Professional Services
We are a team of senior, seasoned professionals with at least 20 years of experience on the full range of strategic communications issues, including employer brand, PR, social media training, content and thought leadership creation, digital, client relationship training, rebrands, crisis communications, media training, award writing and bids and proposals.
In addition to our Big Four firm communications experience with PwC and KPMG, our team members have led impactful communications campaigns across a range of professional services firms, including PKF, Mazars, Albert Goodman, and RSM.
Katherine is an experienced, skilled and enthusiastic PR and communications professional with 20 years of experience promoting and protecting some of the world’s biggest brands. Katherine spent a decade at PwC leading PR for industries and issues including audit, Brexit, financial services and FinTech, legal, business recovery, third sector, public sector and economics. She also led PwC’s regional PR team for a number of years.
Katherine also ran her own successful PR business working with clients in industries spanning from professional services and insurance, to financial crime and sustainable fashion. Clients included Top 10 professional services firm Azets, RUSI’s Centre for Financial Crime and Security Studies and insurance platform provider EIS Group.
Katherine works closely with clients on PR and media strategy planning and implementation, message and narrative development, media relations and press office management, raising issue expert profile, thought leadership and research development, ESG communications and messaging and crisis communications.
Deborah is a senior PR specialist with more than 20 years of experience in professional services PR, holding senior communications roles at global law and accounting firms.
Deborah started out as a journalist in Kenya and then as a solicitor at Clifford Chance. She then built a 20 year career in professional services PR holding senior PR and Communications roles at global law and accounting firms such as Dentons, Clyde & Co, Bristows, and RSM.
Deborah dramatically transforms profile-raising strategy and results for her clients, delivering exceptional broadsheet and broadcast media coverage.
She has experience across all practice areas as well as in executive profiling. Deborah also spent five years working in financial services PR, working towards financial inclusion in Africa.
Persuasive and influential, she advises leadership on communication strategy and reputation management, crisis communications, Litigation PR and thought leadership.
Zoe has over 20 years of’ PR and communications experience. This has mainly spanned across the finance and professional services community, where she worked in The Royal Bank of Scotland’s London press office for 11 years.
Since then she has worked with other high street banks, top-50 accountancy firms such as Albert Goodman and Mazars, award-winning lawyers and SMEs across the UK to devise proactive communication strategies that deliver industry-led results in regional, trade and national press.
Through this approach Zoe has successfully gained many column inches, arranged media interviews and podcasts with dedicated spokespeople, created engaging thought-leadership articles and identified editorial features in B2B magazines that warrant expert commentary from CEOs and top-tier management.
Katherine is an experienced, skilled and enthusiastic PR and communications professional with 20 years of experience promoting and protecting some of the world’s biggest brands. Katherine spent a decade at PwC leading PR for industries and issues including audit, Brexit, financial services and FinTech, legal, business recovery, third sector, public sector and economics. She also led PwC’s regional PR team for a number of years.
Katherine has also worked with clients in industries spanning from professional services and insurance, to financial crime and sustainable fashion. Clients included Top 10 professional services firm Azets, RUSI’s Centre for Financial Crime and Security Studies and insurance platform provider EIS Group.
Katherine works closely with clients on PR and media strategy planning and implementation, message and narrative development, media relations and press office management, raising issue expert profile, thought leadership and research development, ESG communications and messaging and crisis communications.
Deborah is a senior PR specialist with more than 20 years of experience in professional services PR, holding senior communications roles at global law and accounting firms.
Deborah started out as a journalist in Kenya and then as a solicitor at Clifford Chance. She then built a 20 year career in professional services PR holding senior PR and Communications roles at global law and accounting firms such as Dentons, Clyde & Co, Bristows, and RSM.
Deborah dramatically transforms profile-raising strategy and results for her clients, delivering exceptional broadsheet and broadcast media coverage.
She has experience across all practice areas as well as in executive profiling. Deborah also spent five years working in financial services PR, working towards financial inclusion in Africa.
Persuasive and influential, she advises leadership on communication strategy and reputation management, crisis communications, Litigation PR and thought leadership.
Zoe has over 20 years of’ PR and communications experience. This has mainly spanned across the finance and professional services community, where she worked in The Royal Bank of Scotland’s London press office for 11 years.
Since then she has worked with other high street banks, top-50 accountancy firms such as Albert Goodman and Mazars, award-winning lawyers and SMEs across the UK to devise proactive communication strategies that deliver industry-led results in regional, trade and national press.
Through this approach Zoe has successfully gained many column inches, arranged media interviews and podcasts with dedicated spokespeople, created engaging thought-leadership articles and identified editorial features in B2B magazines that warrant expert commentary from CEOs and top-tier management.
Case Studies and Testimonials
PwC
During Katherine’s 10 years in several PR leadership positions at PwC, she worked with senior partners and marketing colleagues at the firm on a daily basis to develop media friendly and provocative thought leadership and media commentary in order to position PwC as a leading commentator. For example, she created and led on a project with PwC’s macroeconomics analysts to create thought leadership on the impact of the financial services sector across UK regions and other industries in terms of GDP and employment in order to influence public opinion and key policymakers. The result was widespread coverage across all UK national print and broadcast media, as well as reference to our work in a speech delivered to the City by the Head of the Financial Conduct Authority. During her time leading PR for industries and issues including audit, Brexit, financial services and FinTech, legal, business recovery, third sector, public sector and economics, PwC was consistently profiled in national, international and broadcast media and always maintained their leading share of voice and audience reach position against their competitors.
