419. Thomas Bunn. The Clarity Report.
Thomas Bunn
July 9, 2026
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In this episode, we speak with Thomas Bunn, Global Chief Client Impact Officer at Zeno Group and lead researcher behind Clarity 2030, a study of more than 1,400 communications professionals across 10 countries.
The conversation centers on a data-backed tension: communications teams are being asked to carry more organizational weight than ever, while the structural support rarely keeps up.
Key findings and frameworks from the episode:
The readiness gap: 72% of respondents expect communications to hold greater influence over business strategy, risk, and performance by 2030. Only 29% feel fully prepared. Bunn identifies this as a compound problem involving underinvestment, structural positioning, and how the function is perceived inside organizations.
AI transformation as a people strategy: 60% of respondents say they are more influential than IT in shaping AI adoption inside their organizations. Bunn's case is that resistance, trust, governance, and change management are fundamentally communications problems, which is why the function ends up in the driver's seat regardless of whether it has formal authority.
The tools contradiction: 32% of comms teams describe themselves as leaders of AI change management, yet only 41% report that all staff have access to company-provided AI tools. One in five use unsanctioned tools to fill the gap.
Quiet exit: 44% of global communicators say they can imagine leaving the field by 2030. AI anxiety ranks first among reasons, followed closely by leadership misalignment and limited advancement.
Earned media and LLM discovery: Over 80% of citations in AI-generated answers draw from earned media sources. Paid media accounts for single-digit percentages. Bunn argues this demands a fundamental rethink of how marketing and communications budgets are allocated.
Download the Report - Clarity 2030: Communications at a Crossroads
As Zeno Group’s Global Chief Client Impact Officer, Thomas Bunn works with brands and companies to solve complex business challenges in a fast-moving and at times unpredictable environment. He oversees a unified team of strategists, creatives, and data + research analysts, and develops new products and AI-powered solutions that create business impact for clients navigating change. He has spent much of his career working as a strategist supporting clients across sectors from CPG to consumer health, from financial services to food/beverage, helping them make more meaningful connections with external and internal stakeholders through a deeper understanding of their values, mindsets and shifting behaviors.
Zeno Group is an award-winning, global integrated communications agency, born from PR, operating across North America, Europe and Asia. We bring together the boldest and brightest talent to help clients across industries and sectors unleash the power of strategic communications. Guided by our purpose to champion the courageous to achieve something better for humankind, we push boundaries to achieve real business value and societal impact for clients. Winner of the industry’s most coveted awards including the 2025 PRWeek Best Places to Work, 2025 PRovoke Purpose-Driven PR Agency of the Year, 2024 PRWeek US Outstanding Large Agency of the Year, 2023 PRWeek Purpose Agency of the Year, 2023 PRovoke Purpose-Driven Agency of the Year, 2022 PRWeek Global Agency of the Year, 2022 PRWeek U.S. Large Agency of the Year, 2022 PRovoke Best Large Agency to Work For in North America, 2021 PRovoke Global Creative Agency of the Year, 2021 PRovoke North American Agency of the Year, 2021 PRWeek Agency of the Year and a four-time winner of PRWeek’s Best Places to Work. Zeno has also been previously recognized by the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Zeno is a DJE Holdings Company.
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Thomas Bunn
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