Intercultural communication is of importance to international businesses as it examines how people from different cultures, beliefs and religions come together to work and communicate with each other.
With more businesses going global or international the demands for intercultural communication skills are increasing. The realization is that there are barriers and limitations by going global or international. Without understanding the importance of intercultural communication many businesses unknowingly cause confusion and misunderstandings among company lines. It is imperative for businesses to fully understand that cultural differences exist and how to prevent damaging business relations due to intercultural communication gaps.
Understanding Intercultural Communication
Intercultural communication in its most basic form refers to an academic field of study and research. It seeks to understand how people from different countries and cultures behave, communicate and perceive the world around them. As businesses becomes more and more international, many companies need to know how best to structure their companies; manage staff and communicate with customers. Intercultural communication gives companies an insight into the areas that need to be addresses and understood.
Additional information on intercultural communication:
The Intercultural Communication Institute - http://www.intercultural.org/
The Centre for Intercultural Training and Research - http://www.intercultural.org.uk/
SIETAR - http://www.sietar.org.uk/
Although the term "intercultural communication" is often used in reference to communication issues that arise with an organization composed of individuals from different backgrounds.
Businesses that facilitate effective communication (both written and verbal) have a greater chance to succeed in the business world. The importance of effective intercultural communication can hardly be overstated.
An important factor in intercultural communication is language. Language can ultimately be considered the cornerstone of Intercultural Communication. Differences in culture reflect themselves in a variety of ways. For example, one cultural norm may have a significantly different conception of time than another, or a different idea of what constitutes appropriate body language and personal space when engaged in conversation.
“Language issues are becoming a considerable source of conflict and inefficiency in the increasingly diverse work force throughout the world…. No corporation can be competitive if co-workers avoid, don't listen to, perceive as incompetent, or are intolerant of employees who have problems with the language. In addition, these attitudes could be carried over into their interactions with customers who speak English as a second language, resulting in disastrous effects on customer relations and, thus, the corporate bottom line."
Intercultural, cross-cultural, culture...
The importance of communication can not be underestimated by no means of the imagination. I had accepted a graduate assistance position at Marshall University while working on a master’s in Adult and Technical Education in Training and Development. I was assisting a professor in a classroom, for a course that I was taking online. Part of the course assignment was to develop a training program and present the program either by video or in the classroom. While assisting the professor in explaining to students the format for the assignment, my professor assigned me to two students that were having difficulties in developing their program. Little did I know that I was going to learn more regarding communication among cultures. One team member was from Japan and the other China. Not only was there the language barrier, also the presentation style. All in all, the assignment was successful and I had gained some wonderful friends from the experience.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Investor Relations
“If shareholder value is the key objective of a business entity, then positive perception is probably second most important value building block, performance being the first.”
A business, which generates positive cash flow year after year, still may not be able to create value if it does not manage its perception well. And it is information that forms perception. Business economics as well as investment preferences rapidly change that reliable information motivates restive investors. Investor Relations is regular communication between businesses and investors.
United States companies that maintain a high pace investor relations seem to have better credibility within the financial community. While the globalization of capital markets have widened the investment managers’ geographical horizon, has allowed money to flow across continents and capital markets are more accessible.
Managing investor perception is probably one of the most important corporate activities in recent times. “Several years ago, nearly two-third of the market value of a company came from the tangible assets it owned. Today, an analysis of the S&P 500 companies in the US shows that 85 percent comes from intangible assets. And these intangibles are not just value of brand or human resources but also corporate reputation built over years.”
Currently investors’ main concern is not just the evaluation of financial performance but how credible the numbers are.
“Any discussion on Investor Relations is incomplete without mention of GE, the world’s largest business enterprise by market capitalization. GE attributes much of its corporate success to its highly proactive and responsible investor relations program.”
GE was facing problems in regards to its strategy in 1988. This affected the stock, which caused analysts to state that GE did not know where it was going. Of course this caused the strategic capabilities to be questioned.
“Still, in 1988, to what the company believed was inaccurate perception, the CEO, Jack Welch accepted the partial responsibility by admitting that the real problem for the misperception could be GE’s communication failure rather than that of investors/media’s understanding. This acceptance by Welch was an exception to the norm, as corporate managers usually shy away from communicating strategic issues. Instead, they view Investor Relations as a financial communication exercise. While some fear of disclosing too much to competition while some feel it is not necessary to communicate strategic issues. The worst are those who assume that most investors already know their vision and strategy so there is no need to repeat them again.”
