ABSTRACT
The McKinsey Global Institute surveyed the "big data" environment 2016 and found that it continued to expand and affect the way organizations operate. The McKinsey study drew a correlation between effective data use and business success. One of the key barriers that companies face in adapting to the big-data environment, the Institute suggested, is "attracting and retaining the right talent — not only data scientists but business translators who combine data savvy with industry and functional expertise". Becoming a business translator is one of the additional duties that public relations (PR) and communications professionals will need to add to their professional tool kits to be highly valuable to clients and their organizations. The influencer channel generates some issues for PR professionals. While influencer marketing originated with advertising campaigns, which used celebrities for their star power, PR professionals have been reluctant to use influencers because the journalists who are a primary audience for traditional news releases tended to look askance at such endorsements.
