Functions of Public Relations

Two or the most general functions of Public Relations are Societal and Organizational. The societal function of Public Relations “…society within the scope of Public Relations defines those who are outside an organization” (Boynton, 2002), more succinctly the general public. While Organizational general function of Public Relations are directed toward the internal facets of an organization. The combination of the two covers the audience that Public Relations seek to communicate with for the benefit of the company and its image. When a Public Relations campaign is started it must properly communicate with both the society and the organization to be effective and meet its defined goals.

Archimedes, a small original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for spinal implants, made a revolutionary discovery during the normal course of product development which led to a decision by the senior staff to become a direct supplier of spinal implants. The discovery allowed spine implants to produce an appreciable amount of bone in-growth into the implant and greatly improve the outcome for spinal surgery patients. This decision has implications not initially seen by the senior management and to mitigate the problem, both internally and externally the Public Relations team must formulate a plan to communicate this new direction.

The Public Relations problem arises, both internally and externally, from the decision to migrate the company’s direction from OEM manufacturing to supplier of implants. This process will greatly reduce the number of manufacturing contracts from other spinal implant companies, since they will now be direct competitors. The reduction in contracts will reduce the need for the larger workforce and result in a large number of displaced workers. With the large number of high paying manufacturing jobs being lost in the small community in which the plant is located the local government and investors may be less likely to provide financial assistance for Archimedes in the form of tax credits and or investment.

In the external or societal arena the Public Relations team faces two major issues, loss of jobs and possible loss of local investment. In the internal or organizational arena the overall moral of the remaining workers will be negatively affected by the lost workers and changes. The challenge is to communicate to both internal and external audiences that the new direction of the company will bring prosperity back to the company and to the surrounding community. To further complicate the issues is the limited budget imposed for this process, as money is the root of the overall problem.

For the local population and political structure the Public Relations department needs to develop a message that conveys the reasoning for the change in direction of the company and that the layoff will be temporary. This should be coupled with the projections that the resulting new jobs and prosperity will positively affect the area in the long-term plan. To achieve this goal the first step will be a press release regarding the positive outlook for the company’s new product, followed by press releases on the research and trials underway with the new product and how it will benefit patients. The senior management should also speak at local public events how the community has made helped them in the past and how valuable the community is in the long-term goals of the company. The overall theme should be how this change is important to the long-term success of the community. Local talk shows, newspapers, community events and other media outlets should be given as much information as possible about the new product, the company’s forecasts and other pertinent information. This type of transparency is important to building trust with the community “If we do not conform verbally and actively to societal norms regarding such matters as accountability, transparency, responsibility, privacy and

Confidentiality then we will fast lose public trust, confidence and credibility.”(Traverse-Healy, 1984).

Internally the Public Relations department has a more delicate task of keeping moral high and making workers feel secure in the company’s new direction. A slightly higher level of transparency with company plans and forecasts communicated through the company newsletter and department heads will be the first step in gaining acceptance and trust from the employees. A displaced