Investor Relations is more than financial communication. That investor relation requires companies and managers to reiterate their business and financial targets, while updating investors on the progress of the company. Communicating to investors the strategy of the corporation creates value with shareholders and improves financial performance.
Although Investor Relations have become “net driven” due to companies embarking on technology through the usage of corporate websites, emails in order to update and target investors. It is extremely important to have a balance between human interaction and technology and the ability to gather vital feedback from investors is basically what investor communication is all about. Therefore, for Investor Relations to be successful; the audience needs to be identified as well as the perception of the company. This will assist a corporation the capability of reaching out to current and future investors with a consistent and credible portfolio that will have a measurable impact on its market capitalization.
Website:
The most highly-regarded professional member organization for Investor Relations in the United States is the National Investor Relations Institute, or NIRI. In the United Kingdom, the recognized industry body is The Investor Relations Society, while in Canada, the professional association is called the Canadian Investor Relations Institute, or CIRI. Australia's professional organization is known as the Australian Investor Relations Association (AIRA).
• http://www.niri.org - National Investor Relations Institute (US)
• http://www.ir-soc.org.uk - The Investor Relations Society (UK)
• http://www.ciri.org/ - The Canadian Investor Relations Institute
• http://www.aira.org.au - Australian Investor Relations Association
• http://www.irmagazine.com - IR magazine
It is important that companies articulate accurate information to investors in order to develop a strong foundation and continue growth. Taking a moment to consider what experience and or knowledge I could draw upon regarding investor relations, I recall applying for a Program Director's position with a Boys & Girls Club several years ago. Looking back, this would have been considered one of those jobs that you felt as if you were thrown to the wolves. My first week on the job was simple, get to know the 'kids', check the programs out and come up with ideas for new programs. Also, the Executive Director (my boss) was on vacation that week. By Wednesday morning, I was informed that the Executive Director was fired. Wednesday afternoon, I received a call from United Way, a major donor to the Club, asking if the organization was going to apply for funding that year an the grant was due on Friday with an in-house interview the following week. With no experience in grant writing, I gathered the previous years grant and any information I could locate regarding the Club's programs. To my surprise the information in the grant and programs did not match, not even close to matching. From an investor's standpoint, this is an absolute nightmare. The only recourse I could do was to state the facts, as accurately as I could determine. Although this could have gone differently, I was grateful that United Way did grant the Club the same amount of funding from the previous year, although with stipulations for continued operations.
A business, which generates positive cash flow year after year, still may not be able to create value if it does not manage its perception well. And it is information that forms perception. Business economics as well as investment preferences rapidly change that reliable information motivates restive investors. Investor Relations is regular communication between businesses and investors.
United States companies that maintain a high pace investor relations seem to have better credibility within the financial community. While the globalization of capital markets have widened the investment managers’ geographical horizon, has allowed money to flow across continents and capital markets are more accessible.
Managing investor perception is probably one of the most important corporate activities in recent times. “Several years ago, nearly two-third of the market value of a company came from the tangible assets it owned. Today, an analysis of the S&P 500 companies in the US shows that 85 percent comes from intangible assets. And these intangibles are not just value of brand or human resources but also corporate reputation built over years.”
Currently investors’ main concern is not just the evaluation of financial performance but how credible the numbers are.
“Any discussion on Investor Relations is incomplete without mention of GE, the world’s largest business enterprise by market capitalization. GE attributes much of its corporate success to its highly proactive and responsible investor relations program.”
GE was facing problems in regards to its strategy in 1988. This affected the stock, which caused analysts to state that GE did not know where it was going. Of course this caused the strategic capabilities to be questioned.
“Still, in 1988, to what the company believed was inaccurate perception, the CEO, Jack Welch accepted the partial responsibility by admitting that the real problem for the misperception could be GE’s communication failure rather than that of investors/media’s understanding. This acceptance by Welch was an exception to the norm, as corporate managers usually shy away from communicating strategic issues. Instead, they view Investor Relations as a financial communication exercise. While some fear of disclosing too much to competition while some feel it is not necessary to communicate strategic issues. The worst are those who assume that most investors already know their vision and strategy so there is no need to repeat them again.”
Investor Relations is more than financial communication. That investor relation requires companies and managers to reiterate their business and financial targets, while updating investors on the progress of the company. Communicating to investors the strategy of the corporation creates value with shareholders and improves financial performance.
