Mogilnyy Roman
Yaroslava Fedoriv
Course of Academic Writing, A-14
11.04.2013
Public Relations and Corporate Social
Responsibility
Public relations is a specific form
of organization, a method of crystallization and strengthening of specific
variety of social activities connected with important social task of subject
internal and external public optimization. In general PR is considered to be
innovating science due to the main aim- creating a two-way communication
between the consumer and the one who offers something.
Public relations consist of 5
categories, such as: financial public relations, consumer public relations,
crisis communication, internal communications, and government relations. The
first one deals with communicating financial results and business strategy. On
the other hand the second one consists of gaining publicity for a particular
product. The third one’s aim is responding in a crisis. The fourth works with
communication within the company itself. And the last one engages the government
departments to influence public policy. [Korolko, 2007, 20]
Every time has its own tendency. The tendency of 1970s
and 1980s was marketing. 1990s was the time of strategies. In 2000s HR was the
main aim. 2010s is the time of Public Relations. Nowadays business CEO placing
a PR manager very close is a common situation. PR manager is thought to be eyes
and ears of the whole business or political structure.
In
the 2012 PR sphere grew up by 8% and its annual turnover reached 10 billion
dollars. [http://www.holmesreport.com/news-info/12174/Global-Rankings-2012-PR-Industry-Up-Eight-Percent-To-10bn.aspx]. It may be named one of the most growing spheres and
even compared with Internet.
Unlike the US and Europe, in Ukraine studying Public
Relations is a growing tendency. There are a couple of bachelor programs, one
master and few specialization courses while in the US and Europe this science
is widely spread in universities. Every year thousands of universities
worldwide add Public Relations study programs.
PR is first a theoretical science. There is a great
amount of literature. Still much knowledge is gained during working in this
sphere. Many things can only be learned while working. But still to work
properly a person should be theoretically prepared and it prevents from making
basic mistakes.
In fact PR is very important for business. Its main
aim is to make the firm work in a right direction and create a brand. That
gives a real competitive advantage. It even may happen that PR department is
more effective than the product quality. It is thought that advertising is just
enough to be successful. Nowadays many firms have such a strategy. But there is
a common knowledge that two-way communication gives more advantages than
one-way one because in that case consumer feels more satisfied.
After studying Public Relations and
graduating, students have to decide where to work. Mostly there is a choice
between a PR agency and PR department. Working in a PR agency gives a newcomer
a possibility to work in different spheres and understand which one oneself
prefers. Within a PR department working is limited with only one sphere without
any variety. PR agency may prepare a PR-manager with wide knowledge without one
target sphere. On the other hand, PR department prepares a professional in one
exact sphere. The state your clients are in differ as you a PR agency worker.
There is only one firm state to work with in a PR department. The main
principle is that the work goes faster in a PR agency. On average PR department
working process has a low pace.
Except university programs and
courses there is much Ukrainian literature on PR. The most widely spread is Public Relations by Korolko Valentin. It
is considered to be the most detailed and structured book about Public
Relations. The book gives an understanding of the PR science. It gives the
knowledge about PR strategies, PR tactics, and management in general. Book also
contains practical advices.
In general, it is very important to
mention the fact that over past 10 years Public Relations as a profession has
changed much. Even though the cooperation with media has remained one of the
main aspects of it, the most part of efforts is devoted to creating and
supporting the main asset- corporate reputation. The nowadays function of PR is
to generate the content.
The number of PR managers has grown
rapidly. It has happened because of the current informational situation. 21st
century is supposed to be called the time of information and freedom. And so
the information has to be controlled somehow. Social networks and Internet in
general require a special treatment of PR managers. Their main function is
making the surrounding world transparent. And still that is directly connected
with Public Relations and its workers’ duties.
Corporate Social Responsibility
It is necessary to highlight another
PR function. It is making the world better. Event not counting the fact that PR
managers only operate with truth, such a definition as Corporate Social
Responsibility was founded due to Public Relations.
Corporate Social
Responsibility is a 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.
CSR is one of the newest management strategies
where companies try to create a positive impact on society while doing
business. There is no clear-cut definition of what CSR comprises. Every company
has different CSR objectives though the main motive is the same. All companies
have a two point agenda- to improve qualitatively and quantitatively. The
second is as important as the first and stake holders of every company are
increasingly taking an interest in the outer circle-the activities of the
company and how these are impacting the environment and society. Social responsibility is an ethical ideology
that has an obligation to act to benefit society at large. Social
responsibility is a duty every individual or organization has to perform so as
to maintain a balance between the economy and the ecosystem. A trade-off always
exists between economic development, in the material sense, and the welfare of
the society and environment. Social responsibility means sustaining the
equilibrium between the two. It pertains not only to business organizations but
also to everyone whose action impacts the environment. This responsibility can
be passive, by avoiding engaging in socially harmful acts, or active, by
performing activities that directly advance social goals. [Lord Holme, Richard Watts,
2000, p.3]
Still CSR is an average aspect of
every successful business in developed countries. Earlier it gave a competitive
advantage to companies, but now it may be named an unspoken rule for business.
