CORPORATE COMMUNICATION

Communications theories : 

1 Communications theories RAMAKANT SINGH ramakantsingh@ymail.com 9716885547

Know Each-other : 

Know Each-other For ex: What is your passion in life? Where would you most like to visit/travel? What would you change if you could? What music/food/weather do you most enjoy? What do you like best: words, numbers, pictures or sounds? What is your most under-used strength

Self awareness… : 

Self awareness… Instructions: Introduce yourself in turn by stating your name one true statement about yourself, and one false statement about yourself so as to make it difficult for the group to determine which is the true fact and which is the lie. You have 30 seconds to think of your statements, after which each person makes their statements, pausing after each truth and lie for the group to decide which is which. 3

Tarot cards : 

Tarot cards Choose a card from the pack Study it thoroughly Make meaning out of it under following situations one after the other: In Difficult situations, its your solution During emotional stress – a soother/releaser Pressured situation- a companion Isolation – a helping hand. 4

Tuning the Untuned : 

Tuning the Untuned Start with alphabet one after the other Make word from every alphabet telling about you Then join all the words Now express yourself in using different genres of writing OR Make a jingle and sing with the class 5

McLuhan’s Theory : 

McLuhan’s Theory During the 1960s, a Canadian literary scholar Marshal McLuhan, had a profound understanding of electronic media & its impact on both society & cultures. He focused on the cultural role of popular media As changes in communication technology inevitably produce profound changes in both culture & social order. He is said to be the technological determinist He proclaimed that medium is the message. In other words, new forms of media transform our experience of ourselves & our society & this influence is more important than the content that is transmitted in its specific messages.

McLuhan’s Theory : 

McLuhan’s Theory He suggested the term global village- refer to the new form of social organization, as electronic media has tied the entire world into one great social, political & cultural system. He proclaimed the media to be the extensions of man & argued that media quite literally extend sight, hearing & touch through time & space. Concept of hot & cool media. Hot media are high in definition, they provide much information eg print media. 7

McLuhan’s Theory : 

McLuhan’s Theory Cool media requires consumers to fill in the blank to make meaning because they are cool, the consumer must make the heat eg TV McLuhan was thus the prophet with honor that of media industries. His ideas were used to rationalize rapid expansion of electronic media with little concern for their negative consequences. 8

McLuhan’s Theory : 

McLuhan’s Theory Acc to him, media has the power to alter sensory organization & thought & thereby alter society, eventually media can alter patterns of perceptions. Media has ‘retribalised’ man in a new way. But this theory is criticised on the grounds that he chooses to ignore the content of mass communication while focusing on the medium itself. 9

Developing corporate communication strategies : 

Developing corporate communication strategies It depends on: The organization The constituents Messages or images 10

Developing corporate communication strategies : 

Developing corporate communication strategies Setting a effective organization strategy : Determining what the objectives are for the particular communication Deciding what resources are available for achieving those objectives Money Human resources Time - Diagnosing the organization's image credibility 11

Developing corporate communication strategies : 

Developing corporate communication strategies 2. Analyzing constituencies: it determines Who your organization’s constituents are What each constituent thinks about the organization What each constituent knows about the communication in question 12

Organization's constituents : 

Organization's constituents Primary Employees Customers Shareholders communities Secondary Media Suppliers Government local regional national - creditors 13

Developing corporate communication strategies : 

Developing corporate communication strategies 3. Delivering message appropriately : It includes – Deciding communication channels Structure messages carefully : direct or indirect 14

Centralize or Decentralize : 

Centralize or Decentralize Centralized – its easier to gain consistency control for all communication activities at the top of the organization Decentralization : gave individual business units an opportunity to adapt the function to their own needs rather than the needs of the organization as a whole. 15

Various CC Activities : 

Various CC Activities Media/press relations Speechwriting Employee communication Corporate advertising Community relations Creative services Video/AV/ Teleconferencing Issue analysis Stockholder relations Investor relations Government relations 16

Ideal structure for CorpComm function : 

Ideal structure for CorpComm function Chairman/CEO President/COO VP Marketing, finance, production, human resource, corporate communication, geneal counsel (Under CC) – director media relations, investor relations, employee communication, government affairs. 17

Functions within the function : 

Functions within the function Corporate image & identity Corporate advertising & advocacy Media relations Marketing communications Financial communications Employee communications Community relations Corporate philanthropy Government affairs Crisis communication 18

Image & Identity : 

Image & Identity Determining how a firm wants to be perceived & how it chooses to identify itself Image is the reflection of the organization’s reality. Identity is the visual manifestation of the company’s reality as seen in logo, its building, its stationary & even in employee uniforms. It requires skills like the ability to conduct market research, design attractive brochures & to police identity standards. 19

Corporate advertising & advocacy : 

Corporate advertising & advocacy Image can also be reflected in a company’s corporate advertising which is different from its product advertising in 2 ways: It does sell product/service but the company itself Issue advertising which attempts to influence the key people attitudes about specific issues that affect the company. Corporate advertising runs from CEO’s office or through CC dept instead of marketing dept. 20

Media Relations : 

Media Relations The always increasing role of the electronic media (Internet, newspapers, magazines, radio, and television) has created a special importance for media relations. In fact, the news media have become dependent on PR for news, and PR has become dependent upon the news media for publicity.

