The pathway
How you actually get there, here
How you become one varies far more by country than what one does. This is the UK route. Most people take one of these ways in; the right one depends on where you're starting from.
- 1
Head of Corporate Communications (Large Enterprise)
3-5 years in a similar roleSkills to master
- Transitioning from managing broad corporate comms to specialising in crisis, developing deeper expertise in risk assessment, and building strong relationships with legal/regulatory teams.
You're ready to move on when
- Successfully led communications for at least 3-5 major corporate incidents.
- Managed a team of 10+ communications professionals.
- Regularly presented to and influenced senior leadership (VP/SVP level).
- 2
Director of Public Affairs / Government Relations (Global)
4-6 years in a similar roleSkills to master
- Shifting from external lobbying/policy to internal crisis preparedness, understanding the media landscape more deeply, and integrating regulatory insights into proactive crisis planning.
You're ready to move on when
- Proven ability to navigate complex regulatory environments and manage sensitive external relationships.
- Experience advising executives on politically charged issues.
- Demonstrated ability to anticipate and mitigate policy-related risks.
- 3
Senior Partner / Practice Lead (Crisis PR Agency)
5-7 years at a senior agency levelSkills to master
- Moving from client-side consulting to in-house leadership, building an internal function, and managing internal politics/resource allocation. You'll need to adapt from advising multiple clients to owning one company's entire strategy.
You're ready to move on when
- Successfully led crisis engagements for multiple blue-chip clients.
- Managed significant client accounts and large project teams.
- Developed strong strategic recommendations for diverse industries.