Survey shows: communications industry strongly affected by short-time work
Around two thirds of the communications agencies surveyed by LSA and BPRA have already introduced short-time working or are about to do so. One positive aspect of the crisis has been an increase in exchanges and networking within the communications industry. LSA and BPRA are also breaking new ground with an agency pool for the exchange of employee capacities.
The coronavirus crisis has had a very rapid impact on the agency landscape in Switzerland. The two leading associations of Swiss communication agencies, Leading Swiss Agencies LSA and the Association of Public Relations Agencies BPRA, have conducted a survey among their members. This shows that of the 64 member agencies that responded, 28 agencies have already sent their employees on short-time working and a further 13 agencies have applied for short-time working.
On the other hand, only a small minority of member agencies have applied for a bridging loan as a precautionary measure against liquidity bottlenecks. The loans applied for range between CHF 250,000 and CHF 500,000.
The survey shows that agencies are exposed to an extremely dynamic market environment and have to adapt quickly to economic changes. Michael Hählen, President of the LSA: "In times of crisis, communication budgets are the first to be cut, although organizations are particularly challenged to maintain a presence in difficult times. It is therefore understandable that agencies plan for the future with great caution and are quick to take appropriate measures. When companies ramp up their communication measures after the crisis, agencies have to be there for their clients from 0 to 100 again. That is a major challenge."
Exchange and networking increases
During the crisis, the desire for exchange and networking within the industry has risen sharply. The support offered by the LSA and BPRA associations has been actively taken up and a lively exchange on various facets of remote working (customer acquisition, on-boarding new employees, workshops, maintaining team motivation, etc.) and legal issues has taken place in recent weeks. For BPRA President Andreas Hugi, this is a positive development: "I am very pleased to see that cooperation within the industry has been strengthened by the current crisis. This is reflected not least in the close cooperation at association level in order to provide our members with the best possible support in this exceptional situation."
The LSA and BPRA are also launching an agency pool for the first time, which should enable member agencies to offer free capacity or obtain it from other agencies.