Although Investor Relations have become “net driven” due to companies embarking on technology through the usage of corporate websites, emails in order to update and target investors. It is extremely important to have a balance between human interaction and technology and the ability to gather vital feedback from investors is basically what investor communication is all about. Therefore, for Investor Relations to be successful; the audience needs to be identified as well as the perception of the company. This will assist a corporation the capability of reaching out to current and future investors with a consistent and credible portfolio that will have a measurable impact on its market capitalization.
Website:
The most highly-regarded professional member organization for Investor Relations in the United States is the National Investor Relations Institute, or NIRI. In the United Kingdom, the recognized industry body is The Investor Relations Society, while in Canada, the professional association is called the Canadian Investor Relations Institute, or CIRI. Australia's professional organization is known as the Australian Investor Relations Association (AIRA).
• http://www.niri.org - National Investor Relations Institute (US)
• http://www.ir-soc.org.uk - The Investor Relations Society (UK)
• http://www.ciri.org/ - The Canadian Investor Relations Institute
• http://www.aira.org.au - Australian Investor Relations Association
• http://www.irmagazine.com - IR magazine
It is important that companies articulate accurate information to investors in order to develop a strong foundation and continue growth. Taking a moment to consider what experience and or knowledge I could draw upon regarding investor relations, I recall applying for a Program Director's position with a Boys & Girls Club several years ago. Looking back, this would have been considered one of those jobs that you felt as if you were thrown to the wolves. My first week on the job was simple, get to know the 'kids', check the programs out and come up with ideas for new programs. Also, the Executive Director (my boss) was on vacation that week. By Wednesday morning, I was informed that the Executive Director was fired. Wednesday afternoon, I received a call from United Way, a major donor to the Club, asking if the organization was going to apply for funding that year an the grant was due on Friday with an in-house interview the following week. With no experience in grant writing, I gathered the previous years grant and any information I could locate regarding the Club's programs. To my surprise the information in the grant and programs did not match, not even close to matching. From an investor's standpoint, this is an absolute nightmare. The only recourse I could do was to state the facts, as accurately as I could determine. Although this could have gone differently, I was grateful that United Way did grant the Club the same amount of funding from the previous year, although with stipulations for continued operations.
21st Century Communication Trends
Stephen P. Borgatti identifies five key organizational trends these trends include globalization, diversity, flexibility, flatness and networking. For businesses to be able to compete with the changing environment it is essential that they stay up to date in these five areas.
Globalization
Globalization is one of the more important aspects of business. There is now an increased global interdependence in the business world. Countries are depending on each other for success. Through the acquisition of materials, strategies, and new ideas for products and operations globalization can make companies more profitable. The United States holds only a fraction of the world’s population and only a fraction of the world’s wealth.http://knowledge.wpcarey.asu.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1209
Globalization can drastically increase a company’s customer basis and help the company expand to bigger and more profitable business endeavors. Globalization can also increase a company’s ability to use newer and better technologies. There are a lot of countries that specialize in the acquisition and development of new technologies and through the globalization of your company; it will be easier to expose your company to these ideas and resources. Globalization can also help with outscoring. Outsourcing employees from other countries can help your company create a market for these other countries.
Diversity
Diversity is and always will be a focus within business in our society. http://www.professionalpractice.asme.org/SecuredModules/communications/diversity/0d.htm
It is important to keep your company’s employees and cliental very diverse. Diversity gives companies the ability to relate to their customers and employees. Everyone is not cut from the same mold and different types of people from different backgrounds relate to each other in different ways. It is important to have a “melting pot” mix of people that work for your company. Through your melting pot you will have many different people with different ideas of how to attract customers with similar backgrounds to become patrons of your company and how to treat and communicate with these individuals. In my opinion diversity is still somewhat of a legal issue, but it should not be because companies need people of different races, religions, sexual orientations, and other cultures because that is what our society is made of. Businesses must expand and hire all different types of people if they want to succeed in our society.
Flexibility
Flexibility can also be advantageous to a 21st century company. In the past, companies would focus more on one specialty with their products, employees, and operations. The problem with focusing on one specific task for your employees, or one specific product or service for your company is that it handcuffs your company and provides a very bland working environment. The company may become the premier producer of that specific product but the market changes quickly. So putting you company’s resources into one specific good or service can backfire in an instant. There are many benefits of having a very flexible company. You can attract more highly motivated and skilled employees. Because you attract more motivated employees there will be higher levels of productivity. http://www.jobaccess.gov.au/JOAC/Employers/Before_you_start/Preparing_and_modifying_the_workplace/How_to_provide_a_flexible.htm
Flexibility within operations also will help keep your workers pleased. So giving employees choices on how things should be done can help keep workers happy. A happier employee means that they will work harder for you and trust your company. Also, giving you employees choices and input within the company can encourage creativity and innovative ideas rather than the traditional “do as I say not as I do” mentality.
