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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Fachliteratur
- Serie: International Association of Business Communities
- Sprache: Englisch
The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication THIS NEW EDITION of The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication contains a comprehensive collection of practical knowledge about successful corporate communication and its effect on an organization as a whole. Thoroughly revised and updated to meet the realities of today's organizational environment, the second edition of The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication includes fresh case studies and original chapters. This vital resource contains information that is relevant to communicators in any organization, from global conglomerates to small businesses, public companies to private firms, and for-profits to nonprofits. The expert contributors cover a wealth of relevant topics, including how to excel at executive communication and executive coaching, an in-depth examination of communication counsel, a review of communication and ethics as a whole, a review of corporate social responsibility and sustainability issues, and how to prepare for communication during a crisis. The book also contains information on current issues and trends such as the effects of the recent recession and new technologies that affect strategic communication management. A review of internal and employee communication issues, the growing need for international and multicultural communication, and strategies for combining traditional and social media are explored in detail. Whether you are a professional communicator or a corporate executive without a background in the communication discipline, you will gain new insight into traditional and emerging issues in organizational communication and learn what it takes to reach stakeholders both inside and outside the organization.
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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2011
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Table of Contents
Cover
Table of Contents
Praise
Title page
Copyright page
Series page
FOREWORD
PREFACE
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Part ONE: FOUNDATIONS OF BUSINESS COMMUNICATION
CHAPTER ONE CHARACTERISTICS OF EXCELLENT COMMUNICATION
The Value of Communication to an Organization
Communicator Roles
Organization of the Communication Function and Its Relationship to Other Management Functions
Models of Public Relations
Extending the Excellence Theory to a Global Theory
The Strategic Management Role of Public Relations
New Research to Enhance the Strategic Role of the Communication Function
CHAPTER TWO THE CORPORATE COMMUNICATOR
A Senior-Level Strategist
A Strategic Role
A Senior-Level Adviser
A Communicator’s Portfolio of Skills
What Corporate Communicators Need to Know about Their Organizations
Corporate Communicator Roles
Managing Communication During Change
A Corporate Communicator’s Ultimate Responsibility
CHAPTER THREE ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
Defining Culture
The Impact of Culture on Organizations and People
Organization Building Blocks and Culture
Assessing an Organization’s Culture
Communications and Culture
Communications Is a Critical Process for Cultural Change
The Relationship between Organizational Culture and National Culture
Case in Point: America Online and Time Warner
CHAPTER FOUR COMMUNICATION AND THE HIGH-TRUST ORGANIZATION
Understanding and Valuing Organizational Trust
Our Research Work on Building High-Trust Organizations
Trust and Organizational Excellence
The Organizational Trust Model
Application of the Trust Model for Organizational Leaders and Business Communicators
Conclusion
CHAPTER FIVE COMMUNICATION ETHICS
Think Like a Professional: Don’t Be Idealistic When Sorting Out Right from Wrong
Cultural Relativism
Ethical Pluralism
Who Is an Ideal Virtuous Person?
Ethical Triage
Factors that Affect Ethical Decision Making
Case in Point: Media Bribery
Conclusion
CHAPTER SIX CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
The Communicator’s Role as Leader and Advocate
Toward Standardization of CSR
Integrating CSR Communications
Bringing It All Together—Why CSR Matters
CHAPTER SEVEN CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND SUSTAINABILITY
Structuring CSR in Large Organizations
Communicating CSR and Sustainability
Building Community Relations on a Local Level
Sustainability and Reputation
Conclusion
Part TWO: MANAGING COMMUNICATION
CHAPTER EIGHT STRATEGIC APPROACHES TO MANAGING THE COMMUNICATIONS FUNCTION
Where Does Communications Reside on the Organizational Chart?
Bridging the Islands of Communication
Outsourcing
How Communications Gets Funded
How Communications Functions Demonstrate Value
The Communicator as Performance Consultant
CHAPTER NINE STRATEGIC PLANNING
Timeless Wisdom Still Shapes Successful Communication Programs
Strategic Planning
The Strategic Planning Process
The Role of Strategic Planning in Communication Management
CHAPTER TEN ISSUES MANAGEMENT
Linking Business and Communication Planning
How Issues Develop—and How Organizations Can Influence Them
The Five-Step Issues Management Process
Issues Management Improves Communication Effectiveness
Case in Point: Building Grassroots Support for a Development Project
CHAPTER ELEVEN COMMUNICATING CHANGE
When Change Just Doesn’t Stop: Creating Really Good Change Communication
Defining Change Communication: A Broader Consideration
What Is the Purpose of Your Communication?
Alignment between Change Communication Competence and Change Communication Expectations
Engaging in the Background Talk of Change
Case in Point: StateSmart and People Change
Conclusion
CHAPTER TWELVE CRISIS COMMUNICATION
Moving from Tactical Response to Proactive Crisis Preparedness
Defining Crisis
Crisis Management and Communication
Case in Point: Crisis Management at a Multinational Organization
Conclusion
CHAPTER THIRTEEN THE ROLE OF COMMUNICATIONS IN COMPANY BUSINESS STRATEGY
Understand Business Strategy Fundamentals
Understand Finance Basics
Interview Your Strategy Office
Learn About the Business
Tie Communications Work to Corporate Metrics and Business Strategies
Measure and Report on Management’s Promise Record
Contribute to Business Strategy Formulation
Ask Senior Executives What Bugs Them About Communicators and How You Can Better Meet Their Needs
If You Must Ask for Resources (Human or Financial), Make a Business Case
CHAPTER FOURTEEN THE IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGY ON CORPORATE COMMUNICATION
The Perfect Storm
Consequences
The Return to the Marketplace
Integration
The Speed of Change
Part THREE: INTERNAL COMMUNICATION
CHAPTER FIFTEEN INTERNAL COMMUNICATION
Building Blocks of Internal Communication
Social Media: Bringing the Pieces Together
Social Networking at Work: Turning Play into Profit
Exactly Who Is an Employee?
