh out of college or a skilled expert with 20 years in the industry. Check out PRSAoregon.org for more information on how membership can help you grow and connect.
