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Defining Public Relations as a Strategic Management Function

Defining Public Relations as a Strategic Management Function. PUBLIC RELATIONS IN THE ORGANISATION, ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING Learning Unit 1.4 3 March 2011. Review: Public Relations functions. What is meant by a Public Relations function?

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Defining Public Relations as a Strategic Management Function

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  1. Defining Public Relations as a Strategic Management Function PUBLIC RELATIONS IN THE ORGANISATION, ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING Learning Unit 1.4 3 March 2011

  2. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Review: Public Relations functions • What is meant by a Public Relations function? • Differentiate between a Public Relations role and function • Describe Public Relations functions with an example of each and the level at which they are implemented • Identify Public Relations roles, differentiating between traditional and contemporary roles

  3. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Outcomes Public Relations and other management functions (pp 38-41) The Public Relations process (pp 41-43) Issues and trends in PR (pp 43-46) Issues management Environmental scanning Change management Additional reading (p 56)

  4. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Public Relations in the organisation • Public Relations is a management function at the same level as other management functions in the organisation • Public Relations manager has decision-making authority and provides input to corporate policies • The placement of the Public Relations group suggests: • the value of its function to the organisation • its relationship with other departments regarding coordination, communication and authority • top management’s view of its importance • The more responsive Public Relations is to the organisation’s strategy, the broader the scope of its operation and impact will be within the organisation (Rensburg & Cant, 2003)

  5. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Public Relations and other management functions • Organisation’s activities are divided into seven groups • Close interaction between Public Relations and other management functions to plan communication at a strategic level • Strategic level planning ensures that the plan supports organisational goals Seven areas of management • General management • Marketing • Finance • Operations • Procurement • Human Resources • Public Relations

  6. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Management functions Function Description • Management • Marketing • Finance • Operations • Procurement • Human Resources • Public Relations • Formulates policy, develops strategies to uses resources effectively • Marketing of products and/or services • Facilitates acquisition, use and control of money to finance organisational activities • Products and services production and outputs • Acquisition of products and materials for organisation to function optimally • Appoints, develops, maintains resources • Establishes mutually beneficial relationships between organisation and stakeholders

  7. Public Relations-LU1.4- Issues Management & Environmental Scanning 23/2/2010 Authority in Public Relations Level of authority indicates the value and importance of Public Relations in the organisation and determines whether it is a staff function or line function (p 40) Public Relations should be a line function to be regarded as a strategic contributor to organisational effectiveness and efficiency

  8. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Staff and Line Functions Staff function Line function • Activities impact on line function through research, plans, technical knowledge, advice, recommendations • Lesser authority and takes responsibility only when recommendations are accepted • Example: Design and Production Department • Activities are essential for realising the goals and objectives of the organisation • Has authority and responsibility • Example: Finance, Human Resources, Marketing, Public Relations

  9. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Public Relations process The Public Relations process ensures the successful implementation of a strategy or campaign for the organisation The Public Relations process steps should be aligned with the organisation’s strategic planning process steps to ensure that the Public Relations strategy supports the organisation’s strategy in achieving its goals and objectives

  10. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Process steps of Public Relations 4-step PR process 10-step strategic planning process • Defining Public Relations issues through research • Development of a communication strategy with programmes, campaigns and an implementation plan • Implementation and monitoring • Evaluation • Problem or issue • Situation analysis (SWOT) • Programme goal • Public (who and how) • Objectives for each public • Actions for each public • Communication for each public: message and media strategies • Implementation plans: schedule, responsibilities, budget • Implementation: day-to-day operation, feedback, adjustment • Evaluation after completion

  11. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Environmental scanning Environmental scanning is the monitoring, evaluating and dissemination of information to key managers in the organisation Important aspect of strategic management because it creates the first link in the chain of perceptions and actions that permit the organisation to adapt to its environment

  12. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Environmental scanning [2] • Environments place constraints and impose contingencies on organisations • Competitiveness depends on the ability to monitor and adapt strategies based on information from environmental scanning • Environmental scanning: • is the acquisition and use of information about events, trends and relationships in external environments to assist management to plan future courses of action • helps organisations to understand external forces to develop responses that improve and secure their future positions • constitutes primary organisational learning and the ability to adapt to external changes

  13. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Environmental scanning [3] Environmental scanning is complementary to but different from information gathering • Competitor intelligence = profiling the nature and success of strategy changes of competitors and their responses to strategic moves of other firms and reactions to industry changes and environmental shifts • Competitive intelligence = monitoring competitive environments to inform management decision making about marketing, R&D, investment tactics and business strategies • Business intelligence = monitoring external environments for information relevant to decision-making processes, but also focuses on current competitors, international acquisitions and mergers and risk assessments

  14. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Environmental scanning [4] • Strategic management is a continuous process to match the organisation with its changing environment • Environmental scanning is the process of gathering strategic intelligence • The purpose of environmental scanning is to identify defined publics that are or will be affected by or involved in organisational policies and actions • Different types, models and techniques of environmental scanning: • Frequency of scanning • Scanning for analysis • Scanning for forecasting • Scanning for benchmarking

  15. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Environmental scanning [5] • Two most commonly used categories of environmental information are opportunities and threats, but organisational filters, such as strategy, prevents the recognition of all opportunities and threats by decision-makers • Not all environmental information is categorised in the same manner by all organisations • Selective perception focuses environmental scanning process on what is needed to execute organisational strategy and to ignore information that seems irrelevant to that strategy • Environmental scanning is used for management to understand the environment and think strategically as quickening pace of change requires more direct focus on environments – the more dynamic the environment, the great impact on organisational strategies

  16. Public Relations-LU1.4- Issues Management & Environmental Scanning 23/2/2010 Use of the Internet in Environmental Scanning Sources of information Four modes of scanning Usefulness of sources of information

  17. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Information sources Three categories: • Documentary information such as trade/academic journals, newspaper-type publications, practitioner-oriented and business magazines and the Internet • Human information such as sales people, competitors, consultants, friends, customers and employees • Combination of both to provide human and documentary-type input • Scanning looks for and at information • Makes use of four modes of viewing and searching

  18. Public Relations-LU1.4- Issues Management & Environmental Scanning 23/2/2010 Modes of Internet scanning • Undirected viewing – scan broadly and develop peripheral vision to see and think outside the box • Conditioned viewing – tracks trends and give early warning about emerging issues • Informal search – profiles issue allowing organisation to identify main features and assess potential impact • Formal search – systematically gathers all relevant information about an issue to enable intelligent decision- making • Four scanning modes supported by a continuum of online content gathering

  19. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Modes of Internet scanning Undirected viewing Conditioned viewing Informal search Formal search Sensing Sense making Learning Deciding • WWW, Internet services • Secondary sources • External reports, forecasts • Novelty, variety • Coarse-grained, fuzzy focus • Many-to-many communication • Online database search services • Primary sources • Internet analysis, sense making • Accuracy, actionable • Fine-grained, sharp focus • One-to-one communication

  20. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Usefulness of sources and information Sources of strategic information classified as: External and internal – originating from outside and within the organisation Personal and impersonal – originating from personal contacts inside or outside then organisation and from non-personal sources such as documents, reports, scenarios and published papers

  21. LU1.4- Management Functions, Process, Issues & Trends 3 March 2011 Homework In a business report format present a discussion on the online campaign against Coca-Cola (Student Manual p51) Visit the websites listed and examine the information Summarise the issues of the campaign against the company List five recommendations of how Coca-Cola can use environmental scanning to avoid a recurrence of such publicity

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