Corporate Communications
Chapter 1
Reputation: affected by advertising, direct experiences and (negative) news
Corporate Communication: Holistic = focus on the organization as a whole,
stakeholder presentation = how an organization presents itself to key
stakeholders (internal & external)
Definition: A management function for effective coordination of internal &
external communication, to maintain favorable reputations with stakeholder
groups
Types of activities of CC professionals:
⁃ Managerial activities = planning, coordinating, and counseling CEOs and
senior managers,
⁃ Tactical activities = producing messages, disseminating messages
Complexities:
⁃ Different disciplines
⁃ Wide geographical range (globalization)
⁃ Wide range of products/ services
⁃ Corporate headquarters and various divisions and business units
Key concepts
Mission-Vision-Objectives-Strategy
,⁃ Mission: The overriding purpose aligns with stakeholders’ values and
expectations (Who are we, what do we value?)
⁃ Vision: The desired future state or aspiration of the organization (What we
want to become)
⁃ Objectives: The overall aims in line with the overall purpose (How we
gauge our degree of success)
⁃ Strategy: The ways or means in which objectives are to be achieved and
put into effect (How we will achieve our vision/ objectives)
Corporate Identity-Corporate Image-Corporate Reputation
⁃ Corporate identity: The profile and values communicated by an
organization
⁃ Corporate image: An individual’s immediate set of associations in
response to a signal or a message about a particular organization at a single
point in time
⁃ Corporate reputation: An individual’s collective representation of past
images of an organization established over time
Stakeholder-Market
⁃ Stakeholder: Any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the
achievement of the organization’s objectives (Relevant person/ group of people)
⁃ Market: A defined group for whom a product or service may be in demand
(Target group)
Communication-Integration
⁃ Communication: The tactics and media that are used to communicate with
internal and external groups
, ⁃ Integration: The act of coordinating all communication so that the corporate
identity is effectively and consistently communicated to internal and external
groups
Trends in CC
More active stakeholders:
⁃ Voicing, self-organizing & advocating
Empowered by new media:
⁃ Interactive, dialogue-based
eWOM and peer-to-peer influence:
⁃ Challenges & opportunities
Media wisdom:
⁃ Credibility
Stakeholder Engagement:
⁃ Transparency & Authenticity
1900s - 2000s: Communication as tactical support
2000s - present: Communication as strategic tool
Publicity/ Promotion -> Positioning -> Stakeholder Engagement
Chapter 2
Historical developments:
Industrial Revolution -> Rise of marketing
Muckraking journalism -> Rise of public relations
Chapter 1
Reputation: affected by advertising, direct experiences and (negative) news
Corporate Communication: Holistic = focus on the organization as a whole,
stakeholder presentation = how an organization presents itself to key
stakeholders (internal & external)
Definition: A management function for effective coordination of internal &
external communication, to maintain favorable reputations with stakeholder
groups
Types of activities of CC professionals:
⁃ Managerial activities = planning, coordinating, and counseling CEOs and
senior managers,
⁃ Tactical activities = producing messages, disseminating messages
Complexities:
⁃ Different disciplines
⁃ Wide geographical range (globalization)
⁃ Wide range of products/ services
⁃ Corporate headquarters and various divisions and business units
Key concepts
Mission-Vision-Objectives-Strategy
,⁃ Mission: The overriding purpose aligns with stakeholders’ values and
expectations (Who are we, what do we value?)
⁃ Vision: The desired future state or aspiration of the organization (What we
want to become)
⁃ Objectives: The overall aims in line with the overall purpose (How we
gauge our degree of success)
⁃ Strategy: The ways or means in which objectives are to be achieved and
put into effect (How we will achieve our vision/ objectives)
Corporate Identity-Corporate Image-Corporate Reputation
⁃ Corporate identity: The profile and values communicated by an
organization
⁃ Corporate image: An individual’s immediate set of associations in
response to a signal or a message about a particular organization at a single
point in time
⁃ Corporate reputation: An individual’s collective representation of past
images of an organization established over time
Stakeholder-Market
⁃ Stakeholder: Any group or individual who can affect or is affected by the
achievement of the organization’s objectives (Relevant person/ group of people)
⁃ Market: A defined group for whom a product or service may be in demand
(Target group)
Communication-Integration
⁃ Communication: The tactics and media that are used to communicate with
internal and external groups
, ⁃ Integration: The act of coordinating all communication so that the corporate
identity is effectively and consistently communicated to internal and external
groups
Trends in CC
More active stakeholders:
⁃ Voicing, self-organizing & advocating
Empowered by new media:
⁃ Interactive, dialogue-based
eWOM and peer-to-peer influence:
⁃ Challenges & opportunities
Media wisdom:
⁃ Credibility
Stakeholder Engagement:
⁃ Transparency & Authenticity
1900s - 2000s: Communication as tactical support
2000s - present: Communication as strategic tool
Publicity/ Promotion -> Positioning -> Stakeholder Engagement
Chapter 2
Historical developments:
Industrial Revolution -> Rise of marketing
Muckraking journalism -> Rise of public relations
