In July last year, print and electronic media were vying for a byte from NIIT, hailing the skilling initiatives of the government and stressing on the importance of developing a globally competitive talent pool for the Indian economy. This was a tactical move to reinforce the new positioning of NIIT as a global leader in skills and talent development.

Candour understandsits clients’ goals and target audience, based on which it designs long and short-term plans that also gel well with the ever-changing conditions

Thanks to Candour Communication, a full-service PR agency, and its strategic, delivery-focused approach which made the whole campaign successful. From maintaining continuous communication with media influencers to highlighting the new positioning statement, Candour seamlessly wove the new

messaging across media genres. NIIT was aligned with skilling at a macro level by placing the top management of the company in larger platforms and industry forums. Social media was effectively used to amplify the campaign.

The aforementioned case of program effectiveness is just one of many national and international success sagas of Candour. Besides its expertise in financial services, lifestyle, retail and realty, 80 percent of its clients are strongly footed in global technology, education and healthcare domains. With operations in Delhi (HQ), Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai, the 2009-born company has been filling flesh to its name through its agile, transparent and proven craftsmanship, and effectively serves its clients around the world through its India affiliates (spread around 15-20 cities) and international alliances.

Establishing a Gourmet Candour
"The day to day challenges of PR are something we have come to enjoy. These vary from plain and simple generation of visibility for random events to crisis communication to building long term thought leadership and trust for brands. While start-ups yearn for a lot of involvement, right from devising their communication policies to advising on things that go much beyond your day-to-day PR a multinational will have a lot of systems and processes that need to be followed, which sometimes take precedence over other things. However, regardless of the industry

and the stage of life companies are in, a faster ROI is always asked for," explains Dhrubajyoti Gayan,Managing Director, Candour Communications. Candour caters to all the integrated PR needs of a client and its services include corporate & marketing communication audits, trainings, messaging and strategy development, media relations, industry partnerships and social media management.

Interestingly, it is not the range of services that they differ in, but it is in the way they execute the portfolio. Candour works closely with each client to understand their goals and the pulse of their target audiences, based on which, the company designs long and short-term plans that also gel well with the ever-changing conditions, while continuously reviewing the performance all along. In a nutshell, the company serves as an extended arm of its clients, rather than an external entity.

Fueling the Master Minds
With over 30 diverse and experienced people in the industry as its resources, Candour is distinctively marked through its flat and open work culture, which encourages rigor of knowledge and creative thinking. Perhaps, these are the same qualities that have driven Candour to achieve a growth rate of over 50 percent last year alone. Even with such a growth curve, the company still envisions being a boutique consultancy rather than a massive organization, which loses itself and its focus completely in the race to become ever bigger.