The Public Affairs Engine

A project dedicated to raising the bar in Public Affairs.
Find hot takes, long posts and books by Anders Kopp here 👇🏻

[The Public Affairs Engine @ThePAEngine]

Public Affairs professionals struggle to legitimize their work & show they contribute to the business objectives.

Based on +500 conversations The Public Affairs Engine is a how-to-guide on how to build & turn the #publicaffairs function into a vital engine for your organisation

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

New episode of the Persuaders Podcast!

Is the traditional perception of Public Affairs outdated?

The guest on this episode is the "lobby-professor", Arco Timmermans, Public Affairs researcher, writer, and speaker.

Together we look under the hood of Public Affairs, and among other things talk about:

🎙️Cultural shifts and the meaning of polarization in the public and political debate

🎙️Why businesses cannot stay in reactive mode – and they will lose to the proactive

🎙️Medias negativity bias towards lobbying

🎙️Why there aren't that many national Public Affairs associations

🎙️Does the DNA of PA make it impossible to create more transparency and thereby openness to what do and can do?

🎙️How do we speak the language of the organization? Should we even learn it?

🎙️The lack of resources spend on Public Affairs education and training

From Plato over Machiavelli and into the future, we discuss the state of Public Affairs today.

Link to the episode on Apple podcast:
👇🏻
https://t.co/To4GUkYiHq

#publicaffairs #lobbyism

[Tommy Goodwin @tommygoodwin]

Always a tremendous #publicaffairs resource!

[The Public Affairs Engine @ThePAEngine]

New initiative if you are looking for a new job or hiring in #publicaffairs in the Nordics 👇

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

*The Public Affairs job market in the Nordics*

I cover the Nordics closely and talk to PA pros in these markets every week and thereby get a lot of fresh insights, so I thought it might be interesting to do quarterly updates on the job market for Public Affairs pros.

The blog now also gets thousands of views each month, so perhaps it can help some readers, who might be thinking about moving.

Below are some of the areas you can get updated on in this first quarterly update:

🔁 Public Affairs salaries in the Nordics

🔁 What elections mean for candidates (and employers)

🔁 The possible declining status of political advisors from parties and ministeries

🔁 Public Affairs maturity now attracts candidates

🔁 Brussels experience vs. national experience

🔁 Work/life balance in negotiations

🔁 Good vs. great candidates

🔁 Corporate experience > agency experience

🔁 Recruiters use of LinkedIn, and why you should be careful

🔁 Working from home is over?

Sign up for a quarterly update on the Nordic PA job market - link below.

#publicaffairs #lobbyism

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

Why do Public Affairs functions look so much alike? Part II.

In this blog, I cover:

⚡️ The characteristics of most PA functions in Europe (organisation, size, position, reporting lines, eduction etc.)

⚡️What "isomorphism" means for a PA function like the one you might sit in, and how you perhaps also are copying what others expect you to do

⚡️The phenomenon “anticipatory socialization” and how it keeps new, modern PA pros out of an organization and retains Public Affairs in a negative spiral - often seen when HR, regulatory or senior comms execs recruit PA pros alone

⚡️The problem with the lack of common educational ground in Public Affairs. And how it creates a battery of related problems

⚡️The definition challenge - "Public Affairs" as a discipline is simply interpreted in a million ways, and this causes almost every organization to define it according to their own perception, and self interest, thereby handing over the power of definition to other professions

⚡️The problem with "decoupling" in Public Affairs e.g. by re-naming a department to appear more modern like adding “Sustainability” or “CSR” or even “Public Affairs” to the title, meanwhile the organization just continues to do what it was doing all along

⚡️The problem when other professions interfere with Public Affairs e.g. with legal providing the same value as “wearing an extra pair of underpants”

Find the link to the blog series, in the comment section
#publicaffairs #lobbyism

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

I been pondering a lot about why Public Affairs functions often look so similar.

Especially as the organizations and their environments are often very different.

It seems very peculiar why these functions, should both 1) look so similar in both structure and behaviour, 2) and in people and skillsets.

I have written a bit about the term "isomorphism" before, about how organizations imitate each other for no (meaningful) reason.

But in this blogpost I go much deeper on the subject. Actually so deep, that this is (another) blog-post in two parts.

Link is in the comments 👇

#publicaffairs #lobbyism #management #organization

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

6 strategies for enhancing the position of the Public Affairs function...

