Enterprise strategy

Abstract

PurposeThis paper seeks to explicate the strategic contribution of the corporate communication/ public relations function (PR) to enterprise strategy development at macro‐organisational level with the aim of contributing towards its institutionalisation.Design/methodology/approachThe approach takes the form of a literature review and conceptual analysis, reflective PR paradigm and corporate social performance approach.FindingsEnterprise strategy is the suggested mechanism and a relevant strategy process for incorporating societal and stakeholder expectations, values, norms and standards into the organisation's strategy development processes. Enterprise strategy explicates corporate communication/PR's strategic contribution at the macro‐organisational level. Societal expectations, values, standards and norms are expressed through concepts such as CSR, corporate governance, good corporate citizenship, sustainability, and the Triple Bottom Line; manifest through non‐legislative measures such as the Global Sullivan Principles of CSR, the Global Reporting Initiative, the Social Responsibility Investment Index of the JSE, as well as voluntary codes such as the Cadbury Report (UK) and the King Reports I, II and III in South Africa (SA); and are addressed through legislative measures such as the Sarbanes‐Oxley Act (USA) and the Employment Equity/Broad‐based Black Economic Empowerment/Financial Intelligence Centre Acts (SA).Originality/valueThis article addresses the dearth of literature on enterprise strategy and corporate communication/PR's strategic role at top management level by conceptualising enterprise strategy and explicating corporate communication's strategic contribution within its framework – indicating corporate communication's focus to be on the social (People) and environmental (Planet) pillars of the Triple Bottom Line approach, rather than its financial aspects (Profit).

How communication departments contribute to corporate success

“…The roles of communication professionals have been widely discussed among both scholars and practitioners since the 1970s, with early debates centering on the dual roles of public relations managerssteering the departmentand public relations technicianscomposing texts and images (Dozier and Broom, 1995). Steyn and Niemann (2010) added the role of the public relations strategist to the aforementioned two-role conceptualization. It highlights the strategic contribution of communicators who provide input for strategy formulation processes on top management level.…”

“…Roles research has furthermore analyzed tactical or technician roles as opposed to strategic roles of professionals, who define communication strategies and participate in strategy formulation (e.g. Steyn and Niemann, 2010;Fieseler et al, 2015).…”

A Bibliometric Analysis of Public Relations Models

“…In today's continually changing organizational environment, organizations have to change their strategic direction to sustainability (Bordia et al, 2004) and at this point public relations becomes a key driver for organizations in order to achieve their goals and legitimacy. Organisational legitimacy can be ensured by societal and stakeholder expectations, values, norms and standards for good corporate governance and socially responsible behaviour, rather than only by government regulations (Steyn, & Niemann, 2010). Thus stakeholder relationships have become more important than ever as legitimacy occurs only when the organisation's actions are parallel with the expectations' of society (Sutton, 1993).…”

“…Thus stakeholder relationships have become more important than ever as legitimacy occurs only when the organisation's actions are parallel with the expectations' of society (Sutton, 1993). So it can be suggested that organisations are dependent on society for legitimisation to gain a favourable reputation and to be conceived as societally responsible (Steyn, & Niemann, 2010;Steyn, 2009). When the trend topics such as global flux and stakeholder relationship were evaluated, it suggested that symmetrical model and mixed-motive model can dominate the field of public relations in the near future.…”

Menggunakan 'Penta-Helix' untuk Menjembatani Reaksi Masyarakat Terhadap Vaksin Covid-19

“…Dalam penerapannya, meskipun isu-isu strategis, fungsi manajerial, dan fungsi ekonomi menjembatani pola strategi fungsional, dengan asumsi bahwa situasi tertentu diketahui atau telah diproyeksikan, ada prediksi yang tidak memungkinkan perubahan drastis, dan kontrol lingkungan yang teratur (Altuntaş, 2014). Tak terbendung tentang bagaimana strategi perusahaan memposisikan proses yang relevan dan mekanisme yang disarankan untuk memasukkan pemangku kepentingan, standar masyarakat, norma, nilai, dan harapan (Steyn & Niemann, 2010).…”