Monday 14 September 2015

Week 10 Lecture: Public Relations: Corporate Social Responsibility

Week 10 Lecture: Public Relations: Corporate Social Responsibility

Hello 

During the week 10 lesson, we discussed public relations in three different areas:

- Internal Communication; 
- Corporate Public Relations; and 
- Corporate Social Responsibility 

Because these are such large areas of the public relations sector, only one will be discussed. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is not a new concept but unfortunately has been defined in so many ways it is often misinterpreted. In the 21st century, we find CSR to have a remarkable acceptance among practising managers; publicly traded corporations especially label CSR an assertion tool for their long term legitimacy and profitability (Isaksson, L., Kiessling, T., Harvey, M., 2014). 

The issues discussed in class were the on going story of Nick Kyrgios and his actions shown in the media recently he said to his tennis opponent Thanasi Kokkinakis that his girlfriend cheated on him with her doubles partner. This story has sparked outrage around Australia and was supposed to cause Nick Kyrgios grief instead, according to a Forbes article, the “bad boy” image could  mean big money for the Australian Tennis player. 

The refugee crisis is another story that we have looked at throughout the semester. The story by CNN was covering the refugees arriving at the Macedonian border who were running away from war torn Syria. The refugee crisis continues to plague the world as hundreds of thousands flee to Europe per month. 

Through these stories CSR will be discussed in terms of the problem in immigration Corporations begin to look at ways they can promote themselves through the good deeds that they do. The traditional set up of a CSR program is that a corporation contributes resources to a social impact outside of there own scope. Immigration is one of the most talked about problems of today and is one of the most impactful problems on people’s lives. Corporations  must begin to back up non-for profit organisations who help the refugees with food, shelter etc. and through this they will gain long-term benefits through a charitable persona. 

One of the problems with CSR is the whistle blowers. The recent technology race has restructured peoples’ accessibility to, and usage of mobile computing. We have witnessed a radical shift in which mobile devices have shifted from mere diary and e-mail functions to becoming universal portals actively targeting social issues (Isaksson, L., Kiessling, T., Harvey, M., 2014). Kyrgios is a great example of how people have taken a media story and exploded it’s impact on people through mobile social media networks. 

This issue has turned around for Kyrgios. Men’s tennis is begging for an infusion of excitement, with fan favourites Federer and Nadal on the decline, and increasingly lukewarm receptions to Djokovic’s greatness. If Kyrgios can become more consistent on the court, he would be primed to become the player fans love to hate — a heel, if you will. 


Investor Relations is a subset of public relations and corporate communication that deals with a company’s relationship with the investment community (Doorley & Garcia, 2006, p.210). The function of Investor Relations is to create a favourable relation with key financial audience and contribute to building and maintain the company’s image and reputation Kyrgios has used Investor Relations in his own way. By listening to the public and applying it to his relationships with sponsors, he has realised the lack of enthusiasm made by fellow tennis players and has turned his excited and spirited image to contribute to his reputation, he has turned a bad situation into a profit. 

References: 

1. Isaksson, l., Kiessling, T., Harvey, M., 2014, Corporate social responsibility: why bother?, Organisational Dynamics, 43, pp. 64-72, http://dx/doi.org/10.1016/j.orgdyn.2013.10.008
2. Doorley, J. & Garcia H.F., 2006, Reputation Management: The key to successful public relation and corporate communication, (3), pp. 211-212, http://samples.sainsburysebooks.co.uk/9781134748952_sample_984541.pdf

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