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2013/2014  BA-HA_HU6E  Organizational Communication and Reputation Management - Theory and Practice

English Title
Organizational Communication and Reputation Management - Theory and Practice

Course information
Language English
Exam ECTS 7.5 ECTS
Type Elective
Level Bachelor
Duration Summer
Course period Please check www.cbs.dk/summer for the course schedule.
Time Table Please see course schedule at e-Campus
Study board
Study Board for BSc in Economics and Business Administration
Course coordinator
  • Course instructor - Jay Rubin, Stern School of Business
    Patricia Plackett - Department of Operations Management (OM)
Main academic disciplines
  • Communication
  • Marketing
  • Corporate and Business Strategy
Last updated on 07-05-2013
Learning objectives
At the end of the course the student should be able to:
  • Understand the primary disciplines, functions and objectives of organizational communication and how they relate to different external/internal stakeholders and reputation management overall.
  • Demonstrate how commonly accepted communication models, theories, precedents, and standards help guide corporate strategy and management decision-making.
  • Explain how globalization, advancing technology and other factors are reshaping traditional practices and heightening the importance of organizational communication.
  • Identify potential communication challenges and opportunities in different business scenarios.
Course prerequisites
Fluency in spoken and written English.
Prerequisites for registering for the exam
Requirements about active class participation (assessed approved/not approved)
Mandatory Mid-term Assignment: Midterm feedback assignments will take the form of small-team oral presentations. Exact format will depend upon class size but it is likely that students will be divided into teams of four or five, with each group delivering an 8-10 minute presentation (accompanied by a brief slide deck). Each team presentation will analyze a contemporary business situation; suggest a strategy from the perspective of one of the various organizational communication disciplines (e.g. employee relations, government relations, crisis management and so forth); and defend the recommendations based on the communication theories, models, precedents and other considerations previously covered in class and assigned readings. Cumulatively, these presentations centering on an individual discipline – followed by critique and discussion with the instructor and peers– will give all students a better understanding of the expected final exam content, which will require a multidisciplinary communication approach to evaluate and address the needs of an organization and its varied stakeholders.
Examination
Home project assignment:
Examination form Home assignment - written product
Individual or group exam Individual
Size of written product Max. 10 pages
Assignment type Written assignment
Duration Written product to be submitted on specified date and time.
Grading scale 7-step scale
Examiner(s) One internal examiner
Exam period Summer Term
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
Course content and structure
Students explore the increasingly important and evolving role of organizational communication and reputation management in today's business environment. Based on underlying theories, models, precedents, policies, and best practices, the course covers the key communication disciplines contributing to external and internal stakeholder relations, corporate decision-making, and issues management. Specific topics include corporate image, employee engagement, media relations, investor relations, crisis management, government relations, and corporate social responsibility, among others. Lectures and reading assignments encompass prevalent concepts and specific case studies -- prompting ongoing discussion (and some role-play exercises) as students survey the fundamental principles and functions of organizational communication and consider how they apply to current and emerging trends and strategies.

The course’s development of personal competences:
 
Students will gain knowledge and perspective to better address business issues and developments based on the fundamental principles of strategically targeted communication -- individually, on project teams, in different corporate areas, and within an organization overall.  


Course outline

Note: The professor reserves the right to revise/update the following schedule as necessary based upon overall class dynamics, progress and other considerations.
 
• CLASS 1.Overview of Organizational Communication and Reputation Management: Disciplines, Functions and Practices; Progression of Communication Theories, Models, Precedents. Preliminary assignment’s written deliverable due at start of class.
                                      
• CLASS 2.Feedback/discussion based upon many of the corporate reputation issues explored in written preliminary assignments. Ethics. Corporate Social Responsibility.
 
Reading associated with the firsttwo classes (total: 162 pages) should be completed by no later than the second class. Unless otherwise noted, assigned readings are from primary text: Reputation Management: The Key to Successful Public Relations and Corporate Communication. Reading Due: • Chapter 1, “Reputation Management” • Chapter 2, “Ethics and Communication” • Chapter 9, “Global Corporate Communication” • Chapter 13, “Corporate Responsibility” • “Harvard Business Review: “Strategy & Society: The Link Between Competitive Advantage and Corporate Social Responsibility” by Michael E. Porter and Mark R. Kramer; December 2006
                                        
• CLASS 3.Disciplines: Media Relations, Government Relations, and Investor Relations. The dynamics of stakeholder influence on business. Traditional and new communication channels to reach and influence stakeholders. Reading due before this class: (100 pages): • Chapter 3, “Media Relations” • Chapter 4, “Social Media” • Chapter 6, “Government Relations” • Chapter 8, “Investor Relations”
                                      
• CLASS 4.Disciplines: Internal Communication/Employee Engagement and Crisis Communication. Reading due (85 pages): • Chapter 5, “Organizational Communication” • Chapter 7, “Community Relations”• Chapter 12, “Crisis Communication” • Harvard Business Review: “Leadership is a Conversation” by Boris Groysberg and Michael Slind; June 2012.
                                    