All the top companies of the world are in the list of top CSR investors.
Microsoft, Google, Walt Disney Pictures, BMW, and Apple are on first 5
positions. [4] It is a stable tradition to invest in CSR accordingly to the
income.
Corporate Social Responsibility is
divided into internal and external. Internal in connected with the company
itself. It consists of good working conditions and appropriate attitude.
External one is considered to cope with problems of the surrounding world.
There are different
types of CSR approaches: Canadian, the Continental European and the
Anglo-Saxon.
A more common approach to CSR is
corporate philanthropy. This
includes monetary donations and aid given to local and non-local nonprofit
organizations and communities, including donations in areas such as the arts,
education, housing, health, social welfare, and the environment, among others,
but excluding political contributions and commercial sponsorship of events.
Some organizations do not like a philanthropy-based approach
as it might not help build on the skills of local populations, whereas
community-based development generally leads to more sustainable development.
Another approach to CSR is to
incorporate the CSR strategy directly into the business strategy of an
organization. For instance, procurement of Fair
Trade tea and coffee has been
adopted by various businesses including KPMG.
Another approach is garnering
increasing corporate responsibility interest. This is called Creating Shared Value, or CSV. The
shared value model is based on the idea that corporate success and social
welfare are interdependent. A business needs a healthy, educated workforce,
sustainable resources and adept government to compete effectively. For society
to thrive, profitable and competitive businesses must be developed and
supported to create income, wealth, tax revenues, and opportunities for
philanthropy. Many approaches to CSR pit businesses against society,
emphasizing the costs and limitations of compliance with externally imposed
social and environmental standards. Many companies use the strategy of
benchmarking to compete within their respective industries in CSR policy,
implementation, and effectiveness. Benchmarking involves reviewing competitor
CSR initiatives, as well as measuring and evaluating the impact that those
policies have on society and the environment, and how customers perceive
competitor CSR strategy.
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_Social_Responsibility)
In fact CSR is useful for management. Stimulation of
the staff work is the main aim of managing. CSR
gives that opportunity with many aspects that help much. Good working
conditions, attitude, and high salaries are highly motivating.
In Ukraine Corporate Social
Responsibility is a new trend and it gains popularity every year. Trendwatching
Ukraine 2012 conducted a survey about CSR role in 2012. The survey was
conducted among 400 people of the age from 18 to 35 living on the cities with
the population over 1 million people. From the answers 37% of people choosing
from equal goods would rather take the social responsible brand, 33% rather
choose product by quality than CSR, and 22% would like to conduct a social
responsible business. As for a new trend that may be called good statistics that
means the understanding of the social responsibility value. Almost every third
In Ukraine SCM, DTEK and METINVEST
are named the most Corporate Social Responsible business companies.
Conclusion
Public Relations is a new science. It is very popular
nowadays and its market grows every year. This tendency has also reached
Ukraine. Both successful business and government have PR departments. PR
agencies are in.
One of the most popular aspects of PR is Corporate
Social Responsibility. It may be called one of the most demanded trends of
nowadays. It has different approaches and has turned into a special way of
living.
As for a new phenomenon in Ukraine, CSR is given much
attention and is truly supported by customers. Every third customer pays much
attention to a social position of the brand he prefers. It shows the
perceptiveness of the CSR as the way of living.
Public Relations makes business transparent and is a
new better way of conducting business.
Work Cited
Korolko,
Valentin Public Relations. Kyiv:
Kyiv-Mohyla Academy 2009. Print
Iacocca,
Lee Where have all the leaders gone?
New York: New York Times 2007. Print
Holme, L., Watts, R.
(2000) Making Good Business Sense. The
World Business Council for Sustainable Development 3-5
UNIAN (2012, December). The
most social responsible companies were highlighted- Reputation Institute.
Retrived from:
Holmesreport
(2012, July). Global Rankings 2012: PR Industry Up Eight Percent To $10bn. Retrived from:
ProPR
(2013, January) Ukrainians start to pay attention to brand social position.
Retrieved from:
Wikipedia.
Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_social_responsibility
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