Is trust a necessary component of relationship management?

This paper presents findings of a study in relationship management in public relations practice. As relationships are always changing, consultants and clients need to constantly adapt in order to develop relationship characteristics such as trust. This paper argues that, although trust is one component of consultant‐client relationships it is not the key element in public relations practice. In the Australian study reported in this paper, consultant‐client relationships were primarily conducted and managed as business‐tobusiness transactions where trust developed or declined according to the results and outcomes of project and programme management. The paper contends that trust can assist in the development and maintenance of relationships when understood and valued in the same way by clients and their public relations consultant. While this understanding remains unclear, trust will be connected mainly to outcomes and not to the development of relationships.