Media relations : 

Media relations The personnel from CC dept deal with the media as a spokesperson for the firm It is proactive in setting the agenda for discussion of the firm in the media Satellite-links up available at corporate headquarters put their press-release directly for media exposure 22

Marketing communications : 

Marketing communications Product publicity, customer relations & product advertising that ultimately reflects on the corporate image Product publicity includes sponsorship of events, celebrities are involved in shaping a company’s image by setting an agenda. Customer relations activities are necessary to handle the pressure groups among customers. 23

Financial communications : 

Financial communications Also called shareholders or investor’s relations Investor or financial relations must focus on stockholders and stakeholders out of necessity. It’s the LAW, and it pays dividends. It requires an annual meeting, timely disclosure of financial information, and many other regulations. But, it is wise to do it anyway to keep the reputation of a corporation in tact.

Employee Relations : 

Employee Relations Internal communication is the key: informed employees are happy and they spread the good news through their families and friends. Never surprise employees; make them a part of the planning process and keep them informed.

Employee relations : 

Employee relations Training programmes need to be explained New employees need to receive orientation Employee no longer needed must be helped along in their job search 26

Community relations : 

Community relations Corporate philanthropy include donating funds to those organizations that could benefit the firm’s employees, customers or stakeholders. 27

Government relations : 

Government relations Also termed as public affairs Public utilities & other heavy regulated areas require a focus on such relations in terms of keeping updates of change in policy, providing timely reports & other important information to the governing body. 28

Dealing with Stakeholders : 

Dealing with Stakeholders It is important to recognize stakeholders (those with a vested interest in a specific industry within corporate). It’s not only socially responsible to deal effectively with these stakeholders, it pays in good will and financial stability. Monitoring and managing key issues and moving to offset crisis and emergency situations in a pro-active way is essential to sold corporate relations today. The hottest issues in corporate today are the environment, health and safety, and honesty toward all stakeholders, especially to the media, stockholders, the government, and special interest groups.

Advertising Relations : 

Advertising Relations Advertising writing and production is usually outsourced today. Market analysis is imperative; ratings, circulation, visits, are all important. Reach & frequency are important. Media buying is an important part of corporate communication. Sufficient advertising knowledge and skill are essential for a professional communicator today

Relations with Special Interest Groups : 

Relations with Special Interest Groups There are literally thousands of special interest and activist groups in India today. If there’s a cause, some group will pick it up. Defending corporate world from frivolous lawsuits and harassment from these groups has become a full time job in itself.

Quick games : 

Quick games Instruction to group: You are invited to a fancy dress party which requires that your costume says something about you. What costume would you wear and why? Take two minutes to think of your answer.

Drawing game : 

Drawing game Equipment required: Pens/pencils and paper. Instruction to group: One person starts by drawing a shape or outline. The drawing is then passed to the next team member who must add to the drawing. Time spent by each person in turn on the drawing is limited to 5 seconds. No discussion is permitted during the drawing. The drawing must be completed in one minute.

Review : 

Review Did the team draw anything recognizable? How easy was the understanding between team members? How did team members work differently on this task? What was the effect of time pressure? Was there a natural tendency to draw supportively and harmoniously, or were there more conflicting ideas? 34

Coin Logo Ice-breaker : 

Coin Logo Ice-breaker Take two coins You have one minute to make a personal logo - representing yourself - from the coins. Logo should be different and others than will first make meaning out it After that the person will explain the logic behind using that logo.

Scope of Corporate Communication : 

Scope of Corporate Communication Corporations - Departments with the tasks such as community relations and marketing communications dealing with an organization's reputation and service to clients. Nonprofit Agencies - Options ranging from membership organizations to social and cultural groups, hospitals, and health care agencies offer public relations opportunities where fund raising is always involved. Entertainment, Sports and Travel - Communicators in these areas are usually concerned with press agentry and promotion of events. Publicity is an important part of practitioner duties here. *Government and Military - Here communicators focus on promotion of political issues (often including lobbying), information dissemination about government activities to citizens, and information distribution to and about the military. Education - Higher education opportunities cover relationships with alumni, faculty and administration, students, and the general public promoting the college image, recruiting students, and raising funds. International - With today's almost instantaneous global communication, intriguing new areas have opened. These areas are particularly desirable for bilingual or multilingual practitioners who are familiar with many cultures.

Management Perspective in Corporate Communication : 

Management Perspective in Corporate Communication Strategic and Operational Management Knowledge Develop strategies for solving public relations and communication problems. Manage the organization's response to issues. Develop goals and objectives for the communication department. Prepare a departmental budget. Manage people.  Research Knowledge Perform environmental scanning. Determine public relations to your organization. use research to segment publics. Conduct evaluative research.

Management Perspective in Corporate Communication : 

Management Perspective in Corporate Communication Negotiation Knowledge Negotiate with an activist public. Help management to understand the opinions of particular publics. Use theories of conflict resolution in dealing with publics.  Persuasion Knowledge Persuade a public that you organization is right on an issue. Use attitude theory in a campaign. Get publics to behave as your organization wants ,

Outsourcing of Corporate Communication : 

Outsourcing of Corporate Communication Among the most alarming trends in corporate communications today is the great amount of outsourcing used by major companies today. Nearly 47% of Fortune 500 companies are increasingly outsourcing communications work to advertising and marketing communications agencies and public relations firms.

What does this outsourcing trend mean for professional communication careers? : 

What does this outsourcing trend mean for professional communication careers? It really is not a danger sign of declining corporate communication careers. Rather, it’s a redefinition of the type of corporate communication practiced today. The growth today in corporate communication is primarily one of agency and firm employment.