Recognizing Limitations
CHAPTER SIXTEEN COMMUNICATING WITH A DIVERSE WORKFORCE
Diversity and Inclusion
Benefits and Challenges
Diversity and Communication
Case in Point: Lockheed Martin MS2
Conclusion
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN INTEGRATING EMPLOYEE COMMUNICATIONS MEDIA
The New Role of Print
Online Communication in a 2.0 World
Integration: Bringing It All Together
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN INTERNAL BRANDING, EMPLOYER BRANDING
What It Means
Bad Ideas Executed Badly
Case in Point: A Great Example
The Earth Isn’t Flat (But My Budget Is)
Inside Out
CHAPTER NINETEEN COMMUNICATING FOR A MERGER OR AN ACQUISITION
Understanding the Terminology
Preparing for the M&A
Preannouncement Planning
Premerger Planning
Postmerger Cultural Integration
Conclusion
CHAPTER TWENTY THE CHALLENGES OF EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
Throwing Rocks at the Corporate Rhinoceros
Workers as Mere Units of Cost
Engagement as a Soft Issue
The Rock Throwers
The Engagement Power of the Boss
Translating It All Into Practical Actions
Driving the Rhinoceros Away
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE MEASURING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF INTERNAL COMMUNICATION
Step 1: Identify the Problem and Assess Needs
Step 2: Develop a Research Methodology
Step 3: Conduct the Research
Step 4: Analyze the Data
Step 5: Report the Results, Take Action, and Commit to Follow-Up Measurement
Case in Point: Communications Impact Modeling
Part FOUR: PUBLIC RELATIONS
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO PUBLIC RELATIONS RESEARCH AND PLANNING
Public Relations Research and Planning
Best Practices in Public Relations Research and Planning
Public Relations Impact on Return on Investment
Conclusion
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE MEDIA RELATIONS
Defining News
Selecting the Right Media
Media Relations Tools
Measuring Your Results
Case In Point: More Than Mangos Company Launch
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR INVESTOR RELATIONS AND FINANCIAL COMMUNICATION
Why Investor Relations?
Shaken Investor Confidence
The Numbers
The Story
Information Central: The Investor Relations Function and Roles
Not All Investors Are Created Equal
The Importance of Communication
The Tools of the Trade
Best Practice Investor Relations Function
Integrating Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
Global Trends
The End Result of a Strong Investor Relations Program
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
Connecting Communication to the Public Policy Process
Defining Government Relations
Models of Government Relations
Government As Key Stakeholder
Importance of Research and Evaluation
Important Processes for Government Relations Activities
Government Relations Structures
Case in Point: Canada: Client “Green”
Case in Point: United Kingdom: Government Relations within Communications
Conclusion
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX REPUTATION MANAGEMENT
Building, Enhancing, and Protecting Organizational Reputation in the Information Age
Building Reputation: Integrity is Everything
Reputation Monitoring
Enhancing Reputation
Protecting Reputation
Reputation Repair
Case in Point: Good Health Pharmaceuticals
Conclusion: The Secret of Reputational Success Is Sincerity
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN MEASURING PUBLIC RELATIONS PROGRAMS
The Science of Public Relations
What You Need to Know about Public Relations Research
Research Tools for Effective Public Relations Measurement
Conclusion
Part FIVE: MARKETING COMMUNICATION
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT MARKETING COMMUNICATION
Ask and You Shall Receive . . . Several Answers
Contextual Target Marketing
Shall We Do the Fandango?
Speak the Word
The Science of Persuasion
No Day but Today
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE THE ENGAGEMENT OF BRANDS
Consider How Brands Work
Focus on Brand Fundamentals
Reach For the Big Ideas
Follow All the Steps
Find the Words Before Creating the Visual
Conclusion
CHAPTER THIRTY CUSTOMER RELATIONS
Smart Organizations Think Like Their Customers
Remember to Forget the Golden Rule
Segmentation Is the Key to Thinking Like a Customer
Analyze Profitability to Improve Focus
Tie Messages to Consumer Values
Tailor How Messages Are Communicated to Audiences
Determine Which Relationships Should Last Forever
Success for the Twenty-First-Century Communicator
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE MEASURING MARKETING COMMUNICATION
What to Measure
Checkpoints for Measuring Marketing Communication
Challenges of Marketing Communications Measurement
Measurement by Media
Case In Point: American Greetings
Index
About the International Association of Business Communicators
Praise for The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication, Second Edition
“Looking to expand your professional abilities? Learn new skills? Or hone your area of expertise? This book delivers an amazing and practical study of our profession—and a guidebook for strategic communication best practices. The Handbook explores the many aspects of our profession with expert insights of the best of the best in communication.”
—John Deveney, ABC, APR, president of Deveney Communication
“It is a real pleasure to read the latest version of The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication. It presents a sound, research-based foundation on communication—its importance to organizations, why the function must be strategic, and what it takes to get it right. From Paul Sanchez’s detailed and insightful analysis of organizational culture and its influence on employees to Mary Ann McCauley’s discussion on the significant role that CSR has come to play as organizations seek new and innovative ways to increase visibility, reputation, and brand awareness with key stakeholders, this is a valuable text that professional communicators should embrace and refer to often for guidance and planning.”
—John G. Clemons, ABC, APR, corporate director of community relations, Raytheon
“All myths about organizational communicators being brainwashed, biased corporate journalists are out the window with this Handbook. This stellar compendium from dozens of authors, researchers, and editors of high professional stature is timely and forward-thinking. I know these people, and I am in awe of their work. Communication students particularly will benefit from understanding the complex disciplines that intertwine and drive effective organizational communication.”
—Barbara W. Puffer, ABC, president, Puffer Public Relations Strategies, and associate professor, Communications Studies and Professional Writing, University of Maryland University College
“Chalk up a win for Team IABC. Editor Tamara Gillis has assembled a winning lineup of the best communicators to compile this useful, readable Handbook. Not another how-to-do-it tactical manual, this volume draws from theory and global best practices to explain the strategic reasons behind modern communication. A must-read for anyone interested in understanding the communication profession and a useful desktop companion to the professional communicator’s dictionary and style guide.”
—William Briggs, IABC fellow and director, School of Journalism and Mass Communications, San Jose State University
© 2011 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved.
Published by Jossey-Bass
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Figures 7.1, 7.2, and Exhibit 7.1 are used courtesy of RBC.
The bulleted list on pages 308–309 is reprinted by permission of Waveland Press, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
The IABC handbook of organizational communication : a guide to internal communication, public relations, marketing, and leadership / Tamara L. Gillis editor ; foreword by Natasha Nicholson. —2nd ed.
p. cm.—(A joint publication of the Jossey-Bass business & management series and the International Association of Business Communicators)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-470-89406-4 (cloth); ISBN 978-1-118-01633-6 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-01634-3 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-01635-0 (ebk)
1. Communication in organizations—United States. I. Gillis, Tamara L. II. International Association of Business Communicators.