Insights from a recent PA team workshop and group exercise 👇

#publicaffairs #lobbyism #management #performance

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

Why do organizations establish Public Affairs functions?

I have observed several times the past 5 years that PA functions, or the composition of PA teams, are created more based on social expectations or institutional pressure, rather than as a part of a corporate strategy or at least born with a clear plan for the function and the people in it (so they don't feel lost...).

This can easily lead to the establishment of Public Affairs functions that aren't really Public Affairs functions *or* functions that are not integrated in neither the department or the organization at large. And this will lead to underperformance and maybe more critical: frustrated and insecure PA colleagues, that begin to look for new jobs.

Isomorphism and decoupling are terms which all PA pros should be familiar with.

More about these interesting phenomenons from sociology as well as the latest developments from the world of Public Affairs. Link in the comments.

#publicaffairs #lobbyism #management #performance

[The Public Affairs Engine @ThePAEngine]

Link to download: https://t.co/Jj3qSLIO4w

[The Public Affairs Engine @ThePAEngine]

Public Affairs professionals struggle to legitimize their work & show they contribute to the business objectives.

Based on +500 conversations The Public Affairs Engine is a how-to-guide on how to build & turn the #publicaffairs function into a vital engine for your organisation

[The Public Affairs Engine @ThePAEngine]

New podcast out: Public Affairs - from a firefighter to a business enabler?

#publicaffairs #lobbyism

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

Public Affairs - from a firefighter to a business enabler? 🤔

This is the topic of this brand new episode of the Persuaders Podcast - the only podcast only about Public Affairs...

To explore this topic, I have invited Jacob Lund Nielsen in to the studio. Jacob has a long and impressive career in Brussels especially known for founding Cabinet DN, his time at Teneo as well as Rud Pedersen.

In the podcast we discuss:

🎙️Why Public Affairs is stuck in some organisations - and what are the signs?

🎙️Being typecast - born out crisis - why does this become a problem?

🎙️The lack of business skills in Public Affairs - what are the consequences?

🎙️How has Public Affairs evolved as a function (and discipline) in organizations?Including the relationship to Comms -

🎙️How can Public Affairs become a business enabler? What happens if it doesn't?

🎙️KPIs and measuring - a necessary evil to earn legitimacy?

Hope you will enjoy the episode as much as we did recording it - as you can tell.

Link to episode in the comments👇🏻

#publicaffairs #lobbyism #management #performance

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

In my latest blog I write about two structural challenges in Public Affairs:

🚧 The majority of people working in Public Affairs are self-taught. This means their approach to PA is formed by whoever trained them or introduced them to PA in their first jobs - this is very random

🚧 There aren’t any legitimate Public Affairs courses in Europe or - even better - certifications, which can be assessed and assure the employer about the skill-set

A client of mine compared the recruitment of PA pros with recruiting Change (Project) Managers/Controllers. When he did, they almost always required the candidate to hold a certification in Change Management e.g. Prosci/ADKAR/CCMP or the like, depending on the role.

Could you imagine something like this in Public Affairs? Not really, right? But why not?

More on the blog - link in comments
#publicaffairs

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

Does your Public Affairs team seem stuck? Do you feel your PA team should work more proactively and long term, not just put out fires or chase headlines?

Then here is a few perspectives that might help you understand why this happens, and what can be done about it.

Often PA teams that feel stuck point to lack of resources or increasingly tough external environments.

But the root cause is actually often found internally - and your organizational design might actually keep forming the individual behavior for the past, not the future.

More about this topic on the blog - link in the comments.

#publicaffairs #changemanagement #management

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

A few days ago, I talked to a VP of Communications, Marketing & Public Affairs. He had recently taken over the responsibility for the Public Affairs function, but his own expertise was from a background in journalism and communications.

Now, a new leadership challenge had arrived: How could he track the performance of the PA team?

So based on the insights gathered from 93 qualitative interviews in the Public Affairs Manager Survey 2025, I gave him a few pointers on how to approach this challenge.

Link to blog in the comments.