Katherine is one of the most talented PR professionals I’ve worked with and she’s been my go-to PR advisor for almost a decade. As a self-proclaimed ‘dream-team’ we worked across public sector and financial services to grow our accounting and consulting practices at PwC. Katherine secured coverage that built our brand in new markets and created new business opportunities. She’s positive, creative and above all really knows what will land in the media. This woman knows her stuff and will be an asset to any client!
Azets
Katherine Howbrook led a major PR function review for Azets, a PE-backed Top 10 accountancy firm (according to Accountancy Age rankings) , developed their PR strategy, implemented it and put in place a long-term team to support the firm’s ambition to have a strong, results-driven and robust internal PR function, designed to support their strategic priorities. Following intensive M&A activity to support their growth by acquisition strategy, all of the firm’s brands were brought together under one and is now a Top 10 accountancy firm and the largest professional services and accountancy firm for SMEs with around 94,000 SME clients across the UK and the Nordics and over 165 offices (predominantly in the UK and several across the Nordics).
Katherine’s PR function review, strategy and implementation led to improved, timely and effective communications to target audiences via the media in line with the firm’s business strategy: “To build and maintain our position as the leading professional services firm for SMEs.” In the time that Katherine worked with the firm, they went from having occasional media profile in accountancy press to weekly national coverage (including a weekly column in The Times aimed at SME businesses and entrepreneurs) regular accountancy trade media coverage, and daily regional coverage in their priority UK regions and cities, including London and the South East.
Albert Goodman
Zoe led the PR activity for Albert Goodman for six years to raise their profile as the leading accountancy firm in the South West. Albert Goodman’s team often appeared in The Somerset County Gazette, Accountancy Daily, Financial Planning, Money Marketing, Business Leader and South West Insider to talk about promotions, new starters, end of year results, predictions for the accountancy sector and general thought leadership pieces around tax, insolvencies and leadership, and promoting the firm’s B-Corp status.
The Budget always proved a great opportunity to showcase their more senior tax partners giving them a chance to comment in the media, as well as discussing what the budget means for SMEs on local broadcast prime time with BBC Radio Somerset and podcasts with Accounting Web.
Through regularly keeping on top of the news agenda and bringing newsjacking opportunities Albert Goodman, the team and their expertise were regularly showcased in the media positioning them as the go-to experts.
Zoe has great contacts within the media and an eye for a good story. Her writing is concise and creative and her feedback on what is “newsworthy” is extremely useful.
RSM Tenon
During her time at RSM Tenon as PR and Communications Director, Deborah Ross developed the RSM Tenon PR Strategy. Deborah proactively used the news agenda and research-based PR to generate national coverage in top-tier outlets including the Financial Times, The Times, The Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian, The Observer, City AM, The Evening Standard, The Financial Mail, The Wall Street Journal and BBC Radio Five Live, on high profile media events such as The Autumn Statement; the Finance Bill; HMV in administration; The Budget; decline in personal bankruptcies; Offshore trusts; Thought Leadership on UK start-ups; and the rise in corporate insolvencies. Deborah led award submissions resulting in RSM Tenon winning first place as Training Team of the Year at the British Accountancy Awards, and second place as SME Adviser of the Year at the FD’s Excellence Awards. Skilled in crisis communications, Deborah also helped mitigate negative press coverage on issues including financial results, partner exits, redundancies, RSM Tenon in administration and the Baker Tilly takeover.
Despite not having actually met Deborah (we are too busy making things happen rather than sitting in meetings for the sake of it! Very Deborah – all contact is about getting things done) I quickly established an excellent rapport. Deborah provided several excellent leads resulting in conversations between me and journalists several of which have led to great coverage. Deborah always shares her ideas and will add her weight to a recommendation. I very much value what Deborah brought to my role
Deborah knows her way around the professional media circuit and has successfully profiled tax expertise for the benefit of RSM Tenon and Baker Tilly. Her tenacity at harnessing opportunity is second to none and combines well with her enthusiasm and dedication.
PKF
During a time of leadership change at PKF International, MD Communications supported the newly created communications team with ongoing content creation and social media strategy over a two-year period. We also assisted with ad hoc enquiries around digital issues, as well as helping out the member firms with social media guidance. For the majority of this period, MD Comms ran PKF’s main social media channels over three platforms.
The results from this were significant: PKF received a 45% increase in followers on LinkedIn, a 75% increase in content posted online and a 26% increase in business enquiries coming through the website. All of this was achieved in under 12 months. A strong upwards trajectory in impressions and engagement across every channel was seen for the remainder of the time working with PKF, when a phased handover with the new social media manager was undertaken to embed the good practices that had been put in place.
During my time at PKF, MD Communications worked with my new marketing team on a retainer basis following a full tendering process. The results from this collaboration were significant, with a 26% increase in business enquiries coming through the PKF.com website. All of this was achieved in under 12 months.