Corporate Communication
Ahmedabad Management Association
23rd and 25th January 2012
www.manishparihar.co.in

Session 1 Outline
1. Introduction to communication
2. What is strategic communication
3. How do companies communicate corporate
objectives and strategy? – Enter Corporate
Communication
4. How do they communicate corporate
philosophy and values?

First, let’s break some ice
• Introduce yourself in turn
by stating your name
• What are you most
passionate about?
• What would you change if
you could?

What is communication?
• Communication is the
activity of conveying
information. Communication
has been derived from the
Latin word
"communis", meaning to
share.
• Communication requires a
sender, a message, and an
intended recipient, a
medium
Show videos here

Enter Strategic / Corporate
Communications

Strategic Communication
• Strategic Communication refers to policy-making
and guidance for consistent information activity
within an organization and between
organizations.
• Equivalent business management terms are:
integrated (marketing)
communication, organizational
communication, corporate
communication, institutional communication, etc.
Source: wikipedia

Fathers of Corporate Communication:
Paul Garrett
• VP of PR for General
Motors in 1931
• develop effective publicity
& promotion
• employees first in
communication line of
information
• communication with the
public using words and
deeds with meaning they
understood

Fathers of Corporate Communication:
Arthur Page
• VP for PR at AT&T in 1927
• communication is a
management function
with voice in senior
executive team
• Page developed an ethical
code for corporate
communication

Historical Roots: Corporate Communication
and Public Relations
• Corporate communication began as public relations in
major corporations.
• The primary historical roots of corporate communication
come from public relations.
• The business aspects came later with
advertising, branding, and marketing responsibilities
assumed by the corporate communication
department, sometimes called corporate relations within
major industries.

Issues of Importance to Corporate Communication
Today
• The Global Economy • Splintering of Mass
• Environment Markets
• Fragmentation of the
• Increased Role of Mass Media
Management
• Rapid Development of
• Professionalism of the New Media
Publics Technology Leading in
Communication
Trends

What is a clear and understandable
definition of corporate communication?
Corporate communication includes
advertising, marketing
communications, marketing, and public
relations, but they all function under a
managed perspective.
Corporate communication is managing an
organization's internal and external
communications.

Session 2 Outline
1. Objectives of strategic communication
2. Where and how of strategic communication
3. How do companies communicate corporate
objectives and strategy? – Enter Corporate
Communication
4. How do they communicate corporate
philosophy and values?

“Objectives” of strategic communication..
• Builds strong business relationships
• Internal and external co-ordination
• Builds and maintains the brand image of the company
• Gives competitive advantage to the organization

Organization's constituents: “Where”
• Primary • Secondary
- Employees - Media
- Customers - Suppliers
- Shareholders - Government
- communities local
regional
national
- creditors
15
Source: www.strategiccommunication.com

Communicating corporate objectives
and strategy: “How”
Ensure communication is an integral part of the
‘strategic planning framework.’
– Protect, build and measure public confidence and
customer satisfaction.
– Facilitate greater community engagement
– Improve stakeholder understanding of the
business
– Manage an internal communication framework
(formal & informal) that makes the workforce feel
valued, informed and motivated.

Enter Values..
• Businesses communicate a lot of things. Many
love to boast when their revenues soar, or
publicize the strategic plans..
• But often missing from a firm's
communications is something absolutely
fundamental to its operations: its values.

Communicate corporate philosophy
and values
• Corporate Philosophy – the business mission and
values espoused by the management board (or
founder).
• Values - Principles, standards, morals, ethical
codes of conduct of an organization.
• Egs. What values are associated with Reliance
and Tata..?
HBR Blog - Article for self reading

Designing Organization Structure and
Communications Perspectives
• This session will focus on:
– How should be the communications structure of
an organization
– What are the different perspectives of corporate
communication

Let’s have a discussion:
Article discussion:
1. Corporate communicator’s job

Problems highlighted
• Difference between primary and secondary
communication - dilution
• Ranking of corporate communicator in the
hierarchy of the matrix
• All organizations suffer from entropy – a loss
of energy leading to disorder
• Each department controls their locus of
communication differently

Key learnings from the article:
1. The CEO maintains the role of strategic
communicator throughout the organization
2. The secondary messages generated through
various departments should reinforce the
primary strategic messages intended by the
board
3. If departments stray off the primary
messages, the CEO should get to know about it
through the communications structure
4. Corporate messages should flow through the
organization without being distorted

5. Corporate communicator should help CEO
project a holistic view throughout the
company
6. Should guide
employees, customers, shareholders, regulato
rs and others into proper view of the company
and its mission

CORPORATE

“Corporate communications is not for
the fainthearted”
- James L. Horton
Corporate communications
expert and founder of
www.online-pr.com

Thank you
www.manishparihar.co.in