Focus on creating long-term value & proliferate your business ethically: Ayushi Arora

Celebrating the contributions of women in the PR sector, exchange4media PR & Corp Comm is running a 'Women Achievers Series'. It features the journey, success and achievements of some of the top women leaders from the Public Relations and Corporate Communications fraternity.

Today’s series features  Ayushi Arora, CEO and Founder, Media Corridors, who believes that the most significant element that changed post the COVID-19 pandemic, not only in the field of PR but industries worldwide, was ‘communication’.

Excerpts from the interview:

Now that the industry is opening up workplaces and resuming operations from the office, what are the initiatives, measures and precautions that should be adapted/ taken to ensure a smooth transition?

Work from home (WFH) has been our standard working model since March 2020. We did resume to an alternate day working model in 2021 until the Delta variant crept in. What kept us afloat in the industry then, in the peak phase, and even now, is our work structure and culture. Owing to the WFH policy at Media Corridors, being coupled with the right software to document, monitor and analyse our work, month-on-month training with industry leaders and wellness sessions, with particular emphasis on mental health. Our discipline and perseverance have continued to take forward our belief in effective communication to all the brands that have put their trust in us.

The prospect of returning to workplaces is looking up now owing to rising vaccination numbers and a decline in COVID-19 cases. While we are on a work-from-home model at the moment, we shall resume our multi-city hybrid work model in the second quarter of this year. Currently, we are assisting our employees in a phased and safe return to work and have already set guidelines for a Hybrid-Return-to-Office structure. We are also assessing multiple city workplace-level risks and implementing preventive and protective measures according to a hierarchy of controls to ensure that the work is not negatively impacted.

How did you strike a balance between office work and household duties during the last 20 months with everyone trying to adjust to the hybrid working model?

When you run a business, you have two families to take care of - one at home and the other at work. My focus was only on proper planning and ensuring complete clarity of everyone’s responsibilities so that nothing goes unattended. While planning is one aspect of having a balanced personal and professional life, so is sharing responsibilities. There is no shame in asking for help; it does wonders - at home and at work. Additionally, keep a me-time to unwind and relax.

What helped me strike this balance was proper planning, the delegation of important tasks as per authorities and empowering people with decision making so that work is always done right.

Women have been carving a niche for themselves and paving the way in the communications industry for the next generation of women leaders to follow. Tell us about your achievements and your contribution to the fraternity.

With full-fledged clarity about my goals and passion at the age of 26, I carved a niche in the business world as a consultant and, with time, had Media Corridors’ team headquartered in New Delhi and branches in Gurugram and Bengaluru. I started as a one-woman army in the field of communications and was focussed on breaking through large conglomerates.

As I embrace motherhood alongside being a full-time woman entrepreneur, life taught me to don many hats. Recently I got selected for a prestigious management programme of IIM Bangalore, which NSRCEL and Goldman Sachs fully sponsored. I am also working with some phenomenal women leaders who are leading the tech wave and many others who are working for social causes.

Have you ever come up with any major challenges throughout your professional journey or as a founder of a PR Agency? And how did you overcome them?

Doing something for the greater good requires an enormous amount of effort. Sometimes you might even end up making mistakes. Having said that, however, what I have learnt over the years, is that the ability to mobilise people and keep a ‘Never Give Up’ attitude helps in turning any situation around. Keeping the employees secure and content with their requirements, especially when things got tough, has helped me create a team of PR professionals who are stronger and more focussed than ever! Hence, changing goals to milestones is going to continue at Media Corridors.

The governing power of any leading industry is dominated by young professionals. With that idea in mind, what advice would you like to give the young generation?

Focus on creating long-term value and proliferate your business ethically, instead of short-term and short-lived gains. The rush is real and it’s visible! While it may be tempting to quickly earn more, buy new things and be ahead of everyone and everything at once, but the idea that the younger generation needs to get aligned with is to experience more and take everything at their own pace and not the pace the world decides. Exploring your interests goes a long way and help you turn into an intelligent and consummate self-possessed professional.