HD30.36.U5I25 2011
658.4'5—dc22
2011002089
A JOINT PUBLICATION OF
THE JOSSEY-BASS
BUSINESS & MANAGEMENT SERIES
AND
THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF BUSINESS COMMUNICATORS
FOREWORD
Organizational communication as a profession is relatively young when compared to other business disciplines, tracing it roots back less than 100 years. But as current world events such as the Toyota recalls and government buy-outs of American auto manufacturers have shown, it is a valuable, serious, and essential business component that is necessary for organizations to thrive, grow, and sustain misfortunes.
The profession’s emergence and growth is closely matched to the growth and evolution of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC). This association came together in 1970 with a band of bold visionaries at its helm—ready to serve an emerging need for a profession of the future. It sought to help its members find their way in the business world and to demonstrate the true value of communication. What started as a group of people who called themselves “industrial editors” grew into a varied assembly of “communicators” responsible for many facets of organizational communication.
As the profession has grown, so has IABC. A milestone of that growth is this Handbook. At this book’s foundation is the definition of organizational communication as a profession and details about what that means in today’s business world—adhering to a set of principles that are applied in a number of specialties that affect the successful operation on an organization. When I, or anyone who is close to IABC, describe the association, we often list specialties like media relations, marketing communication, and employee communication as a means of describing the goals and intent of organizational communication. We also acknowledge that the profession is continually growing and evolving to address the current best practices in communication strategy that affect organizational communications. We do this because it is this composition of specialties that breathes life into communication. This composition of complementary specialties shows that organizational communication is not a neat and tidy package. It is a complex array of communication disciplines that connect to shape an organization’s destiny—creating the difference between an engaged workforce and one that is wrought with malaise, offering the ability to relate the vision of a brilliant company or convey a sadly backward entity.
This second edition of this Handbook signifies the progression of a profession—separated into specialties that are worthwhile and essential to today’s business world. IABC, with outstanding guidance from Tamara Gillis, has collected the best and brightest in the communication world and included into this book their thoughts, perspectives, concerns, and analysis. It is a must-read for every communicator who wants to understand the real value of communication. And it is very much like IABC’s members themselves: a collection of great communicators, sharing best practices, analyzing what works and what does not, and striving to make organizations stronger through communication.
This collection of organizational communication practices complements IABC’s research agenda as well as its vast and ever-growing library of resources. I welcome you to learn more about IABC by visiting www.iabc.com.
February 2011
Natasha Nicholson
Vice President, Publishing and Recognition
Executive Editor, Communication World
PREFACE
May you live in interesting times.
Seems like we have all been cursed: we are living in interesting times. The landscape of business communication continues to evolve to meet the demands of the business world around us. The International Association of Business Communicators ([IABC], 2010) continues to meet the needs of professional communicators tasked with maneuvering that ever-changing landscape through professional development programs and groundbreaking research that shares “best global communication practices, ideas and experiences that will enable communicators to develop highly ethical and effective performance standards” and this second edition of The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication.
In 2009 I conducted a series of surveys, interviews, and content analyses to create a snapshot of competencies and expectations of professional communicators today (Gillis, 2009). Not surprising, communication thought leaders and employers around the world came to similar conclusions, and members of the IABC Accreditation Council agreed that the following findings set a foundation for business communicators today—and the foundation for this book:
Business communicators must have business acumen.Business communicators are expected to provide sound communication counsel.Business communicators are expected to think and act strategically.Business communicators are expected to support decision making with sound research, measurement, and evaluation.Business communicators are expected to make ethical decisions.Business communicators are expected to leverage communication technology to meet business goals.Business communicators are expected to cultivate organizational trust and credibility.Business communicators must embrace diversity.Business communicators are expected to be able to manage communications to support organizations in times of change.Business communicators must be prepared to handle crisis communication.Business communicators are expected to build relationships with the media.Business communicators are expected to keep up with current best practices in their discipline.Last but not least, business communicators must have excellent basic skills in writing and editing.Regardless of the issue at hand, these basic principles continue to ring true: You need a sound plan, well-crafted messages that deliver on business strategies, delivered by appropriate media that reach the target audiences, and a means to measure your accomplishments. Our publics are demanding clear, concise, and reasoned communications from business enterprises, nonprofit organizations, and government entities alike.
We live in interesting times. A time when as communicators our strategic communications empower employees; educate analysts and investors; encourage suppliers; and comfort customers. We communicate twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week with media representatives who are often biased and jaded because of their lack of preparation and research as they meet deadlines for a voracious and frustrated public.
Robert Dilenschneider (2008) reminds us that in the end “it is the role of communicators in our society today to sustain confident communications. We need to find ways to communicate confidence and reduce panic through genuine communication so that solutions can be found and shared.”
It is in these “interesting times,” our finest hours as communicators, that we leave a legacy of communication strategy that defines corporate communication, organizational communication, and both public and internal communication strategies.
My sincere thanks to the chapter authors; their expertise and wisdom made this book possible. Special thanks go to the IABC Accreditation Council for their insights into the process of developing this Handbook. It is my hope that communication practitioners at all levels, educators, and those outside the communications field will find in this book insights and understanding that contribute to organizational success.
Who Should Read This Book?
This book is designed and organized with a number of different readers in mind. If you are new to the world of corporate communication, the chapters in this book bring to the fore issues that are critical to understand and master in any organization. If you are a professional communicator, this book provides new insights on traditional and emerging issues in organizational communication. If you are a corporate executive outside the communication discipline, this book will help you understand the importance and reach of communication within your organization and with external stakeholders.
Understanding occurs when people ask questions and share information. This book follows suit. Like any other handbook, it may be read in a number of ways. First, it may be read from cover to cover. If you are interested in all facets of organizational communication, you will enjoy starting at the beginning of this book and reading through to the end. The book’s organization builds from general topics to specialty interests.
Second, readers may choose to skim the book for topics of interest or topics related to a current challenge. This book touches on issues of interest to those new to the field of organizational communications as well as seasoned professionals.
How This Book Is Organized
In developing the content for this second edition, a review of the 2006 edition was conducted in addition to the competency research referenced earlier. The Accreditation Council and other communication leaders agreed that this new edition would benefit from more case studies and examples, a greater focus on measurement, and less redundancy. In this edition readers will find more examples of principles and practices that support the foundational elements of business communication. The topics addressed in this Handbook represent what our experts agreed was most relevant for communicators and other organization associates to understand about the process of organizational communication.
