Leadership Lesson with Laura Owen-Onsea, EU Advocacy Manager at Hydrogen Europe

In recognition of International Women’s Day, Hanson Search is running an interview series throughout March showcasing female talent across the industries we work in.

In this interview, Janie Emmerson, Managing Partner at Hanson Search, spoke with Laura Owen-Onsea, EU Advocacy Manager at Hydrogen Europe and Co-Chair of Women in Public Affairs (WIPA) Brussels. They discussed current industry trends, her leadership journey and advice to future generations.

What trends in 2025 most influenced how your public affairs & communications function engaged with stakeholders, media and your internal audience?

Last year saw a record amount of legislation come out of the EU Commission. This was confirmed by the data and is something that everyone working in advocacy needs to think about. According to the Commission’s own official Work Programme for 2025, they planned 51 new policy initiatives last year, more than half with simplification objectives. This was significantly higher than the legislative output in 2024, which was 18, and we had to keep up with this in the advocacy world! This trend looks set to continue and is certainly a challenge for us and for our members. Due to this legislative productivity, we had to be more coordinated in our advocacy, more analytical and yet faster at the same time.

Which communications and reputation trends do you expect to shape 2026 and how are you preparing for them?

I think building alliances will be crucial to better advocacy in 2026. I have always believed in the phrase “strength in numbers”, and in advocacy it rings especially true. Modern policy issues like energy don’t fit nicely into boxes any more (if they ever did), instead they cut across multiple sectors. Our advocacy work needs to follow and be cross-cutting. To achieve this we need alliances that bring together diverse stakeholders. It is exactly this diversity that enhances credibility and ensures that policymakers receive input that reflects the needs of the whole system, not just narrow interests.

How have external audiences changed their expectations, and how is your team adapting?

External audiences expect far more than broad narratives; they want a compelling story based on real data. Part of my job in advocacy is to break the very technical world of energy and  hydrogen policy for a wide range of stakeholders. It’s a challenge; we’ve seen how a single article, in a single piece of legislation, can have a huge impact on a sector. That’s why we have to shift toward more accessible storytelling that translates complex policy into human impact. You must meet people where they’re at and connect policy to how it impacts their lives.

How has your approach to leadership evolved as public affairs & communications becomes more integrated across the business? What leadership fundamentals still anchor your style?

Public affairs and comms is becoming more integrated across our organisation. The biggest thing I have noticed is that my attitude to leadership as a whole has changed. Leadership is not about having all the answers, but about creating the conditions to get the answers. Having effective teamwork where others contribute meaningfully, ending the silos that inevitably tend to exist, makes a difference. When you communicate effectively across other teams everything comes together and real progress is made.

 As a woman in the public affairs industry, what challenges and opportunities have shaped your journey to leadership?

I think public affairs is all about people. It is people who can both make the biggest difference to empowering you and create some of the biggest challenges along your public affairs journey.

Through my career to date I have met all types of people. I have met men who genuinely support you and push you to higher places and I have met the men who hinder you. And actually it’s not just men who can be both with you and against you. For example, I have come across women who have struggled being a new mum in the workplace and sadly have taken the attitude that, “I struggled, so you should too.” Thankfully this is the minority. I have met the most amazing women who get to the top and try to pull you up right behind them, who genuinely empower you with everything they say and act as your biggest cheerleaders. When you find these women you’ve found your tribe, and that’s why we launched the Brussels chapter of Women in Public Affairs last year. I couldn’t be prouder to be co-chair of this network and I still pinch myself that I am somehow thought of as “enough.”

What one change would make the biggest difference to advancing women into senior leadership in public affairs?

I think we need to address the challenges faced by mothers who are balancing work and family responsibilities. There are a lot of important conversations happening about maternity leave, but I don’t think enough attention is paid to mums who return to the workplace after maternity leave. Whether women have support or not in that moment could shape their entire careers. I was unfortunate enough to have an incredibly traumatic birth with my first child and I suffered PTSD. I was a different person when I returned to work after 6 months. I didn’t necessarily communicate in the same way and I needed support. For me, support was able to bring out this empathetic yet assertive leadership style. Even mums without trauma will have inevitably changed; from the sleepless nights to the struggle to find yourself again, priorities will have shifted and we need to stand behind these women. Working mothers with the right support are an unstoppable force – you won’t find a more efficient and proactive leader than a working mum!

What advice would you give to the next generation of future female leaders in public affairs?

Make yourself heard. I saw a meme for International Women’s Day that said “have the confidence of a mediocre man” and it resonated with me. I remember a (very) long time ago I had just graduated and I thought I wanted to be a lawyer. I was doing a Graduate Scheme where we had a set of exercises to do over the course of a week with recruiters watching and at the end of the week you were either hired or not. For one of the exercises we were divided into teams and given a scenario where we were stuck in a desert and had to pick from a selection of items which would best help us escape. I suggested a handheld mirror could be the most useful. I was shut down by the men in the group who grabbed the megaphone (literally) and said that was the best thing to use. As a group we went for that. None of us were hired. Everything happens for a reason and I am extremely happy where my career has led me but I wonder if I had spoken up then and insisted on the mirror whether I would be a lawyer now!

Whether you’re hiring top Public Affairs talent or considering your next career move, our team would be delighted to support you.

Janie Emmerson is UK & Europe Managing Partner and Global Head of Public Affairs. She leads Hanson Search’s UK & European based teams.

Hanson Search is a globally recognised, award-winning talent advisory and headhunting consultancy. Our expertise lies in building successful ventures worldwide through our recruitment, interim and executive search. Our specialisms include communications, sustainability, public affairs and policy, digital marketing and sales.