Flatness
Flatness is becoming more and more of a trend in today’s business. Taking away the traditional hierarchy of business can benefit corporations in many ways. It makes communication within the organization a lot easier for employees. There is no longer a chain of command within the communication system in which messages must be transmitted. Too many times messages have to be passed up the metaphorical ladder and the message gets distorted because of the people and the different channels it must pass through. Think back to when you were in elementary school and you played the old game telephone, when each student had to pass a message to the next. Every time the message got to the end it was different from when it started. This simple, fun principal can be translated to the business world. If a message has to be communicated through different levels of management the message will be distorted in some way. But, by limiting the levels within a business and corporation, it makes communication easier and much more efficient.
Networking
Networking is essential in today’s business. It has always been important, but is starting to be more of a point of emphasis within modern business. Networking is a very general term as it can be used in many situations. Networking can refer to keeping in touch with employees. Current, old, and potential employees are a great way to keep up on the actions and operations of your company and can lead to happier employees. Making contacts with other business can lead to new ways of operation, new products, and long term contacts that your company can use for different aspects of business. http://sbinfocanada.about.com/cs/marketing/a/networkingmm.htm
Networking can also mean reaching out and trying to attract new customers. Contacting more people and informing them about your company can lead to more customers or more investors. There are so many more channels of communication that can be used for networking, so companies are starting to focus a lot more attention on this aspect of communication. A simple rule for business is the more networking your company does the contacts you have and the more resources you gain thus the better your business.
Globalization
Globalization is one of the more important aspects of business. There is now an increased global interdependence in the business world. Countries are depending on each other for success. Through the acquisition of materials, strategies, and new ideas for products and operations globalization can make companies more profitable. The United States holds only a fraction of the world’s population and only a fraction of the world’s wealth.http://knowledge.wpcarey.asu.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1209
Globalization can drastically increase a company’s customer basis and help the company expand to bigger and more profitable business endeavors. Globalization can also increase a company’s ability to use newer and better technologies. There are a lot of countries that specialize in the acquisition and development of new technologies and through the globalization of your company; it will be easier to expose your company to these ideas and resources. Globalization can also help with outscoring. Outsourcing employees from other countries can help your company create a market for these other countries.
Diversity
Diversity is and always will be a focus within business in our society. http://www.professionalpractice.asme.org/SecuredModules/communications/diversity/0d.htm
It is important to keep your company’s employees and cliental very diverse. Diversity gives companies the ability to relate to their customers and employees. Everyone is not cut from the same mold and different types of people from different backgrounds relate to each other in different ways. It is important to have a “melting pot” mix of people that work for your company. Through your melting pot you will have many different people with different ideas of how to attract customers with similar backgrounds to become patrons of your company and how to treat and communicate with these individuals. In my opinion diversity is still somewhat of a legal issue, but it should not be because companies need people of different races, religions, sexual orientations, and other cultures because that is what our society is made of. Businesses must expand and hire all different types of people if they want to succeed in our society.
Flexibility
Flexibility can also be advantageous to a 21st century company. In the past, companies would focus more on one specialty with their products, employees, and operations. The problem with focusing on one specific task for your employees, or one specific product or service for your company is that it handcuffs your company and provides a very bland working environment. The company may become the premier producer of that specific product but the market changes quickly. So putting you company’s resources into one specific good or service can backfire in an instant. There are many benefits of having a very flexible company. You can attract more highly motivated and skilled employees. Because you attract more motivated employees there will be higher levels of productivity. http://www.jobaccess.gov.au/JOAC/Employers/Before_you_start/Preparing_and_modifying_the_workplace/How_to_provide_a_flexible.htm
Flexibility within operations also will help keep your workers pleased. So giving employees choices on how things should be done can help keep workers happy. A happier employee means that they will work harder for you and trust your company. Also, giving you employees choices and input within the company can encourage creativity and innovative ideas rather than the traditional “do as I say not as I do” mentality.
