Qualifications: Damned if you Do, Damned if you Dont

So, have I just wasted £10,000? Well this was the debate in our final class. Is success in PR determined by personal qualities and contacts or is it dependent on Qualifications. I would hate to think that I have wasted money and time doing a MA in PR that has no relevance. However, let us think logically, its not about what’s lost. In every profession, there are qualities that the employer looks for in a potential employee. Some of these qualities are scooped out from the minute you enter the interview. Having a degree does not teach you skills or personal attributes; what is does teach you is how to strategically approach a situation.

My fellow classmates argue that journalists, broadcasters and people from other areas of media are gravitating towards the field of PR. This, they argue is not dependent on a degree in PR, but on transferable skills. Experience is often times the key element in getting a job, but let’s not stray from the point. PR is struggling to get professional status and one such way to achieve this status is by demanding that employers hire qualified practitioners.

Just a scroll through the criteria for getting a job in PR; majority of the jobs offered require only good communication skills and being able to cope in social settings. Those are personal attributes. As my classmate Andy (see his blog) so proudly pointed out in his debate, ‘I have just been made Head of Communications and I have no qualifications in PR whatsoever.’ No doubt qualifications are necessary as PR Week reported a rise in hiring graduates in 2008. CIPR head of professional policy Dawn Chapman said: ‘The growth in graduate recruitment is a good reflection of the quality of PR degrees now available and graduates.’ This she says will combine practice and theory thus allowing new recruits to hit the ground running.

The CIPR states on their website that In addition to experience, a formal education in PR will help to ensure you are employing a well-rounded practitioner. It has not stated that a degree is essential. They also stress that for some roles such as press officer and media relations, experience is needed within the relevant sector to give the individual an opportunity to build up an extensive network of media and industry contacts. There you go, contacts are very important if you want to succeed in PR.

As the saying goes, ‘Different strokes for Different folks’. I know in my country, Jamaica, whether it be a PR job or a Secretary, it does help if you have a long lost uncle or friend to pull a few strings. It doesn’t matter how ‘bright’ you were at Uni.

A qualification in PR is both admirable and desirable but not necessary for success; but for the sake of not losing my mind along with £10,000; I am going to remain on the fence in this debate.


References

PRWEEK Frontpage: Rise in hiring of graduates in Pr industry http://www.prweek.com/uk/search/article/833902/FRONT-PAGE-Rise-hiring-graduates-PR-industry/ [Accessed March 31, 2009]

CIPR website A guide to recruiting PR and Communication Professionals http://www.cipr.co.uk/recruit/index.htm [Accessed March 31, 2009]

Crisis Management.....Come out, Come out, wherever you Are!!

In the event of a crisis many company’s first instinct is to run away and hide. Others may choose to lie while others may just say they are ‘sorry’ and seek to make amends. What is the best way though for such situations to unfold? How an organization handles a crisis will determine the longevity of the company. If it is handled well…then BRAVO…more clients. On the contrary, if the crisis is allowed to get out of control you are looking at law suits dead people and angry family members. It is therefore extremely important to acknowledge a crisis as soon as it occurs. Timing is essential. For example, Odwella, a fruit juice company, immediately conducted a press conference to recall its product when it was revealed that it had implicated several cases of the E. coli virus. Corrective action was taken immediately thus garnering public support and trust.
While Odwella was quick in addressing the crisis, many companies take a different approach. Some companies choose to remain hidden and pray the crisis will just go away. Though there is no one way of dealing with a crisis…I am pretty sure that hiding is a bad idea.

When it was found that the Peanut Corporation of America had peanut butter that contained salmonella, the president of the company Stewart Parnell went into hiding. He refused to do interviews and the PR company did very little to manage the crisis. He is currently going through a court hearing.
In the event of a crisis at least let the public know what is happening. Denial might work, as it did in the case of Pepsi, but it is not really advisable. Be honest, even when it hurts. It will pay off in the long run.



References:


Gentry, Bryant. Peanut Company and its President keeping a Low Profile Feb. 7, 2009 http://www.newsadvance.com/lna/news/local/article/peanut_company_and_its_president_keeping_a_low_profile/13247/ [Accessed March 31, 2009]

Wilcox, Dennis, Philip Ault et al Public Relations Strategies and Tactics 6th ed. Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc. 2000

Social Marketing.....Is this PR?

