The IABC Excellence Study

1. The IABC Excellence Study October 2006 Taipei Larissa A. Grunig Professor Emerita Department of Communication University of Maryland .

2. About the Excellence Study • 310 organizations, of mixed size and effectiveness • Communication heads; CEOs; 3,400 employees. • Canada, UK, and US • 1,700 questions from each organization • 25 qualitative cases • Three books published

3. Research Question 1The Effectiveness Question How, why, and to what extent does communication affect the achievement of organizational objectives?

4. Organizational Effectiveness What makes an organization effective? To show that public relations has value to the organization, we must be able to show that effective communication programs and functions contribute to organizational effectiveness.

5. Value of Public Relationsto an Organization • Helps reconcile the organization's goals with the expectations of its strategic publics. • 2. Builds quality, long-term relationships with strategic publics. • These contributions have monetary value to the organization.

6. Value of Public Relations to Society Organizations have an impact beyond their own bottom line. They also affect other individuals, publics, and organizations in society. As a result, organizations cannot be said to be effective unless they also are socially responsible; and public relations can be said to have value when it contributes to the social responsibility of organizations.

7. Using Compensating Variation to Measure the Value of the Public Relations Function • CEOs report 186% return on investment in communication function for all organizations • CEOs with excellent communication programs report 225% return on investment in public relations

8. Problems in Putting a Monetary Value on Relationships • Returns are long-term. • Returns are lumpy. • Value occurs when something does not happen.

9. Effects of Excellent Communication • Meets communication objectives • Establishes good, long-term relationships with publics • Manages conflict to reduces costs of regulation, legislation, litigation, pressure, and negative publicity • Contributes to employee satisfaction

10. Research Question 2The Excellence Question What characteristics of a public relations/ communication department increase the likelihood that it will contribute to organizational effectiveness?

11. Empowerment of Public Relations In effective organizations, the senior public relations officer is part of or has access to the group of senior managers who make decisions in the organization.

12. Integrated Public Relations Function All public relations functions are integrated into a single department or have a mechanism to coordinate the departments. In an integrated system, public relations can develop new communication programs for changing strategic publics.

13. Public Relations a Management Function Separate From Other Functions Many organizations splinter the public relations function by making it a supporting tool for other departments such as marketing, human resources, law, or finance. When the public relations function is sublimated to other functions, it cannot be managed strategically because it cannot move communication resources from one strategic public to another—as an integrated public relations function can.

14. Summary of Excellence Results Related to Organization of Function • It makes little difference whether public relations and marketing are housed in separate departments or one department. What matters is the understanding of the public relations function. • The relative size of the budgets also makes little difference. • However, when marketing communication dominates how senior managers think about public relations, excellence in public relations declines.

15. Overall Excellence by Support for Public Relations

16. Public Relations Unit Headed by a Manager Rather Than a Technician Technicians are essential to carry out day-to-day communication activities. Yet, excellent public relations units have at least one senior manager who directs public relations programs or this direction is supplied by other members of the dominant coalition who have no knowledge of public relations.

17. Involvement of Public Relations in Strategic Management An organization that practices public relations strategically develops programs to communicate with the strategic publics, both external and internal, that provide the greatest threats to and opportunities for the organization.

18. Public Relations Contributes to Strategic Management by: • Participating in management decision-making to identify consequences on publics. • Segmenting stakeholders and publics. • Using communication to cultivate relationships with strategic publics. • Influencing management behavior. • Measuring the quality of relationships.

19. Two-Way Symmetrical Model of Public Relations • Based on research • Dialogical and balanced • Can be either interpersonal or mediated • Is ethical • Uses communication to manage conflict and improve understanding with strategic publics

20. Knowledge for Managerial Role and Symmetrical Public Relations Excellent programs are staffed by professionals—people who are educated in the body of knowledge, are active in professional associations, and read professional literature.

21. Symmetry in Internal Communication • Decentralized management structures give autonomy to employees, allowing them to participate in decision-making. • They also have participative, symmetrical systems of internal communication. • Symmetrical communication increases satisfaction with the organization because employee goals are incorporated into the organizational mission.

22. Organizational Context • Participative rather than authoritarian culture • Organic rather than mechanical structure • Activist pressure from the environment • Programs to reduce discrimination and to enhance the careers of women

23. Diversity Requisite variety: Effective organizations have as much diversity inside the organization as in the environment. Excellent public relations includes both men and women in all roles, as well as practitioners of different racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds.

24. Results Related to Women in Public Relations • Communication is equally likely to be excellent when the top communicator is a man or woman. • Gender makes little difference in the role enacted by top communicators, in the role expectations of CEOs, and in the expertise of the public relations department

25. More Results Related to Women in Public Relations • Female PR heads are more likely to play dual manager-technician roles than are men—even in organizations with excellent public relations departments. • Women may have less opportunity than men to gain strategic expertise because of the time they must spend doing technical tasks.

26. Globalization of Public Relations • Generic principles: The characteristics of excellent public relations • Specific applications needed for: Culture Political system Economic system Extent of activism Level of development Media system

27. Complete Results ofThe Excellence Study • Larissa A. Grunig, James E. Grunig, & David M. Dozier (2002). Excellent Public Relations and Effective Organizations: A Study of Communication Management in Three Countries. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Available online at http//:www.erlbaum.com.

28. Other Books in the Excellence Series • James E. Grunig (ed.). (1992). Excellence in Public Relations and Communication Management. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. • David M. Dozier with Larissa A. Grunig & James E. Grunig (1995). Manager’s Guide to Excellence in Public Relations and Communication Management. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

29. Women in Public Relations • Larissa A. Grunig, Elizabeth Lance Toth, & Linda Childers Hon (2001). Women in Public Relations: How Gender Influences Practice. Guilford Publications.