The fast-paced, friendly, and enriching environment meant it went in a blink of an eye.

It was one of the most insightful and memorable experiences of my life so far and I feel like I’m leaving feeling uplifted with new knowledge that will lead me to pursing a successful career path. So please do read on to hear more about my short but fantastic journey.

On my first day, I woke up nervous yet excited for the two weeks ahead. I headed into Birmingham, stopping for coffee on the way – Dutch courage, or perhaps I was trying to fully try out my future professional woman persona (Elle Woods inspired, of course). When I arrived, account manager, Emily, instantly put me at ease, showing me the open-plan office and introducing me to everyone. The work environment was everything I could’ve dreamed of for my first ever office experience.

I got stuck into work straight away and was set tasks across all clients, covering both PR and social media. However, one of my most memorable moments was when I sat down with account director and business development manager, Amy, where we chatted about agency vs in-house. This was something I hadn’t yet thought about and it was great to hear Amy’s advice. A standout comment she made that will stick with me for a long time was, “what sort of workplace culture do you see yourself succeeding in?”

It was at this moment that it dawned on me how important culture is in the workplace. I need an environment that is friendly and supportive, and that is exactly how I found Whistle PR to be – the whole team is friendly, supportive and definitely hard working!

At the end of our chat, we visited the roof of the iconic Fort Dunlop building, where Whistle PR’s office is. As I soaked up the sites of Birmingham and beyond, I could feel that this could be my future. Photography is my passion and whilst standing there, all I could think about was snapping the buzz of the city through my lens. This really summed up the experience for me, this was a snapshot of what’s to come for the future. This is just the start.

As the two weeks came to an end, I reflected on all the things I learnt, from professional skills to social skills. These skills will stay with me for life, I’ve gained confidence to showcase my ideas and, gained skills to stretch my ideas further.

Whistle PR has given me my first insight into the PR industry, and for that I will forever be grateful. I’ve been surrounded by talented and inspiring people, who I can only dream to be as knowledgeable as one day.

So that’s it, the two weeks are over! To the team, thank you for giving me my first taste of agency life. I couldn’t have asked for a better work experience placement.

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Lisa-caitlin Crawford is a student at the Nottingham Trent University, studying fashion. Lisa joined Whistle PR for two weeks work experience in June 2021. Whistle PR offers a range of integrated communications services including strategic consultancy, PR, social media and internal communications. For further information email info@whistlepr.co.uk or contact us here.