THERE is probably a perverse pride in my administration…that we were going to do the right thing, even if short-term it was unpopular. And I think anybody who’s occupied this office has to remember that success is determined by an intersection in policy and politics and that you can’t be neglecting of marketing and PR and public opinion.

— Barrack Obama

AMONG the criticisms of Audley Shaw is that his experience as director of public relations (PR) and advertising at Jampro’s predecessor, the Jamaica National Investment Promotions Limited (JNIP), does not qualify him to be finance minister.

At the JNIP, Shaw was in charge of operations at the agency’s marketing and overseas offices in the United States, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom in the 1980s.

The critics seem to have little or no appreciation for the power of PR and marketing. But former finance ministers such as Jamaica’s Dr Peter Phillips; the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Christine Lagarde; Americans Alan Greenspan and Ben Bernanke; and Britain’s John Major and Gordon Brown, among other esteemed company, apparently knew better.

The above quote from US President Barrack Obama shows that the first African-American leader had a keen understanding of the ‘criticality’ of PR and marketing skills to help sell visions and articulate policies in order to achieve buy-in from the public.

Dr Phillips, throughout his time as finance minister enjoyed and sought after a friendly press, basking in the many accolades that were showered on him locally and internationally for his handling of the economy. The

Gleaner newspaper even made him its Man of the Year for 2015. The prestigious

Bloomberg afforded him one of its prized interviews.

Dr Peter Phillips was described as the top performing minister of finance in modern Jamaica and the second-best overall, by one of Jamaica’s leading political scientist and scholars based overseas, Basil “Bagga” Wilson, the provost emeritus of John Jay College of Criminal Justice and executive director of the King Research Institute at Monroe College in New York.

“He has handled the economy quite well and if you look at the years even from the time of the banking crisis that occurred in the 1990s, we really engaged in too much deficit spending, too much borrowing, and I think that under Peter Phillips, the economy has come a long way,” Wilson said.

“…We have had some serious issues from the 1970s in growing the economy, in adapting to globalisation, there has been some indiscipline in our budgetary process from that time, but I think Peter understands what needs to be done in order to bring the economy to a state where it can begin to grow to such a level where all Jamaicans can benefit from that expansion,” he said.

Christine Lagarde, who has just secured a second term as head of the IMF, has always made herself accessible to the media, especially the admiring ones.

Kenneth Rogoff, a former IMF chief economist, spoke of her wide-ranging appeal: “She is enormously impressive, politically astute and a strong personality…At finance meetings all over the world, she is treated practically like a rock star,” he said of the former French minister of finance.

Alan Greenspan, who spent 19 years as chairman of the US Federal Reserve, enjoyed widespread exposure and high regards partly because of his public persona.

According to journalist Andrew Beattie, in a glowing piece on the former Fed boss: “If Alan Greenspan could stand in front of a TV camera today and say, the economy is going down in a huge flaming pile just like the Hindenburg, the chances are good the economy would tank within the hour…

“In all honesty, the former chairman of the United States Federal Reserve board is not the most intimidating man in the world. In fact, he studied the clarinet and saxophone at New York’s Juilliard School before getting an economics degree and a PhD that he was conferred without a dissertation.

“He certainly does not inspire awe when compared to an economic giant like Bill Gates or a leader like Sir Winston Churchill, but when Greenspan speaks the world trembles.”

“Essentially, the chairman of the Federal Reserve board is a bullfighter and a bear-baiter all in one. The chairman keeps balance by altering the benchmark interest rate. When the economy is growing too fast, resulting in inflation and a possible bubble, the chairman uses the blade of interest rate hikes to slow down the rampaging beast so no one gets hurt. When the economy is in a slump, the chairman can lull it out of hibernation with some choice morsels of low-interest loans. In the most basic terms, the chairman makes money easy to borrow in hard times and harder to borrow in easy times.”

Ben Bernanke who succeeded Greenspan left academia for a post with the Federal Reserve after being nominated for the position by President George W Bush.

Bush later tapped Bernanke to serve as the chairman of his Council of Economic Advisers, but shortly thereafter Bernanke would move into an even more prestigious position, chairman of the Federal Reserve where largely positive media made him one of the most known names in the world.

He received strong support for his nomination from many leading politicians, including Senators John Kerry and Charles Schumer, and in January 2006 began his first term.

As chairman, Bernanke helped guide monetary policy during a period of economic trouble in the United States. He sought solutions to aid failing financial institutions in 2008, including supporting the takeover of Bear Stearns by JPMorgan Chase and the $85-billion bailout of AIG.

In 2010, Bernanke was nominated for a second term by President Barrack Obama.

Both John Major and Gordon Brown were British Exchequers before becoming prime ministers of Britain, thanks to the positive image they enjoyed while handling the country’s finances.

Audley Shaw’s skill and experience in public relations and marketing would seem to be invaluable tools in spreading the Andrew Holness Government’s message of growth and prosperity, a message that is always a tough sell.