This book is organized into five parts. Part One serves as an introduction to business communication and addresses some universal premises concerning corporate communication. The chapters in this part introduce readers to complexities and structures of corporate communication. The universal concepts of excellence, trust, culture, ethics, social responsibility, and measurement are reviewed to set the foundation for the role of corporate communicators today.
Part Two focuses on the current challenges of managing corporate communications and organizational communication. Cultivating a culture of communication is critical within any organization. The authors share insights into successful planning, implementation, and management of corporate communication. The strategies they review are fundamental to successful communication management.
Part Three contains seven chapters that explore evolving issues in the practice of employee communication and internal communication networks. At the heart of each excellent organization or corporation is a trusted internal communication program. Integral issues of relationship building, employee engagement, diversity, and internal branding are highlighted here as key to developing trusted internal programs.
Part Four apprises readers of the role of public relations in the corporate communication program. A host of external publics await business communicators. These stakeholders will have an impact on the reputation and success of our organizations in reaching their goals. The chapters demonstrate the need for a strategic approach to managing external relationships.
Part Five addresses key concepts of marketing and brand management and their place in the corporate communication program. The chapters in this part bring to life the internal impact and external challenges of marketing communications. Here, professionals share their insights and expertise for developing excellence in corporate performance through marketing communication programming.
Acknowledgments
The process of compiling a volume of knowledge like The IABC Handbook of Organizational Communication is an arduous one, with many twists and turns along the way. I am grateful for the assistance and friendship that I received from Amanda Aiello, Natasha Nicholson, and Heather Turbeville. I especially thank all the chapter authors who contributed their time and wisdom. Their expertise will help countless professionals make the right choices for their organizations. A special thank you to the accredited business communicators who helped in the preliminary stages. And one big thank you to Jeffrey for all his support during the process.
February 2011
Tamara L. Gillis
Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania
References
Dilenschneider, R. (2008, October 13). Communicating during turbulent times, Keynote address to the 2008 IABC Heritage Regional Conference. Hartford, CT.
Gillis, T. (2009). It’s your move: Competencies and expectations. (Proprietary research). San Francisco: International Association of Business Communicators.
International Association of Business Communicators [IABC]. (2010). IABC’s mission, vision and brand. Retrieved July 22, 2010, from www.iabc.com/info/about/aboutiab.htm.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Rob Briggs is director of internal communications for the international division of RBC Wealth Management, one of the world’s largest private banks and based in London, UK, and Jersey, Channel Islands. He provides strategic counsel as well as the implementation of internal communication campaigns, executive communications, and community relations programs. Briggs is a past chairman of the Europe and Middle East Region of IABC. He holds an M.Sc. with Merit in corporate communications and reputation management from Manchester Business School; a B.A. in Philosophy from the University of Reading; an advanced diploma in communication studies from the Communication, Advertising and Marketing Foundation; and the financial planning certificate from the Chartered Insurance Institute. He is accredited by the British Association of Communicators in Business and is a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.
Steve Crescenzo is a consultant, writer, and seminar leader who has helped thousands of communicators improve both their print and electronic communications efforts. Recognized as one of the nation’s leading experts in corporate communications, Crescenzo is the leader of the popular Strategic Creative Communication seminar and speaks around the world on employee communication, social media, writing, integrating print and online, and creativity. He was the number one rated speaker of IABC’s International Conferences in 2002, 2008, 2009, and 2010 and has been asked to speak in IABC’s “All Star Track” for the past five years. He also writes a regular column on employee communications in Communication World magazine.
Roger D’Aprix, ABC, IABC Fellow, is an internationally known communications consultant, author, and lecturer. He has assisted scores of Fortune 500 companies in developing communication strategies, designing communication initiatives, and training for managers and supervisors. He is a vice president of ROI Consulting, a Silicon Valley–based consultancy. For fifteen years he held senior positions with two of the leading human resource consulting companies: Towers Perrin and Mercer. He is the author of seven books on employee communication. His latest book published in 2009 by Jossey-Bass is The Credible Company: Communicating with Today’s Skeptical Workforce. His consulting career follows two decades as a corporate communication executive for Xerox Corporation and General Electric.
Melissa D. Dodd is a doctoral student focusing on communication/public relations at the University of Miami’s School of Communication. Dodd is a co-organizer for the International Public Relations Research Conference and a coauthor for the instructor’s manual companion to Don W. Stack’s Primer of Public Relations Research, second edition. She received the Brigham Young University Top Ethics Paper Award in March 2010. Dodd has gained practical public relations experience through several public relations and marketing positions and internships. She earned her master of arts in public relations from Ball State University and will graduate with her doctorate in 2012.
Nick Durutta, ABC, is a senior communications manager for The Capital Group Companies, a global investment management firm based in Los Angeles. Prior to joining Capital in 1996, he was a communications consultant for many years, specializing in internal change communication. He holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from California State University at Fullerton. A member and a past director of the IABC, he has served as chair of the organization’s international awards program as well as president of the Los Angeles chapter.
Jennifer Frahm, Ph.D., is the founder of Conversations of Change®, a boutique consultancy that specializes in change communication, building change capability in house, coaching change agents and leaders, and conducting off-site retreats on career and work-life change. She has change management experience in financial services, higher education, energy, innovation, human services, and manufacturing. This work has involved providing strategic advice to senior management, diagnosis of communications problems, and analysis of change interventions with an emphasis on change program effectiveness. She holds a doctorate in management, is the 2010–2011 IABC Victoria Australia chapter president, blogs on the IABC eXchange, and can be found on Twitter (@jenfrahm).
Kellie Garrett, ABC, is senior vice president of strategy, knowledge, and reputation at Farm Credit Canada (FCC). She is responsible for FCC’s business strategy, knowledge management and strategic intelligence, and reputation, including corporate communications. Her team has won dozens of awards for innovative and best practice programs in diverse areas. She is a frequent speaker in her areas of expertise and a passionate volunteer for boards in the areas of corporate social responsibility and autism. Garrett was chair of IABC’s Research Foundation Board in 2006. She holds an M.A. in leadership and is a certified executive coach.
Diane M. Gayeski, Ph.D., is internationally recognized as a thought leader in organizational communication and learning. Currently she is the dean of the Roy H. Park School of Communications. For more than thirty years, she has been both an academic and a professional specializing in corporate communications strategy and management. She leads Gayeski Analytics and consults with clients worldwide such as General Electric, U.S. Navy, Abbott Nutritionals, Tompkins Financial, and Johnson Controls. The author of fourteen books, she is a frequent speaker at conferences and private executive briefings.