Flatness
Flatness is becoming more and more of a trend in today’s business. Taking away the traditional hierarchy of business can benefit corporations in many ways. It makes communication within the organization a lot easier for employees. There is no longer a chain of command within the communication system in which messages must be transmitted. Too many times messages have to be passed up the metaphorical ladder and the message gets distorted because of the people and the different channels it must pass through. Think back to when you were in elementary school and you played the old game telephone, when each student had to pass a message to the next. Every time the message got to the end it was different from when it started. This simple, fun principal can be translated to the business world. If a message has to be communicated through different levels of management the message will be distorted in some way. But, by limiting the levels within a business and corporation, it makes communication easier and much more efficient.
Networking
Networking is essential in today’s business. It has always been important, but is starting to be more of a point of emphasis within modern business. Networking is a very general term as it can be used in many situations. Networking can refer to keeping in touch with employees. Current, old, and potential employees are a great way to keep up on the actions and operations of your company and can lead to happier employees. Making contacts with other business can lead to new ways of operation, new products, and long term contacts that your company can use for different aspects of business. http://sbinfocanada.about.com/cs/marketing/a/networkingmm.htm
Networking can also mean reaching out and trying to attract new customers. Contacting more people and informing them about your company can lead to more customers or more investors. There are so many more channels of communication that can be used for networking, so companies are starting to focus a lot more attention on this aspect of communication. A simple rule for business is the more networking your company does the contacts you have and the more resources you gain thus the better your business.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Identity, Image, and Reputation
Identity, Image, and Reputation
Should a corporation or business be concerned about its identity, image or even reputation if it has a viable product or service? It does if the corporation wants to get its product out to the masses. Although one may think that having a great product would be enough for recognition; unfortunately that is not the case in today’s society. With an abundance of similar businesses each corporation is in competition with each other (whether directly or indirectly) in establishing their own identity and image. This may be the only difference in distinguishing one corporation from another.
Importance of Identity
Have you noticed that, wherever you look, a big-name corporate logo always looks exactly the same? There is no variation in colors, proportion, and spacing above and below it. This is because that company has taken the time to create a handbook of allowable usage of that logo or logotype: it is extremely important aspect of corporate policy that is strictly enforced.
For example GE Identity Program is detailed in a lengthy guidebook of what is an acceptable logo design:
www.scribd.com/doc/7779767/GE-Identity-Program-Standards-and-Guidelines
Even colleges have a distinct guideline that is followed in presenting the schools image.
One of the key ways a corporation establishes itself as part of the market is by making itself easily identifiable. Consumers react very well to seeing the same image over and over again, and consumers remember consistent presentations. If a corporation presents an inconsistent image, people generally focus on the inconsistencies or, even worse associate the inconsistency with the company.
Importance of Image
Image is a reflection of an organization. While this may be considered the foundation of a corporation it does not happen over night. Although it takes time for a company to develop its image, an inconsistency image can damage a company.
If an image problem is left unaddressed, a company might find many of its costs of doing business rising dramatically, including the costs of product development, sales support, employee wages, and shareholder dividends. In addition, since the majority of consumers’ base their purchase decisions at least partly on trust, current and future sales levels are likely to suffer as well.
In businesses of all sizes, it is vital that managers recognize the importance of creating and maintaining a strong image, and that they also make employees aware of it. Corporate image begins within the offices of a company's managers. It should be based on the development of good company policies, rather than on controlling the damage caused by bad company policies.
Several factors have contributed to the increasing importance of corporate image in recent years. Recently, the business climate in the United States has moved towards one of environmental complexity and change. This move has forced many businesses to significantly alter their strategies in order to compete and survive.
Importance of Reputation
Reputation is 'the result of what you do, what you say, and what other people say about you'.
Reputation is the opinion of the public towards an organization or corporation. Reputation, as distinct from image, is the process and the effect of perceived image.
While image only moves from an individual cognition to another, the anonymous character of reputation makes it a more complex phenomenon. Reputation proceeds from the level of individual cognition to the level of social propagation and from this level back to individual cognition again.
A good reputation enhances profitability because it attracts customers to products, investors to securities and employees to its jobs. Company’s reputation is an asset and wealth that gives that company a competitive advantage because this kind of a company will be regarded as a reliable, credible, trustworthy and responsible for employees, customers, shareholders and financial markets.
Should a corporation or business be concerned about its identity, image or even reputation if it has a viable product or service? It does if the corporation wants to get its product out to the masses. Although one may think that having a great product would be enough for recognition; unfortunately that is not the case in today’s society. With an abundance of similar businesses each corporation is in competition with each other (whether directly or indirectly) in establishing their own identity and image. This may be the only difference in distinguishing one corporation from another.
