The Future of Corporate Social Responsibility & Public Relations

The Future of Corporate Social Responsibility & Public Relations

Public Relations practitioners can no longer afford to take the back seat when it comes to encouraging corporate social responsibility. I recently read an article regarding Wal-Mart and it’s poor reputation. According to the article, Fortune magazine reported Wal-Mart as the “most admired company” in 2004. It went on to add that although it may be the most admired company, it is also among the most sued. Wal-Mart has been forced into court appearances for sexual discrimination charges and wage violations. Many believe that no matter how talented a PR practitioner is, until Wal-Mart changes their policies and commit to a more socially responsible mission, they will always have the reputation of being ‘unfair or unreasonable to their employees’.

This article made me realize that the role of PR practitioners has changed over the years. We are no longer just responsible for handling the after effects of a decision made by upper management, but are now taking on a more proactive approach. The challenge for internal and external public relations people is to lead organizations in more socially responsible practices. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) involves operating a business in a manner that meets or exceeds the ethical, legal, commercial and public expectations that society has of business. The aim of CSR is achieving sustainable development not only in the economical dimension but also in the social and environmental dimensions. Public relations have been called the “conscience” of management, which underscores PR’s role in reminding an organization of its social responsibility to all of its publics. I believe that the ‘modern’ PR practitioner is responsible for ensuring more socially responsible practices.

For more information regarding corporate social responsibility and public relations check out:
1. Article: Wal-Mart Tired of Critics’ Complaints. Retail Giant Goes on PR Offensive to Repair Image.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4130756/
This link is where I found the article on Wal-Mart and it’s poor reputation. The article outlines how Wal-Mart has been under attack for some of the store’s policies and how this has lead to bad publicity for the store.

2. Handling Bad Publicity. How to Cope When Bad News Breaks. http://www.bcentral.co.uk/business-information/marketing/marketing-methods/handling-bad-publicity.mspx
This is a great site because it provides some tips for handling bad publicity. Let’s face it, we will not always be able to control what management does, but we can minimize its negative effects. This is a great guidebook for any PR person entering the field.

3. The Canadian Public Relations Society http://www.cprs.ca/Welcome/e_Welcome.htm
This is a great website because you can navigate your way through various public relations topics including the code of professional standards for PR practitioners, accreditation, as well as a link for students.

Jasmine Foreman

Future PR Practitioner

The BlackBerry

 

The Blackberry is a PDA that allows its users to communicate with anyone, anytime through wireless Internet access. Research in Motion (RIM) is the creator and manufacturer of the Blackberry.

People use the Blackberry for email, phone, research, and as a personal organizer. The Blackberry is a useful device in a business and for personal lifestyle, which is further discussed in the details below. However, the Blackberry does have positive and negative aspects associated with its use.

The availability of the internet anywhere anytime is the prime basis of the blackberry. Wireless Internet allows people to stay in touch with anyone, anywhere, anytime through the use of email, messaging and phone calls. Other software available for the BlackBerry includes due date manager, travel programs that let you book vacations instantly and a golf score card. As mentioned earlier, the BlackBerry is therefore useful in business and personal life.

As a business device, statistics prove that using a BlackBerry increases productivity flow. These PDA’s are cost efficient and allow you to stay in touch with your clients and employees all the time. Whereas the blackberry as a personal device allows you to book trips anytime and schedule your daily activities. Whether you are at the grocery store or soccer game you can check your emails and be reachable.

Some of the negative causes of the blackberry (AKA crackberry) are that they are very addictive and actually cause health problems such as musculoskeletal disorders. Furthermore, using the Blackberry causes people to cross the line between work and personal time.

There are positive aspects of the Blackberry as well. During the hurricane season in Florida, power lines were out and the only means of communication were Blackberry’s. These little PDA’s are also statistically proven to increase productivity flow because things can be accomplished anytime, anywhere (Hotwire, the 53-minute Campaign).

Useful, convenient, and practical: I feel that the Blackberry is a great product for business and individuals. Its wireless Internet makes it simple to communicate with clients, friends, and family. Its added software allows you to personalize your Blackberry to fit your lifestyle. Overall, I felt that Blackberries had more positives than negatives and now I want one!!!!