Tamara L. Gillis, Ed.D., ABC, is professor and chairman of the Department of Communications at Elizabethtown College, Pennsylvania. She has also served as a communications consultant with Cooper Wright LLC. In her career, she has led communication programs for higher education institutions, associations, and a health care corporation. She has served as faculty in Swaziland, Namibia, and the Semester at Sea program. The IABC Research Foundation honored her with the 2004 Foundation Lifetime Friend Award. In 2001–2002 she chaired the IABC Research Foundation. She has held leadership positions at the district and international levels of IABC, and she recently led the organization’s efforts to revise the ABC accreditation program. The author of numerous articles and book chapters, she is coauthor of Essentials of Employee Communication: Building Relationships that Create Business Success (IABC, 2008) and IABC Profile Study: Trends in Communication Profession Compensation (IABC, 2008), and author of The Human Element: Employee Communication Practices in Small Businesses (IABC, 2008). She holds a doctorate in education from the University of Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania).
Patrick Grady is senior vice president and managing partner of CMS Communications International, an innovative communication agency based in Los Angeles. He heads up the CMS consulting business and is based in Orlando, Florida. Prior to joining CMS he held numerous positions in marketing communications, events management, and strategic and internal communications with companies including RadioShack Corporation, commercial radio stations, and an international television network. His career has included media production, executive producer, on-air talent, and presentation coach as well as strategic communicator.
Lin Grensing-Pophal, M.A., SPHR, PCM, is a communications consultant and business journalist with an extensive background in strategic marketing, corporate communications, and employee relations. She has led several strategic planning initiatives in the areas of crisis management and marketing planning. As a National Baldrige examiner, Pophal has been involved in the development of applications and the individual and consensus review and scoring of Baldrige applications for large and small organizations. She is the author of several books, including Marketing with the End In Mind (IABC, 2005) and Human Resource Essentials (SHRM, 2002). She is the coauthor of Writing a Convincing Business Plan, third edition (Barron’s Educational Series, 2001).
James E. Grunig is professor emeritus in the Department of Communication at the University of Maryland. He has won three major awards in public relations: the Pathfinder Award for excellence in public relations research of the Institute for Public Relations Research and Education, the Outstanding Educator Award of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), and the Jackson, Jackson and Wagner Award for behavioral science research of the PRSA Foundation. He also won the prestigious lifetime award of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, the Paul J. Deutschmann Award for Excellence in Research.
Larissa A. Grunig is professor emerita in the Department of Communication at the University of Maryland. She served as special assistant to the president of the university for women’s issues. She has received the Pathfinder Award, sponsored by the U.S. Institute for Public Relations, for excellence in public relations research, the Outstanding Educator Award of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), and the Jackson, Jackson and Wagner Award for behavioral science research of the PRSA Foundation. She coauthored the first book on women in public relations.
Shel Holtz, ABC, IABC Fellow, is principal of Holtz Communication + Technology, a consultancy that helps organizations apply online technology to their organizational communications. He has spent more than thirty years in the communications field as a director of corporate communications for two Fortune 500 companies and as a senior communications consultant for two human resource consulting firms. He is the author of Public Relations on the Net and Corporate Conversations.
John Larsen, ABC, is principal of Corpen Group, Inc., an independent consultancy specializing in reputation management and government relations. He has held senior communications positions with various orders of government and in the corporate sector, including manager of executive communications for the City of Calgary and associate vice president with an international public affairs and government relations consulting agency. Larsen has lectured at four Canadian colleges and universities, is a popular industry and academic conference speaker, and has a graduate degree in communications; he is an Accredited Business Communicator, a certified member of the American Institute for Crisis Management, a member of the U.S.-based Issue Management Council, and holds formal United Nations status as an International Permanent Observatory Expert. John is also a senior reserve officer in the Canadian Forces Public Affairs Branch.
Wilma K. Mathews, ABC, IABC Fellow, has more than three decades of experience in domestic and international public relations and communication management. She is author and coauthor of numerous books and a contributor to several magazines, newsletters, and reports. Mathews is an internationally known speaker, provides counsel to organizations on strategic and media relations planning, and currently serves as chair of the IABC Ethics Committee. She previously served as chair of the IABC Research Foundation and the Accreditation Council and as a member of the IABC executive board. She is a Gold Quill winner for media relations and writing. She is a member of the Rowan University PR Hall of Fame and has taught at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism & Mass Communications at Arizona State University.
Mary Ann McCauley, ABC, president and principal of Catalyst Communications, provides strategic communication counsel to a broad spectrum of businesses and nonprofits. McCauley provides general communication counsel with a focus on strategic communication planning and implementation. Prior to founding Catalyst Communications in 1987, she held positions in corporations including Hallmark Cards, United Technologies Communications Company, and First Union Bancorporation. A former journalist, she was a reporter at an Iowa daily and later owned and operated a community newspaper in Kansas. She holds a bachelor of journalism degree from the University of Missouri.
Mark McElreath, ABC, APR, Ph.D., is a professor at Towson University in Maryland, and a member of IABC for more than thirty years. He can be reached at [email protected].
George McGrath is a partner and founder of McGrath Matter Associates, a public relations and public affairs consulting firm. Over the course of a twenty-five-year career in communications, McGrath has helped clients identify issues that are key to their success and develop business strategies and communications campaigns to influence the course of debates over public policy. He has worked with businesses, trade associations, and nonprofit organizations on a range of issues, including environmental protection, energy competition, health care delivery, and education. He served on the IABC international board between 1989 and 1994 and was IABC’s international chairman between 1992 and 1993.
Rita Linjuan Men is a doctoral student in public relations at the University of Miami’s School of Communication. She is a member of Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication and Public Relations Professionals Association in Hong Kong. She is a co-organizer for the International Public Relations Research Conference and a coauthor for the instructor’s manual companion to Don W. Stack’s Primer of Public Relations Research, 2nd edition. She earned her master of philosophy in communications studies from Hong Kong Baptist University and a B.A. in communication from Zhejiang University.
Sherwyn Morreale is associate professor and director of graduate studies in communication at University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. For eight years, she served as associate director of the National Communication Association. She has written or coauthored numerous journal articles, books, monographs, and book chapters. She holds communication degrees from University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and University of Colorado, Denver, and a Ph.D. in communication from University of Denver.
Alistair J. Nicholas is a frequent writer and commentator on reputation management. His career of more than twenty-five years spans journalism, politics, diplomacy, in-house communications counsel, and communications consulting across Australia, the United States, and China. He is currently the president and CEO of AC Capital Strategic Consulting, a firm he established in Beijing in 2003 to provide reputation management, public affairs, and issues and crisis management services to organizations operating in China. The firm’s clients include global Fortune 500 companies, Chinese state-owned enterprises, Chinese and foreign government agencies, and nonprofit organizations.
