Spear’s Review

‘New Labour royalty’ is the description that one industry peer opts for when discussing Victoria O’Byrne. The adviser worked in corporate communications for the Labour Party under Tony Blair and as a special adviser to Dame Tessa Jowell when she was Olympics minister. 

O’Byrne was also group corporate affairs director at Virgin, where she worked with Richard Branson, and has served as communications secretary to the Prince and Princess of Wales. In 2023, O’Byrne joined Schillings as a founding partner of the firm’s communications business, alongside George Pascoe-Watson. 

‘Increasingly, clients understand how significant reputation is, and they want to invest in it,’ she tells Spear’s. ‘It’s an intangible asset, but it gives tangible results.’

O’Byrne emphasises Schillings Communication’s ‘insight-led’ approach: ‘Yes, we have people who can write beautifully, but [our work] is really grounded in evidence.’