Towards a lobbying profession: developing the industry's reputation, education and representation

McGrath, Conor

doi:10.1002/pa.14

Cited by 46 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Lobbying lacks an accreditation process and a policing mechanism sanctioned by law for both admission and expulsion (McGrath, 2005). At least in the United States, the constitutional right to freedom of speech makes it impossible to deny anyone the right to lobby -or the right to be paid to lobby.…”

Section: Education As An Essential Component Of Any Professionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of education in advancing the lobbying profession

Marlowe¹

2015

Int Groups Adv

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While lobbying is not usually viewed as one of life's higher callings, those who engage in public policy advocacy are essential to the workings of any representative system of government. As a lobbyist, I view myself as a skilled professional who understands governmental processes and is fully aware of the laws that govern my profession. However, a profession is not just a group of individuals and requires a collective infrastructure. This article advances the proposition that, for lobbying to be considered a profession, a structured-educational program that teaches a common core of knowledge is critical. The Association of Government Relations Professionals (AGRP) has successfully sponsored its Lobbying Certificate Program (LCP) for a decade. This LCP has demonstrated that the essential knowledge base needed to be a lobbyist can be taught in a program operated by the professional association representing lobbyists in the United States. Using the faculty resources of the profession and the academic community, the LCP enables AGRP to provide a significant benefit to both new and experienced lobbyists while both furthering the professionalism of public policy advocates and producing significant revenues for AGRP.A recent meeting I attended in a Federal courthouse building in Washington DC, helped me to focus on the importance of education in advancing both the effectiveness of lobbying and the public perception of the profession. Although the meeting had nothing to do with lobbying, it was my entrance to that very imposing building that was enlightening. There were several security officers, one of whom asked me if I was an attorney. It seems that lawyers are afforded a speedier screening and, perhaps more importantly, may keep their cell phones. I am a law school graduate but have never been admitted to the Bar of the District of Columbia or any other State of the Union and have therefore never practiced as a professional lawyer.

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Section: Education As An Essential Component Of Any Professionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of education in advancing the lobbying profession

Marlowe¹

2015

Int Groups Adv

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“…Thus, in developed economies, CPA is "largely about legal, firm-level engagement with institutionalised political actors and structures" (Lawton et al, 2012: 87). CPA is an issuedriven activity, that follows more or less transparent and clear "rules of the game" (Griffin & Dunn 2004;McGrath 2005;Van Schendelen 2012) and which is mostly viewed as an "essential, legitimate and distinguishable activity, which supplements business activity" (Hadjikhani and Ghauri 2006: 391). In emerging markets, on the other hand, the "kind of structured CPA known in developed states has been largely presumed not to exist" (Lawton et al 2012: 7).…”

Section: Cpa and Political Capabilitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coping with Autocracy: Corporate Political Activity, Institutional Duality, and MNE Local Firm Rivalry During 'Institutional Backsliding'

Sallai

Schnyder

2017

SSRN Journal

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This study contributes to the corporate political activities (CPA) and the "institutional duality" literature by investigating how MNE subsidiaries and local firms develop their CPA in an increasingly politicised environment in an emerging market (EMs). Our longitudinal case study, based on interviews with top-level managers in Hungary, supports the view that institutional duality is not just a constraint for MNEs, but allows even firms from institutionally distant economies to successfully transfer political capabilities to the host context, providing them with competitive advantage over local firms. However, we also find that the value of these capabilities changes as institutional change progresses in our post-socialist case. Therefore institutional duality needs to be understood as a time-dependent phenomenon. Year: 2017No: GPERC #53 GREENWICH POLITICAL ECONOMY RESEARCH CENTRE (GPERC)2

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“…The only way in which lobbying can achieve greater public legitimacy is for the industry to make progress towards greater professionalisation (McGrath, 2005). That encompasses a wide agenda -including more transparency and accountability, effective professional associations, a greater willingness by lobbyists to educate the public about the virtues of interest representation, the articulation of a common set of professional norms and values.…”

Section: Editorialmentioning

confidence: 99%