@Stuart: I guess I’m glad that you haven’t had to deal with what you think is “b.s.,” however these issues have little to do with being a solo pro and/or being in house and more to do with the cultural differences between Millennials and Gen X and Boomers in the workplace.

In my other life outside of the classroom, I work solo as a consultant and have for 7 years. Even though I’m an “Xer” and not a Millennial, I have to negotiate relationships with clients and with my peers all the time. Just because you’re not at an agency does not mean you don’t have to be gracious, professional and conscientious.

@Tiffany: Thanks for your comment! It’s interesting to see how all our research plays out in different contexts.

I also appreciate Scott’s wise comment about what we call “facework” in the public relations literature: It’s important to make other people look good when you are cultivating relationships.

Often it just comes from experience and making your own way. That’s how I’ve done it, but then again I’ve never had to do to much b.s. work at an agency and have always run my own show or worked in-house.

What we have learned over the last two years from interns and entry-level staff (all former interns) has convinced me that today’s young PRos bring important insider understanding of today’s rapidly evolving communications environment. It has been our interns and young PRo staff that energized our social networking successes for clients such as Tillamook Cheese and Tree Top trim®.

Because I believe, at its core, public relations is about relationships, I see the evolution of communications offering us new and important tools for connecting and engaging people in authentic relationships.

Students who are well-prepared educationally (as have found UofO students to be) bring value beyond just their education. They also are immersed in an online, mobile network of communications foreign to many of their older colleagues. It’s where many of them have built, maintained and deepened many of their personal relationships.

Entering the workplace after college is understandably scary. Respecting what you don’t know is important for all of us, not just those fresh to the work world. But I encourage young PRos to recognize the value of what you bring to the workplace from your life lived in a digital world. With your help, we’ll all be better communicators.

The flip side of the coin is that the newbie also has a lot to offer a firm. Maybe “quiet confidence” is the best idea. Knowing you have the answer, and being willing to give it to a superior, just not in front of everyone else, out of respect. I could be off-center on this topic, hopefully this adds to the dialogue.