Fuse - The PR, Marketing and Communications Podcast

Six Plays for Winning in 2026: Strategy, AI & Compliance for Agencies and Brands

What separates a fast‑growing agency or high‑performing marketing team from the rest in 2026? According to strategist James Thomlinson (Sprint Partners), the answer is simple: strategy, and specifically six “plays” that will define which agencies and brands win.In this episode of PRCA Fuse, we dive into:Why the industry feels like “more, more, more”How to avoid strategic paralysis and “death by a thousand cuts”The six plays for agencies in 2026The six plays for brands, including AI, IP and marketing complianceHow AI, LLMs and agentic workflows are already reshaping PR & commsWhy authenticity, top talent and culture still matter more than everIf you run an agency or lead an in‑house team, this is a practical guide to where to place your strategic bets over the next 12–24 months.

Youngest CEO in UK PR: Heather Blundell on Breakthrough Moments

In this episode of the PRCA Fuse Podcast, Heather Blundell, UK CEO at Grayling, breaks down how she built a standout career in agency life, while juggling leadership, motherhood, and the fight for real equity at work.We talk about:The meeting she thought would end in being fired… and instead ended with her becoming Managing Director at Weber ShandwickWhy women often don’t throw their hat in the ring and how to seize rare breakthrough momentsMoving from Edelman to Weber Shandwick to Ketchum and finally to Grayling as UK CEOModeling motherhood and leadership while living in Manchester and leading from LondonHow Grayling achieved a 0% gender pay gap and 50/50 gender representation at board and advisory levelWhy diversity of thought, background and experience is now a commercial advantage, not a box‑ticking exerciseHeather’s biggest piece of advice for people starting out in PR: put your hand up and chase the work others avoid________________________________________________________Connect:LinkedIn: Heather BlundellWebsite: www.grayling.com______________________________________________________Follow Adrian Ma on Social Media:LinkedIn: Adrian Ma - Fanclub PR | Fanclub PRWebsite: Fanclub PR_______________________________________________________Like and subscribe if you enjoyed this episode! Podcast Manager and Producer: Ike Mgbenwelu ike.mgbenwelu@prca.global LinkedIn: Ike Mgbenwelu Socials: PRCA_HQDisclaimer: Views expressed by the guest are their own and not necessarily endorsed by the Fuse podcast.

Beyond Media Relations: Sarah Waddington on Data, Risk and Storytelling

In this episode of the PRCA Fuse Podcast, our host Adrian Ma sits down with Sarah Waddington, CEO of the PRCA, to unpack that BBC Radio 4 Today Programme interview where Sir Martin Sorrell declared the end of PR, and to explore what this moment really means for the future of our industry as we transition into 2026.Sarah takes us behind the scenes of the interview and the reaction that followed, and makes a powerful case for PR’s future as strategic advisory, not “just media relations”.In this episode:We discuss:What actually happened in the Radio 4 debate with Sir Martin SorrellWhy the “PR is dead” headline misrepresents what modern PR doesStorytelling in PR vs advertising: listening, authenticity and behaviour changeWhy “flood the internet with content” is the wrong answerPR’s move into futures, foresight, data, insight and riskThe role of PR in a fragmented, politicised media landscapeWhy PR needs a single, confident narrative about its valueHow practitioners can upskill into management and strategic advisory

Hold Front Page: GEO and Generative AI Are Rewriting PR Rules

In this episode, we discussed the impact of generative AI on the PR industry, featuring Katie Earlam from 72 Point and Stuart Bruce from Purposeful Relations on their latest report findings. They highlighted that 44% of people trust AI more than the government, and 55% trust traditional media. Earned media remains the most influential input for AI, with 95% of citations coming from unpaid editorial sources. The conversation emphasised the importance of original content, relevance, and recency in PR strategies. Practical steps include frequently publishing news via earned media, auditing AI footprints, and ensuring factual information. The discussion underscored the need for PR professionals to proactively influence AI-generated content to maintain trust and accuracy.View reports:72Point and Purposeful Relations: Hold the Front Page: Traditional Media’s Influence in the Age of AIPurposeful Relations: The Impact of Generative Relations and CommunicationsOnePoll: Trust, Truth and the Algorithm

Ransomware, Reputation & Chaos: Inside the First 24 Hours of a Cyber Attack

This PRCA Fuse Podcast episode dives into what really happens when organisations are hit by a major cyber attack, from the first shocking ransomware message to the long tail of operational and reputational damage. Host Adrian Ma speaks with cyber crisis experts Joanne Gill and Jason Nisse about why cyber incidents are long-form crises, why so many crisis plans fail once email and core systems go down, and what offline readiness really looks like in practice. Drawing on real-world examples including M&S, Jaguar Land Rover, Harrods, Co-op and Asahi Breweries, they explore the risks of communication voids, the limits of cyber insurance, the importance of choosing the right spokesperson, and how realistic tabletop exercises can expose dangerous blind spots before an attack hits.