The SCIENCE BENEATH the ART of PUBLIC RELATIONS ™
April 1, 2015
By Dr. Cayce Myers, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University 


Public relations practitioners have long known saying "I'm sorry" in a crisis causes negative collateral consequences. These consequences frequently are lawsuits that use organizational statements of apology, empathy, sympathy and remorse as evidence of wrongdoing.  

Lawyers routinely censor what practitioners say for fear of providing legal fodder for potential plaintiffs.  This frustrates practitioners and leaves them wondering "what is the benefit of winning in a court of law but losing in the court of public opinion?" Read more.

By Dr. Kevin Ruck, PR Academy

 

Employees are very interested in knowing how their organization is progressing. Why? Because they understand that the success of the organization has a direct link to their own job security. However, they expect senior management to tell them about organizational progress, not their line manager.

 

Senior managers should translate corporate strategy into a meaningful local context and explain how local teamwork fits into the bigger picture. Line managers concentrate primarily on communication about local issues, which is what their team expects them to do. Read more.

Each year the Public Relations Leadership Forum attracts some of the brightest, high-performing communications managers from Global 1000 companies and public relations firms. This year's forum is May 6-7 in Chicago and will focus on the effective use of research in planning and implementing public relations activities. To enhance discussion, networking opportunities and learning exchange, the event will be restricted to 35 registrants.

This seminar produces outstanding future leaders and is co-sponsored by the Arthur W. Page Society and IPR. Read more.