The growing profile of banks' spin doctors

The value of a good spin doctor - as Brown, Cameron, Clegg et al will discover in the coming weeks - shouldn't be underestimated. Needless to say, banks are in need of a public image makeover, and demand for PR and communications professionals is on the up again.

Banks' new-found need for good publicity was illustrated by the CBI last week, which said financial services firms planned to increase their marketing and PR budgets in 2010.

Citi has also just unveiled its (allegedly) million dollar communications guru in New York City Deputy Mayor, Edward Skyler, while Goldman's PR antics have ranged from deflecting flack over bonuses to towing a distinctly humbler line.

The Financial Services Authority has also brought in former Labour spinster, Tom Kelly, as its new communications director.

One recruiter tells us that Skyler's package is "not particularly generous" for such a senior role within a large institution. However, we understand that pay for a head of PR/media in investment banking typically comes in at around 100k, plus bonus, while a head of communications in London can expect 200k plus a bonus of around 200%.

Generally, though, the last 12 months have not been particularly kind to financial PR specialists. Spring Associates, a PR executive search firm, says salaries have declined by 11.3% and as we pointed out previously, agencies have been forced to pare back headcount.

Heather McGregor, director of corporate communications executive search firm Taylor Bennett, says: "There has never been a time in the last three years when banks have not been hiring into their communications teams. However, with banks now investing more into marketing and PR, this is creating more work for agencies, which need to staff up."

While the demand for senior communications professionals within banking may have remained relatively healthy throughout last year, more mid- and junior-level staff have suffered, says Charlie Bright, consultant in the marketing communications team at Joslin Rowe.

"We've seen salary deflation and redundancies over the last year or so," he says. "But financial services firms are now looking to leverage PR to steal a march on their competitors and shout about their achievements. This has created a new appetite to hire."

"The key focus for the end of 2009 was reputation management, with senior individuals hired to create appropriate long-term plans and short- term tactics to ensure companies had a strong profile moving forward," adds Jennifer Bargrove, senior consultant at PR and corporate communications recruiters VMA Group.

"In the last few months, recruitment has been across varying levels as new strategic communications plans focus on more junior to middle management with an emphasis on less strategy and more action."