Public Relation Policies: Evaluation and Questionnaire

After reading this article you will learn about Public Relation Policies:- 1. Public Relations Policies & Management—An Evaluation 2. Questionnaire Designed for Public Relation Policies.

Public Relations Policies & Management—An Evaluation:

Good public ‘relations’ results from good performance publicly acknowledged and appreciated. An effective public relations (P.R.) function of a company encompasses fundamentally three areas of performance.

First—the level of satisfaction with the products and services of the organisation and effectiveness with which it meets the real needs of the potential customer.

Second—the policies set by the management aiming at the above.

Third—the traditional communicative processes concerning the above two areas including initiation of change when change is desirable.

Thus, the evaluation and audit of this function should include:

(i) The external environment,

(ii) Public attitudes and their causes,

(iii) Effectiveness of public relations management, and

(iv) The developmental effects each part and whole of the organisation is having for public relations.

Questionnaire Designed for Public Relation Policies:

1. Environment, Public Attitudes and their Causes:

The single purpose of the P.R. function is to help the organisation develop and maintain a social climate or environment in which it can prosper best. It is concerned with helping to ensure that the organisation’s performance and behaviour are good, both as to what it does and what it says and that what the organisation does is in the public interest.

(a) Are more and more people being better educated through—improved communica­tion? Exposure of inter-relationships with other associated key matters?

(b) Do the factors of ‘impersonality’ (i.e. remoteness of customers may lead to many abuses like lack of service, insufficient supply, etc.) and ‘bigness’ (i.e. giant size of the organisation may delay decisions and cause disregard of people as individuals, etc.) contribute to a lack of public confidence and to unfavorable attitudes? Any intensive and extensive studies undertaken? Results?

(c) Is ‘the growing voice of the consumer’ (that is, consumerism) on matters like— breach of contract, misleading and false advertisement, misrepresentation, over­charging, poor or unsafe or harmful products, poor labelling, failure to stand behind warranties and guarantees, etc. properly felt and dispassionately judged? Is a comprehensive policy on these details evolved and meticulously practiced? Are the provisions in MRTP Act and similar laws in this regard made widely known to the staff members of the organisation?

(d) Do the policies set and the practices followed by the management incorporate the above factors so as to reflect the following as a part of corporate development process:

The organisation as a social entity (community relations)?

The organisation as an institution (products and customer-oriented services)?

The organisation as an economically viable unit (balancing between the profit and the public interest)?

2. Effectiveness of P. R. Management:

The key function of P. R. management is to evaluate and anticipate:

(i) The effect of every proposed objective, policy, plan, and important action of the organisation on each of its publics;

(ii) The effect of each of its publics on the organisation. In this respect, the P. R. manager has to influence the management decisions by considering the proposals that should be carried a public relations viewpoint.

(a) Have the P. R. objectives, policies, and plans been developed keeping in view the country’s legislations and general social awareness and agreement among the top management obtained?

(b) Does the P. R. management take the initiative of counselling in the situations like— community welfare and development work, proposed changes in service arrange­ments, product distribution network, strike or lockout, etc. from the standpoint of the public interest?

(c) Are the public attitudes and opinions (under classified publics) surveyed, deter­mined, analysed and interpreted? If so, what are the techniques adopted? Opinion research? Media research? Mail questionnaires? Interviews?

(d) Are sound principles and practices in regard to planning, organising, coordinating and integrating the P. R. activities followed so as to be compatible with the organisation’s objectives?

(e) What is the present status of the P. R. management and P. R. manager in the organisation structure? Reporting to whom? Is it considered as a sub-system? Any P. R. budget and cost management?

3. P.R. Development Effects:

(a) What is the present level of external public relations with respect to the following:

(i) Contacts with the Chamber of Commerce, Industrial Associations/Organisations/Agencies, Educational Institutions, P. R. Bodies, etc.?

(ii) Liaison with Government departments, Press, Embassies, etc.?

(iii) Communications with Public (press releases), Advertising, Shareholders, Clients, Customers, Govt. Bodies etc.?

(b) What is the level of contribution by P. R. development function assist marketing efforts Trade Fairs? Industrial Exhibitions? Documentary Films?