Didin Nasirudin, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Bening Communication, has built a career that has moved across several different worlds. His journey began with nuclear engineering, followed by management, journalism, and eventually public relations. Over the years, these experiences have shaped a broader approach to communications, one that combines business understanding, media knowledge, stakeholder relations, political communication, and geopolitical insight.
Today, his work goes beyond traditional public relations. Through Bening Communication, Didin works with organisations on strategic communications, reputation, government and stakeholder relations, crisis and issue management, and digital communications. His doctoral studies in political communications and diplomacy have also brought him into contact with government officials, parliament members, political activists, academics, researchers, and policy practitioners.
We spoke with Didin about his unconventional career, the evolution of Bening Communication, the changing role of technology, and why communication today requires a much wider view of the world.
A Career That Took an Unexpected Turn
We began by looking at the path that brought Didin into communications, which was far removed from where he initially expected his career to go.
“Could you start by telling us about your journey and work?”
Looking back, Didin sees the different stages of his career as connected rather than unrelated. Each one gave him a different way of understanding complex situations and communicating with different audiences.
“My professional journey has been quite unconventional. I graduated in Nuclear Engineering from Gadjah Mada University because, from a young age, I was fascinated by science, atoms, nuclear technology, and quantum physics. My original ambition was to work at a nuclear power plant that the Indonesian government was planning to develop. When that project did not materialize, I had to rethink my future and move into the private sector.”
He began as a management trainee at Sinar Mas Group and later Tigaraksa Group before the 1997–1998 Asian financial crisis changed the direction of his early career.
“At different points, I worked as a lecturer and managed a branch of an English-language course, and became a journalist. Eventually, at the end of 1999, I entered public relations.”
That move eventually led to Bening Communication, where he has been a co-founder and Managing Director since 2008. For Didin, his engineering background, journalism experience, and years in PR have each added something different to the way he works today.
“Nuclear engineering taught me structured thinking and how to simplify complex issues. Journalism taught me how the media works and how to identify what makes a story relevant. Public relations taught me how organizations build trust, manage perceptions, communicate strategically, and engage multiple stakeholders whose interests do not always align.”
How Bening Communication Has Changed
We then turned to Bening Communication and how the company has changed as the communications industry itself has evolved.
“How has your company/work evolved since you started?”
Didin explained that the company has always tried to remain flexible rather than relying on one fixed way of working.
“I have always described Bening as a malleable organization. By that I mean we should never assume that the way we operate today will necessarily be the way we operate tomorrow.”
Bening initially developed a particularly strong reputation in technology PR and has worked with more than 150 local and international brands. Over time, its work has expanded into a much broader range of communications services.
“Today, we combine Traditional PR with Content Development, Event Management, Strategic Media Collaborations, Digital Marketing, Social Media Management, KOL and Influencer Engagement, Community Engagement, Government Relations, and Crisis and Issue Management.”
The company has also placed greater emphasis on data, monitoring, and research, including real-time news and social media monitoring, newsroom analysis, SEO, and GEO.
For Didin, this reflects a wider change in what businesses now expect from communications.
“So Bening’s evolution has not simply been about adding more services. It has been about moving from media relations to integrated reputation management, public affairs, strategic intelligence, and executive-level counsel.”
Communication as Part of the Wider Business Picture
We next explored how Didin sees Bening’s role within the wider business and communications ecosystem in Indonesia.
“How does your work contribute to the ecosystem in your region?”
For him, communication has an economic role because businesses need trust and credibility to build lasting relationships with their stakeholders.
“The first contribution is building trust between organizations and their stakeholders. A company may have an excellent product, technology, or business model, but if it cannot clearly explain its value, establish credibility, or respond effectively when problems arise, its ability to grow will be limited.”
That work now extends beyond consumers and journalists. Bening also works around communities, government, regulators, industry associations, and other stakeholders who can influence an organisation’s operating environment.
Didin’s academic work has strengthened this side of his professional life, giving him regular interaction with people across politics, government, academia, and public policy.