Morgan Leu Parkhurst is owner of Blue + Linen, an organization focused on helping businesses to develop their marketing communications strategies. She has been a subject matter expert on integrated marketing communications for SCORE and Small Business Development Center seminars, has taught marketing communications courses to business owners and managers, and has been a featured speaker at business conferences. She has written for nationally and internationally distributed publications on the topics of entrepreneurship, marketing, media relations, networking, and consumer behavior. She has an MBA in marketing from Iowa State University. She is the past president of IABC/Iowa.
Lester R. Potter, ABC, MBA, IABC Fellow, is a senior lecturer in the Department of Mass Communication and Communication Studies at Towson University in Maryland. He is also a doctoral candidate in instructional technology at Towson. He serves as faculty advisor to Towson’s Student PR Group, which includes PRSA and IABC student chapters. Potter blogs about strategic communication and public relations and integrated marketing communication in More with Les, at http://lespotter001.wordpress.com. Prior to joining Towson’s faculty, Potter was president of Les Potter Incorporated, an international consultancy that he founded. Potter was chairman of IABC from 1991 to 1992. He had previously served on IABC’s executive board, accreditation board, and as a trustee of the IABC Research Foundation. He is the author of The Communication Plan: the Heart of Strategic Communication (IABC, 2008) and Business Management for Communicators: Beyond Strategic Communication (IABC).
Paul M. Sanchez, ABC, APR, is founder of CSF Consulting, a research and communications firm. Prior to his current position, he worked for Mercer, Stoorza Communications, and Watson Wyatt Worldwide. His past IABC activities include executive board member, executive committee finance director, ethics committee chair, board member of IABC’s U.K. chapter, and chairman of the IABC Research Foundation (2005–2006). He has a B.Sc. in psychology and a M.Sc. in organizational communications. He also attended the Executive Leadership Development at the Harvard Business School. While in the United Kingdom he was elected to the Royal Society of Arts and Mechanics. He has contributed to professional journals and wrote Transformation Communications, published by IABC.
Caroline Sapriel is the founder and managing director of CS&A, a global risk and crisis management consulting firm with offices in Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, the United States, the United Arab Emirates, and Singapore. She regularly speaks at international conferences and seminars on risk and crisis management, has written numerous journal articles, and has been a guest lecturer at the graduate school of public administration of Leiden University. She has been a member of the IABC since 1987 and serves on the board of its Belgian Chapter. She holds a B.A. in Chinese studies and a B.Sc. degree in international relations from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
D. Mark Schumann, ABC, is passionate about all things brand and communication related. As a consultant, he has created employer brands for more than a hundred companies around the world; as an author, he has coauthored two books on employer brands, Brand from the Inside and Brand for Talent, and, as a volunteer, he is a past chair of IABC and an active participant in the development of the association’s brand. He is the winner of seventeen IABC Gold Quill Awards and a frequent IABC speaker and author. Today, he maintains a daily blog, www.acommunicatorsview.com, and leads a consultancy, How Brands Engage, based in Ridgefield, Connecticut.
Pamela Shockley-Zalabak is chancellor and professor of communication at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. She also is president of CommuniCon, a consulting group that specializes in leadership development, conflict resolution, and development of team-based organizations. The author of six books and numerous articles, Shockley-Zalabak focuses on large-scale organizational assessment and planning. She received her B.A. and M.A. from Oklahoma State University and her Ph.D. in communication from the University of Colorado at Boulder.
Lorenzo Sierra is a marketing communication and public affairs consultant based in Arizona and the marketing and public relations manager for LVM Systems, a software company for health care call centers. Before joining LVM, Sierra was the regional marketing director for a Fortune 100 health insurance company and a communication consultant at a Fortune 500 human resources consulting firm. He sits on the boards of BMA Phoenix, the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and Parenting Arizona. He is also an appointed commissioner on the Arizona Governor’s Commission on Service and Volunteerism. Lorenzo holds a B.A. in journalism from Arizona State University.
Don W. Stacks is professor and associate dean for Faculty Research and Creative Activity at the University of Miami’s School of Communication. Stacks is the author of numerous articles, chapters, books, and professional papers dealing with public relations. He is a member of the Arthur W. Page Society and Commission on Public Relations Measurement and sits on the board of trustees for the Institute for Public Relations. He earned his doctorate from the University of Florida.
Karen Vahouny, ABC, is a founding partner of Qorvis Communications. Earlier, she was vice president of corporate communications at PRC, an information technology company. She was elected to the board of trustees for the National Endowment for Financial Education in 2010. Twice named Business Communicator of the Year for IABC/Washington, Vahouny has served on the IABC executive board, the IABC Research Foundation board, presented at several international conferences, wrote articles for Communication World, and chaired the IABC Think Tank and the IABC investment committee. She serves on the board of directors for the Capital Area Chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute. She holds a B.S. in marketing from the University of Virginia and an M.B.A. in finance and management from George Mason University.
Mark Weiner is the chief executive officer of PRIME Research North America, one of the world’s largest public relations and corporate communications research and consulting providers. He is the author of Unleashing the Power of PR: A Contrarian’s Guide to Marketing and Communication (Wiley) and has contributed chapters to three other texts. He is a frequent speaker and a visiting professor for The Executive Education Programs, S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, and has guest-lectured at many of the nation’s leading public relations programs. He is a regular contributor to leading communication and public relations professional media and sits on the editorial advisory boards of the Strategist and PR News. Weiner is a member of The Institute for Public Relations, PRSA, IABC. He is a graduate of the University of Maryland.
Patricia T. Whalen is an educator and consultant with more than twenty years of professional work experience. She has served as the head of corporate communications for a Fortune 300 company and as marketing director for an international telecommunications firm. Since 2006 she has served as the graduate director for DePaul University’s master’s program in public relations and advertising. Prior to that, she spent eight years as a full-time faculty member in the Medill Integrated Marketing Communications graduate program at Northwestern University. She wrote How Communication Drives Merger Success (IABC, 2002). She has also written books on corporate communications and marketing public relations. She holds a doctorate in mass media from Michigan State University, a master’s of science degree in business administration from Indiana University at South Bend, and a bachelor’s degree in English from the Ohio State University.