 

Stacey Hunter  

Links

Hotwire, The 53-minute Campaign: http://www.ipra.org/library/docs/gwa5237.htm

In this website I found negative effects about BlackBerries and comments on the ways RIM tries to clean up their reputation. This website showed statistics about how much free time people save by using a BlackBerry.

RIM, Discover Blackberry http://www.discoverblackberry.com/discoverØ

This is where I began my research on Blackberrys. This page talked about different models, software and features of the Blackberry.

RIM’S Homepage, www.rim.comØ This is the website for the company that created the Blackberry. I used this website to see how Blackberry’s were created.

(edited by Carly Anlauf)

Pandemic Planning and PR.

I must admit, before I started my research, I was oblivious to the dangers pandemics present and oblivious to the need for planning, but not anymore. Pandemics are unpredictable and deadly. A pandemic essentially starts out as influenza from one species and mutates with an influenza strain from another species to develop a virus to which humans have no immunities and no vaccine for. (World Health Organization, 2005) Since there is no vaccine available (and a pandemic vaccine can only be made once a specific virus is identified) severe and lengthy illness and high fatality rates usually occur. The World Health Organization predicts the next pandemic will most likely kill 2-7.5 million people and will be world wide within three months (due to ease of global travel).

So what does this mean for PR professionals or businesses in general ? Well a lot actually.  It is estimated that at any one time, 40% of staff (at any business) could be off work nursing their own illness or that of a family member for weeks at a time. (Heffes, 2006) That means, certain jobs will have to be put on the back burner, and staff will probably have to be reassigned to essential jobs in order to keep business running smoothly. It is the job of the PR professional to ensure communication within an organization is clear and concise to avoid additional problems while a pandemic is occurring. It is also the job of the PR professional to liaison with the media to get the word out on what that particular company is doing to help with the pandemic. Working with health professionals is also important because they hold the key to fighting the pandemic, so the better communication a company has with the health professionals, the better off the employees of that company will be when it comes time to distribute a vaccine. Pandemics also pose a HUGE financial risk. “Experts say pandemics have the capability of killing over a half a million people in the U.S., hospitalizing more than 2 million and costing the U.S. economy a staggering $160 billion to $670 billion.” (Heffes, 2006) Once again, it is the part of the PR professional to ensure communication between their company and its financial partners is clear and concise to soften the financial blow as much as possible. PR professionals need to look at things like: insurance policies, capital investments etc. They must also communicate with staff on whether their leave of absence will be paid for or whether new technology will be brought in/purchased in order to allow staff to work from home.

Although a pandemic may never happen, you can see it’s VERY important to be prepared and have a plan in place. Once a pandemic hits, there will no doubt be panic and that will just make it harder for PR professionals to get their message across to staff, so discussions on pandemic procedures now, will help make the transition a lot smoother. Now don’t get all freaked out about a possible pandemic. Just remember, regular hand washing and minimizing the amount of time spent touching your face, will help you prevent infection. Posted by: Ashley

For more information on pandemics or planning checklists, I highly recommend the following sites:           

Heffes, E. (Sept 2006) Planning For The Inevitable, Financial Executive (Vol 22 Iss 7Retrieved Oct. 13/06 from: http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=1127257161&sid=4&Fmt=4&clientld=20370&RQT=309&VName=PQDt. Good overall information on pandemic planning with good statistics and examples from past pandemics and scares.            

Cheng, M. (2005) WHO Influenza Pandemic Handbook for Journalists. World Health Organization Retrieved Oct. 13/06 from: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/new/2005/nw08/en Excellent source for anything you ever wanted to know about pandemics.

Health Canada(Oct. 2005) The Role of Risk Communications in Pandemic Planning. Retrieved Oct. 13/06 from:   http:// hc-sc.gc.ca/ahc-asc/intactiv/pandem-flu/questionsbk5_e.html Great information for PR professionals about how to get your message across without scaring people.