Public Relations Organizations And Other Stakeholders

Public Relations
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Public Relations
Grunig’s Excellence Theory is described the two-way symmetrical communication model used in public relations to ensure that managers make decisions that are mutually beneficial to both the organization its stakeholders. The model has been a useful guide in the public relations practice since it advises companies to embrace negotiation with their stakeholders, which ultimately promotes mutual understanding. Macnamara (2017, p.1) argues that theories of public relations have examined the two-communication that involves interactions between organizations and other stakeholders but most institutions ail to pay enough attention to listening. Interpersonal communication enables an organization to improve its public relations by listening to the proposals made by the public. Evidence indicates that the organizational-public relationship develops a sense of open communication which enables all stakeholders to develop trust. This paper examines how the Grunig’s model guides the public relations practice, and how the two-way communication can inform organizations and other stakeholders. Also examined is the willingness of organizations to entrench the views of other stakeholders in their organizational practices.
Grunig’s research and his focus on two-way model of communication represented a change from theories that focused on attitudes and orientations of an individual. A PR practitioner was stereotypically viewed as a manipulative entity who uses his position to control other stakeholders. Nevertheless, the symmetrical model suggests that firms, employees, and other stakeholders should communication as a means of adjusting their behavior and ideologies to those of other stakeholders instead of controlling the thoughts and behaviors of other people (Grunig, 2013, p.39). For instance, in the case of Sagittarius Mines, Inc., the management initiated a community relations campaign to ensure that it interacts closely with the local community concerning the Tampakan Project (Rowland, 2013). The company developed the project after communicating with its shareholders to ensure that all requirements are upheld. The public relations of the company showed that the management is committed to promoting and upholding the rights of the public and the local communities. In “RAA Premium” (GTA 2006), Royal Automobile Association (RAA) ensured there is sufficient communication before launching a new premium product for its South Australian clients. Michels Warren, the PR company working for RAA adopted a communication strategy, “Alert, Inform, and Reinforce” to ensure that customers understood the new product before the transition.
The two-way communication model gives liberty to the PR practitioner when it comes to making decisions that affect the public, and this implies that the decision can either be effective or ineffective depending on the prevailing issues. Therefore, the overall aim is to develop a mutual understanding among stakeholders and ensure that the organizations puts into consideration the interests of other parties when making decisions. When stakeholders feel like they are being controlled, they ...