#publicaffairs #communication #Management

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

Today, exactly 4 years since I published my book, "The Public Affairs Engine", I am proud to publish The Public Affairs Manager Survey 2025. 📖

Insights, case studies, hot takes and perspectives on new approaches to Public Affairs based on 93 qualitative interviews with Public Affairs Professionals from 27 countries in Europe

Download it for free via 👇🏻

https://t.co/8Cpv6JIWtB

#publicaffairs

[The Public Affairs Engine @ThePAEngine]

If you are the slightest interested in #publicaffairs then you should have a look at this 👇

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

Today, exactly 4 years since I published my book, "The Public Affairs Engine", I am proud to publish The Public Affairs Manager Survey 2025. 📖

Insights, case studies, hot takes and perspectives on new approaches to Public Affairs based on 93 qualitative interviews with Public Affairs Professionals from 27 countries in Europe

Download it for free via 👇🏻

https://t.co/8Cpv6JIWtB

#publicaffairs

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

New episode of the Persuaders Podcast is out! The only podcast only about Public Affairs...

This time we dive into one of the hottest and most hyped trends in our field: AI and lobbyism.

My guest is @PeterAagaard7, Associate Professor at @roskildeuni. 

Peter has recently published an essay called "Digital lobbying 2.0," about AI and lobbyism, as a part of the Danish Democracy and Power Study -
@Magtudredningen.

In the episode we cover subjects & questions like:

🤖 Is AI "the weapon of the minority"? Or have we heard this before?

🤖 The AI-hype and similarities with the SoMe-era

🤖 What will AI mean for the politicians on the receiving end of these AI-tools/functions?

🤖 Which skills will be needed to succeed in Public Affairs in the future if AI changes the playing field?

🤖 My (contrarian) take on AI - or digital innovation - and Public Affairs

👇
https://t.co/91vD9F6ykJ

#publicaffairs
#dkpol

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

A big challenge in #publicaffairs : The Public Affairs functions seems decoupled from the rest of the organisation, a pariah.

The challenge becomes clear when you create a Public Affairs function, that is designed for following the developments in a fast moving, globalized and dynamic world, and place this function in an organisation designed for another decade (or century).

Like the figure - inspired by Kotter - shows, this is how the opportunity gap is created. Where you miss opportunities because the Public Affairs functions just works and acts differently than the rest of the organisation.

The objective is to close the opportunity gap so the the organisation is able to adapt and act proactively to changes in society (or markets). This can be achieved by creating or stimulating a Public Affairs Culture.

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

There is an unhealthy, anachronistic "network tunnel vision" in Public Affairs.

Network has by many been seen as the most important currency for success in Public Affairs. But after interviewing more than 500 PA pros across Europe, I don't think that this is true - at least not any more.

Today, what is more required is an understanding of how organisations work, which processes are in place and what motivates stakeholders - internal & external - to work together (incentives).

So this week I have launched my new venture at https://t.co/aVnJk3Bm33 - a Public Affairs Management Consultancy. Focusing on these new challenges in Public Affairs & how to approach them.

#publicaffairs
#creatingapaculture

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

New episode of the Persuaders Podcast is out!

This time we talk to Stefan Pinter, Head of Public Policy EMEA at Suzano, about some of the biggest and hardest challenges in Public Affairs today:

Delivering value and building a Public Affairs function from scratch!

#publicaffairs

@ThePAEngine
@Datalobbyism

Link in the comments 👇

[The Public Affairs Engine @ThePAEngine]

New episode of the Persuaders Podcast is out - the only podcast for Public Affairs pros 🙌

#publicaffairs

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

New episode of the Persuaders Podcast is out!

This time we talk to Stefan Pinter, Head of Public Policy EMEA at Suzano, about some of the biggest and hardest challenges in Public Affairs today:

Delivering value and building a Public Affairs function from scratch!

#publicaffairs

@ThePAEngine
@Datalobbyism

Link in the comments 👇

[Anders Kopp @Anderskopp]

How do you become one of Brussels most influential people?

In the latest episode of The Persuaders Podcast I talk to Thea Utoft Høj Jensen, Senior Managing Director at @FTIconsultingEU.

In 2023 Thea was recognized as one of the 40 top influencers in Brussels by Politico.

In the first half of this episode we get Theas views on these questions, and we learn more about her way to becoming one of the most influential people in Brussels.

In the second half, we talk about the political year ahead of us in 2024 with many political transitions with EU elections, new presidency, US elections etc. E.g. Thea estimates that up to 60% of the MEPs will be new after the elections. So what will happen in Brussels in the coming quarters?

And how can or should you prepare as a Public Affairs professional?

Tune in and find out - Thea and I had a blast in this episode!

Link in the comments 👇

#publicaffairs
@ThePAEngine
@Datalobbyism