Pros
In terms of press relations and corporate communication strategy, I ended up learning a lot thanks to my direct and senior colleagues. They supported me with techniques, headlines and leads that would work for different types of clients. The colleagues and team spirit of the company were also a real compensation for the management who was genuinely impossible to work with.
Cons
I joined ESCAL consulting being promised a stimulating and truly international work experience. My expectations were lowered faster than one can say "press release". I was promised to work with international clients, notably in the US, but the work processes and management support were unsettling. I was literally put in front of a phone that didn't work and told: "go ahead". There was no strategy in place to cater to the US market, the particular need of the audience and journalists there. Besides the fact that the work material was genuinely outdated, if not broken, the pressure for results rose by the day, while I was expected to work non-remunerated extra hours to cope with the time difference. Initially, I was recruited as Communications assistant, but over the first six months, an essential part of my daily tasks consisted in running errands (buying stamps, buying paper for the printer, …), taking out the trash, with the perks of fixing the flush and unclogging the toilet. Until today I can't shake the feeling that my inexperience and willingness to please were exploited here, and I can encourage applicants to set clear boundaries of what you expect to do and to not do working at ESCAL. The management openly expected work techniques I felt personally uncomfortable with, such as dispatching press releases to thousands of contacts or following up with contacts who had made it clear they weren't interested in a topic. The directors were oddly ignorant of the communications profession, more appearance than substance. If you need a point of entry to a career in communications, this agency can be a start. But don't expect anything more than a foot in the door.
