Maria is an Account Director in the Business Technology team. Her career in public relations for tech companies started 7 years ago when a friend told her about an internship where ‘you’ll have to talk to journalists and write about some really obscure things’ – and she hasn’t looked back ever since.
Having studied Social Anthropology at the London School of Economics and Political Science, Maria loves unpacking the human element behind every narrative, and telling stories through the eyes of the people involved in it. This allows her to break down seemingly complex tech narratives into human-led stories, in turn delivering some impactful work for the client accounts she works on.
Currently, her role involves working on the tech companies that are continuously changing the world we live in, including the likes of Google Cloud, VMware and Qlik. Being able to build and deliver on campaigns and story ideas that will define our collective outlook of the future is what makes her get out of bed every morning. Well, that and her three year old daughter.
A first generation immigrant from Pakistan, Maria is passionate about working towards inclusion in our industry. She looks forward to the day when she enters a room and is not the only one who looks and sounds like her. A room where everyone feels comfortable being their true selves, instead of having to fit into the mould of what a ‘comms professional’ should be.
Describe yourself/your background in 5 words max?
Chatty Pakistani, very loud laugh
How did you get into PR/communications?
Literally, by accident. I remember googling ‘what do people in PR do’ the day before I went to interview for my first internship. And boy, am I glad I did! Can’t imagine doing any other job now.
What do you love about your job?
I love the variety that working in an agency brings with it. No two days look the same and you’re always working on several content pieces, story ideas and campaign activations at the same time. And it only takes one breaking news story to completely upend your day! Nothing still hits the same as landing a piece of national coverage for a client. Bonus points if it has all the key messages.
What are you most proud of?
I was told in a review recently that I’m a ‘confident presenter’ – and I was probably the only one in the room who understood the significance of that statement for me. Growing up with a stutter, I was always terrified of speaking up or talking to a room full of people. It has taken a lot of work to build that self-confidence and I’m proud of how far I’ve come.
What’s been the hardest lesson to learn?
I’m a planner, and it works in my favour most days. But one lesson that’s been hard to learn is that sometimes things are just out of our control. We can plan all we want, but when something has to go wrong, it will. Not to worry though, you just pick yourself back up and plan again ?
Who are your favourite people in PR and why?
I really admire (admittedly from afar!) Sam Haq, the Director for Public Accountability, Communications and Engagement at the NHS. And its not just because she’s a successful brown woman in PR! Being a risk averse person myself, I applaud how after 16 years as news editor at ITV, Sam moved over to the ‘dark side’ as Head of News at the Ministry of Justice as the start of her career in government comms.
Doing comms for the NHS is also definitely not the easiest job – especially with the media agenda nowadays – but I admire her resilience and how she has successfully emerged as an absolute powerhouse. She was also recently ranked by PRWeek as one of the top ten in-house comms individuals in the public sector in the UK.
What skill do you think every PR/comms person has to nail?
Juggling multiple things at the same time – whether it’s campaigns, clients or crises. And still being able to walk into every room with a strategy for comms success!
What is your favourite social network and why?
This has got to be Linkedin for me, not least because it is increasingly becoming an integral part of my job. The way Linkedin brings relevant people together, creates opportunities and serves a tangible purpose is unlike any other social media platform. It’s less noise, more value.
What’s your favourite podcast and why?
Serial is my all-time favourite podcast because it’s a prime example of the impact that telling stories can have. Not only did the podcast help free Adnan Syed but completely transformed how we think about true crime.
My daily commute staple is ‘How I built this’ with Guy Raz where he interviews the world’s best-known entrepreneurs. I love it because it really highlights the humans behind the iconic brands and you really get an insight into the way they think.
Who is your favourite journalist and why?
This has got to be Zoe Kleinman, who was at the BBC for over 20 years – and was their first ever technology editor! Some of the stuff that she has done in her career is truly fascinating, including spending the night in a house full of robots and climbing the Mount Everest (virtually, in a hotel room in Las Vegas, in a VR headset). Not only is she usually one of the first people to talk about any emerging technology, she’s also incredibly honest in her coverage and focuses on the human impact of any tech trend, which I really enjoy.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given?
You’re not going to bring your best self to work every day, and that’s okay. Just make sure that you make the most of the days that you do!
Being told this honestly helped me to not only cut myself some slack on days that my mind was really too pre-occupied with ‘life stuff’, but also ensure that I’m firing on all cylinders on good days.
Biggest PR campaign fail and yay of 2024 so far?
ASICS campaign for World Mental Health Day has really stood out for me this year. The sportswear company carried out research to show that mental health starts to decline after only two hours of continuous desk-based working. And they brought it to life with Brian Cox – posed in shorts and a suit – telling viewers “I’m not the deadliest thing in the office’ before pointing at the desk in front of him and saying ‘this is’. I really loved how they tapped into the persona of Logan Roy from Succession to bring this to life and drive the message home. It was a simple campaign that tied the company’s ethos and their insight into their audience really well.
I know it’s not a PR campaign but we can’t talk about a failed 2024 campaign without talking about Joe Biden’s presidential campaign and the comms around it. Would really like to know what the strategy was behind it – to say the least.
Finally, on the D’ word… What can the sector do to encourage diversity?
I think it’s very important for leaders within the sector to have the difficult conversations. Talk about stuff that really makes you feel uncomfortable or things that you really don’t know what the right thing to do or say is. Just holding a space to have those honest conversations is enough to truly encourage and retain diversity in a workplace.
Connect with Maria Chawla on LinkedIn.
Maria was awarded a place on The Xec. Leadership Scheme for UK-based Black, Asian, Mixed Race, and Ethnic Minority PR and comms pros. She is part of the class of 2025.