Brad Whitworth, ABC, IABC Fellow, is senior communication manager at Cisco, based in San Jose, California. His work has earned him recognition as a thought leader in the field of internal communications. A former broadcaster, Whitworth speaks regularly to business executives, communication groups, and university classes around the world. Before joining Cisco in 2007, he led communication programs at HP, PeopleSoft, and AAA. While at HP he developed the merger communications for the $20 billion HP-Compaq PC business and managed the company’s Y2K communications program. He holds bachelor’s degrees in both journalism and speech from the University of Missouri and an MBA from Santa Clara University. He served as IABC chairman in 1989–1990 and has won six IABC Gold Quills.
Anna Marie Willey, ABC, is president of Total Communications Services Ltd., a communication consulting corporation based in Saskatchewan, Canada, with interest in local, national, and international projects. She has more than thirty years experience specializing in strategic communications management and planning and organizational development and implementation. Her prior roles have included overall responsibility for government communications while chief of communications for the Government of Saskatchewan, vice president of communications with SaskPower, and other executive-level strategic positions within government and major institutions. Throughout her career, she has received a number of honors and awards and has enjoyed many roles as an active volunteer with IABC serving at the local level as well as the international level as chair of the IABC Accreditation Council.
John Williams is president of Joe Williams Communications, Inc., a twenty-five-year-old communications research, training, and consulting firm. John has conducted communications measurement, including surveys, focus groups, and audits, for organizations of all sizes and industries. He developed his firm’s Performance Impact Analysis program, which identifies the key communications drivers of organizational performance. Joe Williams Communications has conducted communications surveys for more than a hundred companies and has a database that represents more than 500,000 global employees. You may reach John at [email protected], or visit www.jwcom.com.
Note
Editor’s Note: The following designations are used to identify accredited communicators: ABC designates Accredited Business Communicator through the International Association of Business Communicators; APR designates Accreditation in Public Relations through the Public Relations Society of America.
Part ONE: FOUNDATIONS OF BUSINESS COMMUNICATION
CHAPTER ONE
CHARACTERISTICS OF EXCELLENT COMMUNICATION
James E. Grunig, Larissa A. Grunig
When the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) Research Foundation issued a request for proposals in 1984 for research on “How, Why, and to What Extent Communication Contributes to the Achievement of Organizational Objectives,” we first thought of the opportunity to move beyond evaluating individual communication programs such as media, community, or employee relations, where we had previously conducted research, to construct a theory of the overall value of the public relations function to the organization. Thus, the Excellence study offered the possibility of constructing a theory of how public relations contributes to organizational effectiveness.
At the same time, our collaborators on the project (David Dozier, William Ehling, Fred Repper, and Jon White) noted that the project would make it possible to integrate a number of middle-range concepts that explained how the communication function should be organized to increase its value to the organization. James Grunig brought his concepts of publics, organizational theory and decision making, models of public relations, evaluation of public relations, and research on employee communication to the project. David Dozier contributed his and Glen Broom’s roles theory. William Ehling contributed his knowledge of operations research and his views on the controversy over public relations and integrated marketing communication. Larissa Grunig brought her knowledge of gender, diversity, power, activism, and organizational structure and culture. Jon White contributed his ideas about public relations and strategic management. To this mix, Fred Repper, our practitioner member of the team, added his understanding of how theories worked in practice. The package became what we now know as the Excellence theory.
Based on our research, we developed a generic benchmark (Fleisher, 1995) of critical success factors and best practices in communication management. In most public relations benchmarking studies, a researcher compares a communication unit with other units in its own industry that are generally recognized as the best. The Excellence study, by contrast, identified best practices across different types of organizations—corporations, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and associations. Generic benchmarking is more valuable than benchmarking a single case because it is unlikely that one organization will be “a world-class performer across the board” (Fleisher, 1995, p. 29). In the Excellence study, we found that a few organizations exemplified most of the best practices, many exemplified some, and others had few of these characteristics. A generic benchmark does not provide an exact formula or detailed description of practices that a communication unit can copy to be excellent. Rather, it provides a set of principles that professionals can use to generate ideas for specific practices in their own organizations.
We tested the Excellence theory through survey research of heads of public relations, chief executive officers (CEOs), and employees in 327 organizations (corporations, nonprofit organizations, government agencies, and associations) in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The survey research was followed by qualitative interviews with heads of public relations, other public relations practitioners, and CEOs in twenty-five organizations with the highest and lowest scores on a scale of Excellence produced by statistical analysis of the survey data. Three books were published from the research (Grunig, 1992; Dozier, Grunig & Grunig, 1995; & Grunig, Grunig, & Dozier, 2002).
In our first book, Excellence in Public Relations and Communication Management, Repper (1992) explained how the theory of Excellence can be used to audit communication programs: “One thing communicators never have been able to do is to compare our communication programs with a program that is considered the best and most effective. However, the normative theory provided in the book gives us an opportunity to measure the effectiveness of our communication programs against that of an ideal program” (Grunig, 1992, p. 112). Any professional communicator or executive to whom the communication function reports could conduct a formal or informal audit to compare that function with the generic benchmark we have developed. Professional communicators asked to serve as peer reviewers for other organizations could use the characteristics as a qualitative benchmark to frame their evaluation.
The Value of Communication to an Organization
IABC’s emphasis on explaining the value of public relations stimulated us to put measurement and evaluation into a broader perspective than the program level. Although program evaluation remained an important component of our theory, we realized that it could not show the overall value of the public relations function to the organization. Our review of the literature on organizational effectiveness first showed that public relations has value when it helps the organization achieve its goals. However, the literature also showed that it has to develop those goals through interaction with strategic constituencies (stakeholders and publics). We theorized that communication adds value when it helps the organization identify stakeholders and segment different kinds of publics from stakeholder categories. CEOs in the qualitative portion of the study, for example, emphasized that the communication function has value because it provides a broad, diverse perspective both inside and outside the organization. Second, we showed that public relations increases its value when it uses symmetrical communication to develop and cultivate relationships with strategic publics. If it develops good relationships with strategic publics, an organization is likely to develop goals desired by both the organization and its publics and to achieve those goals because it shares the goals and collaborates with publics. Similarly, CEOs emphasized the value of public relations in helping the organization deal with crises and conflicts with activist groups.
Although we concluded that it is difficult to place a monetary value on relationships with publics and the outside perspective of public relations, our interviews with CEOs and senior public relations officers revealed numerous examples of how public relations had reduced the costs of litigation, regulation, legislation, and negative publicity caused by poor relationships, issues, and crises; reduced the risk of making decisions that affect different stakeholders; or increased revenue by providing products and services needed by stakeholders. Those examples provided powerful qualitative evidence of the value of good relationships with strategic publics.