“These relationships are not simply contacts; more importantly, they improve my understanding of how different actors think, what concerns them, how they interpret public issues, and how policy debates evolve.”
His interest in U.S. politics and geopolitics adds another dimension. He points out that international developments can quickly become business issues for companies operating in Indonesia through investment, trade, technology, energy, supply chains, and political relationships.
“For C-level executives and investors, communications advice alone may therefore be insufficient. They sometimes need help interpreting the wider environment.”
This has gradually moved his own role towards strategic counsel, where communications are considered alongside political, regulatory, reputational, and geopolitical developments.
Three Qualities That Matter
We then asked Didin what he believes professionals need in order to build lasting careers in a communications industry that is constantly changing.
“What three qualities do you believe are critical for success in your industry?”
His answer came down to three things.
“If I had to choose only three, adaptability, resilience, and trustworthiness.”
He sees adaptability as essential because the communications industry has moved from traditional media relations to online media, social platforms, influencers, data, and now artificial intelligence.
“Adaptability, however, does not mean chasing every trend. It means understanding which changes are structural and which are temporary.”
Resilience, meanwhile, comes from experience. Bening has had to navigate financial crises, client losses, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“A crisis can force you to become more efficient, more flexible, or more creative.”
The third quality, trustworthiness, becomes particularly important when working closely with executives, investors, journalists, policymakers, and other stakeholders.
“PR, government relations, lobbying, political consulting, and executive counsel all depend on credibility.”
What Technology Is Changing
From there, we turned to technology and the growing role of artificial intelligence in business and communications.
“What are your views on the current technological advancements in the business world?”
Didin’s response is shaped partly by his own background in engineering and his years working with technology companies. He sees AI as a major shift, particularly because of its ability to process information, analyse data, automate repetitive work, and support decision-making.
“Artificial intelligence, in particular, will profoundly change the way businesses operate.”
He also sees the impact directly within communications. Media monitoring, social listening, research, content development, and analysis can all now be supported by AI.
Another change he highlights is the way people discover information. Traditional SEO is increasingly being joined by GEO, or Generative Engine Optimization, as people begin using AI platforms to find information and recommendations.
“For a communications business such as ours, this means technology is no longer simply a tool that supports PR. It is becoming part of the communications environment itself.”
However, Didin does not see AI as a replacement for human judgment.
“My approach is not humans versus AI but humans working with AI.”
He believes technology can help businesses become faster and better informed, while qualities such as trust, empathy, creativity, ethical judgment, leadership, and relationships remain deeply human.
Lessons From an Unconventional Career
Finally, we asked Didin what advice he would give someone trying to establish themselves in the communications industry, particularly given the unexpected turns in his own career.
“How would you guide someone to navigate the key challenges you faced when establishing yourself in this industry?”
His first lesson is that careers do not always follow a straight line.
“The first thing I would tell them is: do not expect a straight career path. Mine certainly was not.”
He encourages people to learn through experience while continuing to develop themselves through education and exposure to different fields.
“Learn by doing, but never stop upgrading yourself.”
He also believes that relationships should be built before they are needed, and that businesses should prepare for difficult periods rather than assuming everything will remain stable.
“Build relationships before you urgently need them.”
Reputation, he says, deserves the same attention as revenue.
“Protect your reputation with the same seriousness you protect your revenue.”
Perhaps his most personal advice is not to allow work to consume everything else.
“No one should die for business.”
For Didin, a long career is not simply about building a company or reaching a particular position. It is about remaining curious, adapting when circumstances change, building meaningful relationships, and being willing to follow opportunities that may not have been part of the original plan.
“My own career shows that the destination can be very different from the original plan. I began by wanting to work in nuclear technology and eventually found myself advising companies, engaging with political and policy stakeholders, studying political communication, and analyzing U.S. politics and geopolitics. Sometimes the unexpected path is exactly where your most distinctive value is created.”
Connect with Didin Nasirudin on LinkedIn to learn more about his work in strategic communications, stakeholder relations, political communication, and geopolitical analysis.
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