Importance of Identity
Have you noticed that, wherever you look, a big-name corporate logo always looks exactly the same? There is no variation in colors, proportion, and spacing above and below it. This is because that company has taken the time to create a handbook of allowable usage of that logo or logotype: it is extremely important aspect of corporate policy that is strictly enforced.
For example GE Identity Program is detailed in a lengthy guidebook of what is an acceptable logo design:
www.scribd.com/doc/7779767/GE-Identity-Program-Standards-and-Guidelines
Even colleges have a distinct guideline that is followed in presenting the schools image.
One of the key ways a corporation establishes itself as part of the market is by making itself easily identifiable. Consumers react very well to seeing the same image over and over again, and consumers remember consistent presentations. If a corporation presents an inconsistent image, people generally focus on the inconsistencies or, even worse associate the inconsistency with the company.
Importance of Image
Image is a reflection of an organization. While this may be considered the foundation of a corporation it does not happen over night. Although it takes time for a company to develop its image, an inconsistency image can damage a company.
If an image problem is left unaddressed, a company might find many of its costs of doing business rising dramatically, including the costs of product development, sales support, employee wages, and shareholder dividends. In addition, since the majority of consumers’ base their purchase decisions at least partly on trust, current and future sales levels are likely to suffer as well.
In businesses of all sizes, it is vital that managers recognize the importance of creating and maintaining a strong image, and that they also make employees aware of it. Corporate image begins within the offices of a company's managers. It should be based on the development of good company policies, rather than on controlling the damage caused by bad company policies.
Several factors have contributed to the increasing importance of corporate image in recent years. Recently, the business climate in the United States has moved towards one of environmental complexity and change. This move has forced many businesses to significantly alter their strategies in order to compete and survive.
Importance of Reputation
Reputation is 'the result of what you do, what you say, and what other people say about you'.
Reputation is the opinion of the public towards an organization or corporation. Reputation, as distinct from image, is the process and the effect of perceived image.
While image only moves from an individual cognition to another, the anonymous character of reputation makes it a more complex phenomenon. Reputation proceeds from the level of individual cognition to the level of social propagation and from this level back to individual cognition again.
A good reputation enhances profitability because it attracts customers to products, investors to securities and employees to its jobs. Company’s reputation is an asset and wealth that gives that company a competitive advantage because this kind of a company will be regarded as a reliable, credible, trustworthy and responsible for employees, customers, shareholders and financial markets.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Government Relations
The Government -- They've Got Their Noses in Everything...
As most people have come to realize, the government is involved in nearly every aspect of life. As such, this also includes business. There are countless regulations and business laws that being involved in a business makes it absolutely necessary to have someone with you to keep you on the right side of the law. The government is very concerned with fair business practices to avoid monopolies and trusts restricting trade. It has gotten to the point where there are seemingly commissions for every aspect of business.
...But So Does Big Business
Businesses have the need to maintain some level of communication with government, regardless of level. <http://www.asme.org/NewsPublicPolicy/GovRelations/> Organizations and corporations frequently interact with state and federal governments when trying to influence their opinions regarding laws and regulations and their interpretations of those same things. To do this, businesses and other organizations frequently employ the use of lobbyists to influence government opinions. However, this is practice can be quite expensive.
Aside from lobbying for causes, another popular method of getting an organization involved in the government is through the use of political action committees (PACs). These PACs are organizations that represent the interests of their members and thereby support politicians that share those beliefs. Having support from a PAC can be extremely influential for a politician, especially when their donations amount to between 1 and 10 percent of all political donations. Without these funds, some politicians couldn't afford to seek office.
However, the involvement of organizations, especially businesses, in the government is controversial. It is viewed by some as being a wasteful use of funds by a business and could also be seen as having too much influence on issues they should have no influence over.
As most people have come to realize, the government is involved in nearly every aspect of life. As such, this also includes business. There are countless regulations and business laws that being involved in a business makes it absolutely necessary to have someone with you to keep you on the right side of the law. The government is very concerned with fair business practices to avoid monopolies and trusts restricting trade. It has gotten to the point where there are seemingly commissions for every aspect of business.
