Dronská: From Media to Industry
86 ǀ POSITIV WOMAN
From Media to Industry
The Story of a Woman Who Promotes
Communicaon With Respect
She has turned her experience from both the media and industrial sectors into a professional
philosophy built on strategy, transparency and mutual respect. Jana Dronská knows how to nd
common ground even in environments where it’s far from easy. In this interview, she speaks
about her journey through the world of media, public administraon and major corporaons with
the perspecve that only comes with experience – the courage to follow her own path.
Can you take us back to your early career? What first
drew you to journalism, and why did you later move
into communications and PR?
I was always fascinated by the world of media – and by
industry. I wanted to understand how it all connects.
I studied biophysics in Ostrava and industrial economics
at the Brno University of Technology. My first job was
as an assistant to the press officer at Železárny a drátovny
Bohumín – a company that no longer exists, but was
once a major industrial enterprise. That experience
set my direction, but I wanted to try “big” journalism,
so I applied for a position at Czech Television. I spent
several years there as a reporter and later as a presenter.
Then came an offer to become the spokesperson
and lead the rebranding of what was then the largest
steel company in the Czech Republic – Mittal Steel
Ostrava (formerly Nová huť). After completing that
mission, I returned to Czech Television. A few years later,
after my second short maternity leave, I felt it was time
to move forward – and industry and public relations
became the natural next step.
But you didn’t move from one job to another, you
decided to start your own business. How did that go?
I built my business model on the idea that many mid-
sized companies don’t need a full-time press officer,
but still want occasional support and efficient media
services. Some also want to communicate with
the media but simply don’t know how. This professional,
action-oriented approach suited both of us – and it
worked very well. Although I initially targeted medium-
sized industrial firms, I eventually ended up working
mainly with large enterprises such as DIAMO,
Veolia Energie and Vítkovice Steel. I handled incredibly
interesting topics, ranging from energy transformation
to large-scale redundancies.
You also worked in the public sector
at the Ministry of Industry and Trade. How does
communication in a public institution differ from
that in a private company?
The principles and goals are the same – you
communicate with the media and other stakeholders,
protect the organisation’s good name, build
and strengthen its reputation and brand, and, in the
case of internal communication, help improve
corporate culture. What differs are the processes.
In a company, I can simply walk into the CEO’s office
and agree on everything clearly and quickly. In public
institutions, the process is much slower – decisions
must be approved by multiple people, and you
often run into artificial barriers, internal regulations
or pointless forms. That said, even in the corporate
world, some steps need approval from an owner
In g. Ja na D ro ns k á , MB A , r a n k s a mo ng t h e m o s t p ro mi n e n t
spokespeople in the Moravian-Silesian Region. Aer
many years at Czech Television, she focused on public
relaons in industry. Most recently, she has represented
VÍTKOVICE STEEL in the media and, newly, university
VŠB–TUO. Her porolio includes other major industrial
companies, and she has served as spokesperson for
the Ministry of Industry and Trade. She also specialises
in crisis communicaon, strategies and development
of PR. She is a member of the Associaon of Strategic
Communicaon and Public Aairs ASCOPA and the
Czech Associaon of interim management.
Young people don’t always understand
it today, but I somemes work at night
if something really maers to me.