We start off with an exclusive from Louise Marsland...The Mail & Guardian has appointed seasoned journalist, editor and digital strategist Verashni Pillay as its new Editor-in-Chief. It's hoped that Pilllay will reinvigorate the brand and steer the publication "back to its roots", following a raft of retrenchments, recent cutbacks and falling circulation.

On the topic of professionalism, Marion Scher shares tips that'll make the difference between a brilliant or boring speech, especially with today's ever-distracted audience, such as keeping the speech short, keeping it personal and using humour - but not starting with a joke.

Daniel Munslow adds his views on the evolution of business communication, with feedback from the recent International Association of Public Relations' Congress, where he was one of a handful of speakers at the largest PR conference of its kind hosted in Africa. Key changes are the need for in-house communication development, as well as more strategic planning and thinking training.

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