...But So Does Big Business
Businesses have the need to maintain some level of communication with government, regardless of level. <http://www.asme.org/NewsPublicPolicy/GovRelations/> Organizations and corporations frequently interact with state and federal governments when trying to influence their opinions regarding laws and regulations and their interpretations of those same things. To do this, businesses and other organizations frequently employ the use of lobbyists to influence government opinions. However, this is practice can be quite expensive.
Aside from lobbying for causes, another popular method of getting an organization involved in the government is through the use of political action committees (PACs). These PACs are organizations that represent the interests of their members and thereby support politicians that share those beliefs. Having support from a PAC can be extremely influential for a politician, especially when their donations amount to between 1 and 10 percent of all political donations. Without these funds, some politicians couldn't afford to seek office.
However, the involvement of organizations, especially businesses, in the government is controversial. It is viewed by some as being a wasteful use of funds by a business and could also be seen as having too much influence on issues they should have no influence over.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Crisis Communication
Crisis Communication
A crisis is something everyone can relate to. Weather is it in someone’s personal life or in an organization. In someone’s personal life a crisis may be a death of a family member, a car accident, a theft, a broken heart, or anything negative that occurs in an individual’s life. These are all things that are out of our power and these things just naturally happen. It comes down to how you deal with it. How you persevere when things are not going your way. It is hard to have a plan implemented when the crisis comes from the element of surprise. If there is a possibility that something may happen all you can do is prepare for it the best way you know how.
Lately organizations have been faced with crisis due to the economy. Gas prices rising, business going bankrupt and out of business, individuals being laid off, and hiring freezes have all had negative effects on organizations as a whole. Organizations face crisis that occur naturally, so when faced with it there is a solution planned out to some degree. These situations may cause a decrease in revenue, loss of employees, and loss of sponsors but there is always a way to overcome the situation. Lack of preparation can make a crisis even more severe and prolonged when they do happen. Organizations must also determine which constituents would be most affected by the crisis. This is important because some constituents are more important than others; organizations need to look at risk in terms of its effect on the most important constituents.
http://www3.niu.edu/newsplace/crisis.html
When a company is faced with a crisis you cannot stop. All you can do is put your plan into play. There are many issues that you can be faced with, especially when it goes to the media. The media is most likely to focus on the bad news because it catches the audience’s attention. When major corporations are faced with a crisis it sticks out more to the public. This is when their honesty, credibility, reputation, and image are questioned. This is when you do all that can be done to prove that your company is strong and you stand on the words in your mission statement.
A crisis outcome is based on the leadership and decision making. This is what makes an outcome for the better or worse. Learn from others mistakes and turn others expenses into future profits.
http://www.bernsteincrisismanagement.com/docs/the_biggest_mistakes_in_crisis_communications.html
A personal experience I had was when my father passed away May 9, 2008. It came so sudden and no one was ready for it; it shocked us all. All we could do was prepare his home going service and celebrate the day a great man passed on this earth. This was a crisis, and all we could do was continue to love him and keep him in our hearts as we moved on. No plan could be implemented , but we were forced to live as if he were still here and make him proud.
A crisis is something everyone can relate to. Weather is it in someone’s personal life or in an organization. In someone’s personal life a crisis may be a death of a family member, a car accident, a theft, a broken heart, or anything negative that occurs in an individual’s life. These are all things that are out of our power and these things just naturally happen. It comes down to how you deal with it. How you persevere when things are not going your way. It is hard to have a plan implemented when the crisis comes from the element of surprise. If there is a possibility that something may happen all you can do is prepare for it the best way you know how.
Lately organizations have been faced with crisis due to the economy. Gas prices rising, business going bankrupt and out of business, individuals being laid off, and hiring freezes have all had negative effects on organizations as a whole. Organizations face crisis that occur naturally, so when faced with it there is a solution planned out to some degree. These situations may cause a decrease in revenue, loss of employees, and loss of sponsors but there is always a way to overcome the situation. Lack of preparation can make a crisis even more severe and prolonged when they do happen. Organizations must also determine which constituents would be most affected by the crisis. This is important because some constituents are more important than others; organizations need to look at risk in terms of its effect on the most important constituents.
http://www3.niu.edu/newsplace/crisis.html
When a company is faced with a crisis you cannot stop. All you can do is put your plan into play. There are many issues that you can be faced with, especially when it goes to the media. The media is most likely to focus on the bad news because it catches the audience’s attention. When major corporations are faced with a crisis it sticks out more to the public. This is when their honesty, credibility, reputation, and image are questioned. This is when you do all that can be done to prove that your company is strong and you stand on the words in your mission statement.