Social Marketing is done to achieve change. By that I mean change for the greater good. Calls for social campaigns to change public attitudes and behavior have been at the core of strategies to solve teenage pregnancy, drug and alcohol abuse, poor nutrition, and the spread of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). In contemporary societies, social marketing is an underutilized but powerful means of changing behavior. (Kotler, 1989)

Kotler states the five steps of social marketing:

1) Analyzing the social marketing environment;
2) Researching and selecting the target adopter population;
3) Designing social marketing strategies;
4) Planning social marketing mix programs; and
5) Organizing, implementing, controlling, and evaluating the social marketing effort.

These stages, says Kotler, is what differentiates social marketing form other efforts to influence changes in social ideas and practices. It entails scientific research into the needs and desires of people. Surely, PR practitioners do a lot of planning, analyzing and research, but it is not ‘scientific’ enough to be called ‘Social Marketing’.

Sean Kidney, social marketing professional was the guest lecturer. He argues that one of the best ways to achieve social change is to make it harder for people to the thing you are trying to change. That’s a whole ‘nother topic. Here I believe we are talking about changing laws and regulations. I am not quite sure how this is a PR practitioner’s role.

All throughout this lecture, I was wondering ‘what is my role as a communicator in social marketing’. Mr. Kennedy pointed out that 95% of communications campaigns are linear and therefore that makes no sense. He instead, proposed that PR practitioners focus on groups that will influence change. OH, so now I see. My role is to persuade or convince those who influence the target group? Hmmmm…why not influence them all or is this just the marketer’s way of using the PR practitioner? According to Kotler, a combination of traditional approaches to social change and advances in communication and marketing skills is necessary to achieve overall change. Oh well….. thats where I come in...the issue needs to be communicated!



References:

Kotler, P. Social Marketing: Strategies for changing Public Behavior
http://db.jhuccp.org/ics-wpd/exec/icswppro.dll?BU=http://db.jhuccp.org/ics-wpd/exec/icswppro.dll&QF0=DocNo&QI0=060591&TN=Popline&AC=QBE_QUERY&MR=30%25DL=1&&RL=1&&RF=LongRecordDisplay&DF=LongRecordDisplay
[Accessed Mar. 30, 2009]

Corporate Social Responsibility

As defined by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), CSR is the continuing commitment by business to behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as the local community and society at large. (http://www.amcham.com.tw/content/view/2444/387/). In other words CSR is the voluntary efforts a company undertake to gain the trust or acceptance of the public. Some companies motives for implementing a Corporate Social Responsibility into their strategy is usually based on ethical behaviour.
The question is how ethical can it be to slowly kill people or destroy a community dating back to medieval times? How much money can you give or schools can you build to justify the ills caused to people and the environment? One most important factor in any business is people. A corporation must conduct relations with employees and other stakeholders with an even handed policy while working to heed the desires and attitudes of people in the community where it operates (Wilcox, p.291). There are three ways in which corporations try to ‘bond’ with stakeholders:

Community Relations
Corporate Philanthropy
Environment

Depending on which one suits the organization best or sometimes all three, they may embark on this ‘I care about you’ campaign to gain the hearts and minds of the people…..really?... not their money? In my opinion, companies carry out CSR because they need people on their side. The best way to defeat competition is to integrate with the people you are targeting. The more people I give scholarships, the more my business will prosper. So then, is it really just to ‘give back’ to the community or employees, or is it because I need you on my side? Does CSR really exist or is it just another way of publicising your business? Not only that, but what about the ethical issues?

Though companies may carry out their services in an efficient manner, they may be viewed by the public as misleading or untrustworthy. This is where Public Relations Practitioners come in; they need to make sure that the public perception of the company is in-line with their values. The practitioner’s job is to portray the company’s image as one that fosters the social well being of stakeholders; additionally, practitioners must work outside the company to convince the public that the corporation is a worthy, caring and trusted corporate entity.

Community Relations seems the most likely candidate for most CSR programs. Good good, lets beautify the community park and then we will get them to love us!

References:

American Chamber of Commerce in Taipei CSR Luncheon: Building Trust in Business - Why Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) matters http://www.amcham.com.tw/content/view/2444/387/ May 30, 2008 [Accessed Mar. 11, 2009]