Meet the Committee – Sali Midjek-Conway

Age: 46
Location: Chorley, Lancashire.


What are your interests? 
I love doing yoga for my mental health and working out to feel good; my two kids keep me on my toes; eating chocolate is my vice; going for walks (usually with food and drink at the end of it!) and holidays in the sunshine. 

What sets your heart on fire? 
Being with family and friends, on a personal level.  Professionally, it’s seeing a project or campaign come to life and yield results after seeing us all pull together as a team.  Sounds simple enough but not always a given! 

How did you get into PR? 
Technically I started in marketing.  During my career I have enjoyed writing and telling stories as part of the marketing mix to enhance people’s perceptions of organisations and products I have worked with.  In the latter half of my career, I undertook the CIPR Professional Diploma in PR and this totally transformed my perceptions of PR and communications and the different skillset required.  Since then, it has really transformed my approach in how I write but also how I perform as an advisor and leader. 

What do you love most about PR? 
Having a direct connection with an audience.  Even before the digital age, it remains one of the main channels that has the ability to change a person’s behaviour or perception quickly. 

What PR campaign or project are you particularly proud of? 
More of a personal project - a school friend decided to make and open her own chocolate shop a few years ago.  It was the quintessential dream!  She didn’t have a budget and was opening just before Christmas.  She had an amazing backstory that I knew would appeal to journalists and public alike.  The release I wrote was picked up so well, the local NW TV news filmed her and she had a queue out of the door for days!  That was an amazing feeling to have contributed to that. 

If you weren’t in PR, what could you see yourself doing? 
I did want to travel using/speaking different languages when I was at school so probably something like a travel writer would have been a great alternative. 

Describe your role in the committee and what it involves? 
I am the Chair of our wonderful NW group.  My role is to chair and lead on our group’s strategy and activities, represent our regional members at national CIPR meetings and generally be accountable for what we deliver together.

What do you think makes this committee unique? 
Not sure if it is unique, but we are quite a large disparate region and we have been quite large in the number of volunteers we’ve been able to attract.  This means we have been able to represent most parts of the North West via our committee members to allow us to deliver different and varied activities.  However, more volunteers are always welcome! 

What piece of advice would you give to someone just starting out in PR? 
Volunteering is a huge way of expanding your horizons professionally as well as personally.  So wherever there are opportunities to volunteer to support new projects and campaigns, contribute to working groups or policies, put your hand up.  You’ll learn so much and build brilliant networks. 

What’s your favourite way to unwind after a busy day? 
Probably a quiet evening where a delicious dinner is prepared so I don’t have to cook, served with a glass of wine and finished off with something enthralling on TV and a cup of tea plus chocolate.  It’s the simple pleasures in life!