• CLASS 5.Issues Management Theory, Strategy, Tools, Tactics, and Measurement. Reading Due (97 pages): • Chapter 10, “Integrated Communication” • Chapter 11, “Issues Management” • Chapter 14, “Public Relations Consulting” • Institute for Public Relations Measurement Commission: “International Media Analysis Made Simple” by Mike Daniels. 2012. http://www.instituteforpr.org/iprwp/wp-content/uploads/International-media-measurement-6-20-12-aj.pdf
                                      
• CLASS 6. Further discussion centering on organizational communication and reputation management issues/case study synopses. (Handouts or links to be distributed in advance – appropriately 25 pages of reading); Working Session/Q&A in preparation for upcoming Strategic Communication Team Presentations.
 
• CLASS 7. Strategic Communication Team Presentations (Round 1), followed by peer and professor critiques. (No reading due)
 
• CLASS 8.Strategic Communication Team Presentations (Round 2), followed by peer and professor critiques. (No reading due)
 
• CLASS 9.Emerging Communication Trends, part 1; Communication Leadership Challenges and Opportunities Ahead. Reading due: (61 pages): • Chapter 15, “Challenges and Opportunities in Corporate and Organizational Communication• Arthur W. Page Society:Building Belief: A New Model for Activating Corporate Character & Authentic Advocacy”; 2012. http://www.awpagesociety.com/wpcontent/uploads/2012/11/Building-Belief-New-Model-for-Corp-Comms.pdf
 
• CLASS 10.Emerging Communication Trends, Part 2. Additional reading: at least 40 pages of articles, excerpts and/or other materials selected by the student -- directly relating to the specific topic of his/her upcoming 10 A4-page report/home assignment.  Optional: Student submits reading list to professor for his review in advance.
                                          
•CLASS 11.Comprehensive Review
Teaching methods
Teaching methods will include lectures (often accompanied by slide decks and/or videos), theory and case study discussions, guided role-play exercises, and formal team presentations on specific business issues and communication strategies (subsequently critiqued in class by the instructor and peers for additional insight).

Preliminary Assignment: To help students get maximum value from ISUP courses, instructors provide a reading or a small number of readings to be read before the start of classes with a related task or tasks in the first two classes in order to jump-start the learning process.
Preliminary Assignment, Part 1: Students are expected to read the following (available on the Internet) prior to the start of the course:
• http:/​/​highered.mcgraw-hill.com/​sites/​dl/​free/​0078137152/​812998/​Chapter1.pdf
• http:/​/​www.scribd.com/​doc/​121501475/​Executive-Summary-2013-Edelman-Trust-Barometer
• “CR Magazine”: CR’s 100 Best Corporate Citizens 2013; 4 pages http:/​/​www.thecro.com/​files/​100Best2013_web.pdf

Preliminary Assignment, Part 2: Students should select any two organizations (from different industries) facing negative reputation issues. Follow the news coverage and conduct some research on the Internet to gain a basic understanding of how these issues developed and the immediate problems facing each organization and perhaps extending to a wider industry segment. Consider the possible longer-term outcomes based on where things now seem to be heading. Write a brief summary of your thoughts about the overall situation (no more than one page about each organization -- in either paragraph or bullet-point form). These summaries will be collected during the first class and should serve as springboards for subsequent thought and class discussion.
Expected literature
1. Primary Text (peer reviewed): Reputation Management: The Key to Successful Public Relations and Corporate Communication, 2d edition 2011, 428 pages, published by Routledge, an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group.
 
Co-Authors: John Doorley, Academic Director of the M.S. degree program in Public Relations and Corporate Communication at New York University’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies and former head of Corporate Communication at the global pharmaceutical and healthcare firm Merck/MSD; Helio Fred Garcia, Founder and President of the crisis management firm Logos Consulting Group, Executive Director of The Logos Institute for Crisis Management & Executive Leadership, and adjunct professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business and its School of Continuing and Professional Studies.
 
This text includes chapters and sidebars contributed by more than 25 accomplished professionals across the various organizational communication disciplines covered in this course and specifically applicable to the class-by-class outline (in development) below.
 
2. Journal articles and excerpts from other texts (to be determined) will also be assigned, providing additional insight on selected topics -- and meeting the cumulative reading requirements for this undergraduate course.  Among these varied reading materials may be titles and authors such as Stakeholders, Ethics, Public Policy (Anne T. Lawrence, James Weber) and Strategic Communication Imperative (Paul A. Argenti, Robert A. Howell, Karen A. Beck).

3. Additional brief materials such as Harvard Business Review blog posts, synopses of corporate or industry studies, video clips and newspaper articles – may be assigned based upon student interest/classroom discussion and other factors as the course moves forward. As necessary, the professor will provide online links to these materials, or provide handouts, during class.
Last updated on 07-05-2013