In addition to explaining the value of communication, the Excellence study provided solid theory and empirical evidence of how the function should be organized to maximize this value. The characteristics of an excellent public relations function can be placed into four categories, each containing several characteristics that can be audited.
For public relations to contribute to organizational effectiveness, the organization must empower public relations as a critical management function. Empowerment of the public relations function includes four characteristics:
1. The senior communication executive is involved with the strategic management processes of the organization, and communication programs are developed for strategic publics identified through this process. Public relations contributes to strategic management by scanning the environment to identify the publics affected by the consequences of decisions or that might affect the outcome of decisions. An excellent public relations department communicates with these publics to bring their voices into strategic management, thus making it possible for publics to participate in organizational decisions that affect them.
2. Communication programs organized by excellent departments to communicate with strategic publics also are managed strategically. To be managed strategically means that these programs are based on formative research, that they have concrete and measurable objectives, and that they are evaluated either formally or informally. In addition, the communication staff can provide evidence to show that these programs achieved their short-term objectives and improved long-term relationships between the organization and its publics.
3. The senior public relations executive is a member of the dominant coalition of the organization or has a direct reporting relationship to senior managers who are part of the dominant coalition. The communication function seldom will have the power to affect key organizational decisions unless the chief communication officer is part of or has access to the group of senior managers with the greatest power in the organization.
4. Diversity is embodied in all public relations roles. The principle of requisite variety suggests that organizations need as much diversity inside as in their environment if they are to interact successfully with all strategic elements of their environment. Excellent public relations departments empower both men and women in all roles as well as practitioners of diverse racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds.
Communicator Roles
Public relations researchers have identified two major roles that communicators play in organizations: the manager and technician roles. Communication technicians are essential to carry out most of the day-to-day communication activities of public relations departments, and many practitioners play both roles. In less excellent departments, however, all of the communication practitioners—including the senior practitioner—are technicians. If the senior communicator is not a manager, it is not possible for public relations to be empowered as a management function. Three characteristics of excellence in public relations are related to the managerial role:
1. The communication unit is headed by a strategic manager rather than a technician or an administrative manager. Excellent public relations units must have at least one senior communication manager who conceptualizes and directs communication programs. Otherwise, members of the dominant coalition who have little knowledge of communication management will supply this direction. In addition, the Excellence study distinguished between a strategic manager and an administrative manager. Administrative managers typically manage day-to-day operations of the communication function, personnel, and the budget; they generally are supervisors of technicians. Strategic managers provide communication strategies that support the business goals. If the senior public relations officer is an administrative manager, the department usually will not be excellent.
2. The senior communication executive or others in the public relations unit must have the knowledge needed for a strategic role. Excellent public relations programs are staffed by practitioners who have gained the knowledge needed to carry out the strategic manager role through university education, continuing education, or self-study.
3. Both men and women must have equal opportunity to occupy the managerial role. The majority of public relations professionals are women. If women are not considered for managerial roles, the communication function is diminished because many of the most knowledgeable practitioners are excluded from that role. When that is the case, the senior position in the communication department often is filled by someone from another managerial function who has little knowledge of public relations.
Organization of the Communication Function and Its Relationship to Other Management Functions
Many organizations have a single department devoted to all communication functions. Others have separate departments for programs aimed at different publics such as journalists, employees, the local community, or the financial community. Still others place communication under another managerial function such as marketing, human resources, legal, or finance. Many organizations also contract with or consult with outside firms for all or some of their communication programs or for such communication techniques as annual reports or newsletters. Two characteristics are related to the organization of the function:
1. Public relations should be an integrated communication function. An excellent public relations function integrates communication programs into a single department or provides a mechanism for coordinating programs managed by different departments. Only in an integrated system is it possible for public relations to develop new communication programs for changing strategic publics and to move resources from programs designed for formerly strategic publics to the new programs.
2. Communication should be a management function separate from other functions. Even though the communication function is integrated, it should not be placed under a management function such as marketing or human resources. When the public relations function is sublimated to other functions, it cannot be managed strategically because it cannot move resources from one strategic public to another—as an integrated public relations function can.
Models of Public Relations
Public relations scholars have conducted extensive research on the extent to which organizations practice four models of public relations—four typical ways of conceptualizing and conducting the communication function—and to identify which of these models provides a normative framework for effective and ethical public relations. These models are the (1) two-way symmetrical model of dialogue, collaboration, and public participation; (2) press agentry (emphasizing favorable publicity); (3) public information (disclosing accurate, but mostly favorable, information and conducting no research or other form of two-way communication); or (4) two-way asymmetrical (emphasizing the interests of the organization and excluding the interests of publics). The two-way symmetrical model produces better long-term relationships with publics than do the other models. Symmetrical programs balance the interests of organizations and publics in society.
The research for the Excellence study refined our understanding of these models by identifying four dimensions that underlie them: (1) symmetrical or asymmetrical, (2) two-way or one-way, (3) mediated or interpersonal, and (4) ethical or unethical. The two-way symmetrical model embodies the most desirable of these characteristics: symmetrical, two-way, both mediated and interpersonal, and ethical. The other models possess some but not all of these characteristics.
Four characteristics of Excellence, therefore, are related to models of public relations:
1. The public relations department and the dominant coalition share the worldview that the communication department should base its goals and its communication activities on the two-way symmetrical model of public relations.
2. Communication programs developed for specific publics are based on two-way symmetrical strategies for building and maintaining relationships.
3. The senior public relations executive or others in the public relations unit must have the professional knowledge needed to practice the two-way symmetrical model.
4. The organization should have a symmetrical system of internal communication.
A symmetrical system of internal communication is based on the principles of employee empowerment and participation in decision making. Managers and other employees engage in dialogue and listen to each other. Internal media disclose relevant information needed by employees to understand their roles in the organization. Symmetrical communication fosters a participative rather than an authoritarian culture as well as good relationships with employees.
Extending the Excellence Theory to a Global Theory
Through several studies conducted around the world, the Excellence theory has been expanded into a global theory that includes generic principles and specific applications. This theory falls between a theory that suggests an organization should practice public relations in exactly the same way in every country—usually the way it is practiced in the country where the headquarters of the multinational organization is located—and a theory suggesting that public relations must be practiced differently in every country because of cultural and other contextual conditions. Generic principles means that in an abstract sense, the principles of public relations are the same worldwide. Specific applications