A crisis outcome is based on the leadership and decision making. This is what makes an outcome for the better or worse. Learn from others mistakes and turn others expenses into future profits.
http://www.bernsteincrisismanagement.com/docs/the_biggest_mistakes_in_crisis_communications.html
A personal experience I had was when my father passed away May 9, 2008. It came so sudden and no one was ready for it; it shocked us all. All we could do was prepare his home going service and celebrate the day a great man passed on this earth. This was a crisis, and all we could do was continue to love him and keep him in our hearts as we moved on. No plan could be implemented , but we were forced to live as if he were still here and make him proud.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Internal Communications
Internal Communications
In the past the main focus of many organizations was customer care and customer communication. This strategy worked well for a long period of time, but as businesses grow and develop better ways to operate internal communications has become a focus as of late. Logically it makes sense, if your employees can communicate effectively your business can operate effectively. This may seem simple but however, there are many obstacles to overcome within internal communications. As we have thoroughly examined, the business environment is constantly changing with the new technological advances and now with the onset of a recession it is imperative that business have a system set up for effective internal communication.
This website gives good examples for the reasons of establishing successful internal communications.
http://managementhelp.org/mrktng/org_cmm.htm
Organization
The main problem area for internal communication is the organization and the standard operation procedure for communication. Within businesses there are many different levels of management and entry level positions. Too often with big business there is only "downward" communication. In other words, employees only give orders and communicate with workers who are below them. This type of communication can lead to negative actions and feelings for employees within the company and provide a hostile environment for internal communication. It is important there is an "up and down" strategy for internal communication. There should be a set plan for employees to be able to communicate to upper management as well as upper management to be able to communicate to lower level employees. If lower level employees can communicate to the higher level employees, they will feel as if they have a voice or bigger impact within the company. Also, upper management can get feedback on their operations, management style, and overall operational organization of the company. To conclude, for a company to have successful internal communication they must have a set plan for up and down communication within the company to have effective communication for it's employees.
Channel Management
Within the organization of the up and down communication organization, there must be some type of communication channel set up for the employees to communicate. In the 21st century people are relying more and more on strictly electronic communication. This can be advantageous, saving time and money, but can also affect the communication process in a negative way. There are times for email, online chats, and text message communication, but there is nothing that can beat face to face communication. Businesses need to set up a plan of what channels there are going to use for internal communication, but there must be a happy medium between all of the available channels to have effective internal communication. This website outlines a few available channels for any type of business.
http://performance-appraisals.org/Bacalsappraisalarticles/articles/comstrat.htm
In the past the main focus of many organizations was customer care and customer communication. This strategy worked well for a long period of time, but as businesses grow and develop better ways to operate internal communications has become a focus as of late. Logically it makes sense, if your employees can communicate effectively your business can operate effectively. This may seem simple but however, there are many obstacles to overcome within internal communications. As we have thoroughly examined, the business environment is constantly changing with the new technological advances and now with the onset of a recession it is imperative that business have a system set up for effective internal communication.
This website gives good examples for the reasons of establishing successful internal communications.
http://managementhelp.org/mrktng/org_cmm.htm
Organization
The main problem area for internal communication is the organization and the standard operation procedure for communication. Within businesses there are many different levels of management and entry level positions. Too often with big business there is only "downward" communication. In other words, employees only give orders and communicate with workers who are below them. This type of communication can lead to negative actions and feelings for employees within the company and provide a hostile environment for internal communication. It is important there is an "up and down" strategy for internal communication. There should be a set plan for employees to be able to communicate to upper management as well as upper management to be able to communicate to lower level employees. If lower level employees can communicate to the higher level employees, they will feel as if they have a voice or bigger impact within the company. Also, upper management can get feedback on their operations, management style, and overall operational organization of the company. To conclude, for a company to have successful internal communication they must have a set plan for up and down communication within the company to have effective communication for it's employees.
Channel Management
Within the organization of the up and down communication organization, there must be some type of communication channel set up for the employees to communicate. In the 21st century people are relying more and more on strictly electronic communication. This can be advantageous, saving time and money, but can also affect the communication process in a negative way. There are times for email, online chats, and text message communication, but there is nothing that can beat face to face communication. Businesses need to set up a plan of what channels there are going to use for internal communication, but there must be a happy medium between all of the available channels to have effective internal communication. This website outlines a few available channels for any type of business.
http://performance-appraisals.org/Bacalsappraisalarticles/articles/comstrat.htm
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