21st CENTURY COMMUNICATION TRENDS

21^st century communication trends

Man has been communicating since thousands of years. But the 21^st century we have seen a sea change in the communications sector. Now the information is transmitted at a very fast pace rescinding all the geographical boundaries.

World is growing rapidly and people need to communicate faster. In today's organization employees are provided with numerous communication facilities to communicate faster with the organization's constituencies. Some of the recent trends in 21^st century communication are:

Virtual presenters: Virtual weather presenter.

Growth of VOIP: Internet phone calls on the rise

Relating items through tags

Blogs

Online bullying

P2P e-mail

New forms of collaboration: Networking

Physical and virtual social networks

Dual mode phones

Data and voice access

At an end user level I have experienced the rapid changes in the communication sector. A decade back people used conventional telephones for communicating. Pagers were used to send quick and short messages for a brief time. But there was a revolution when the mobiles entered the market. Today every one has a mobile phone irrespective of his financial status, and today's phones are far more than just phones.

http://www.byz.org/~rbanks/movableType/webLog/trends/archives/cat_403_new_communication_trends.html

Relevence Of Corporate Communication

Relevence Of Corporate Communication

Corporate communications is the process of facilitating information and knowledge exchanges with internal and key external groups and individuals that have a direct relationship with an enterprise. It is concerned with internal communications management from the standpoint of sharing knowledge and decisions from the enterprise with employees, suppliers, investors and partners. Examples include:

• Enterprises use annual reports as corporate communications tools to convey information related to results, processes and relationships of the enterprise. Typically, these communications occur on a yearly basis.
• Corporations use electronic and print newsletters to share corporate diversity hiring practices and information on new hires.
• Enterprises use corporate Intranets to create a corporate communication platforms to formalize processes around announcing requests to supplies to submit RFPs.

In corporate communications the object of communications work is company/enterprise itself as opposed to marketing communications where the object of communications is product/produce or service provided by the company/enterprise. The aim of corporate communications is building company's reputation among its stakeholders (as opposed to brand building in marketing communications).

Examples of corporate communications that we come across are the financial results. The quarterly results are announced by the companies in order to communicate their performance to the stakeholders. It has been very common now especially in the IT sector, where they announce the results quarterly and the share prices of the particular companies shoot up. This is one of the objectives of the corporate communications.

Communication Technology

Communications Technology

In the last century, a revolution in telecommunications has greatly altered communication by providing new media for long distance communication. The first transatlantic two-way radio broadcast occurred on July 25, 1920 and led to common communication via analogue and digital media:

• Analog telecommunications include traditional telephony, radio, and TV broadcasts.
• Digital telecommunications allow for computer-mediated communication, telegraphy, and computer networks.

Communications media impact more than the reach of messages. They impact content and customs; for example, Thomas Edison had to discover that hello was the least ambiguous greeting by voice over a distance; previous greetings such as hail tended to be garbled in the transmission. Similarly, the terseness of e-mail and chat rooms produced the need for the emoticon.

Modern communication media now allow for intense long-distance exchanges between larger numbers of people (many-to-many communication via e-mail, Internet forums). On the other hand, many traditional broadcast media and mass media favor one-to-many communication (television, cinema, radio, newspaper, magazines).

Mass media is a term used to denote, as a class, that section of the media specifically conceived and designed to reach a very large audience (typically at least as large as the whole population of a nation state). It was coined in the 1920s with the advent of nationwide radio networks and of mass-circulation newspapers and magazines. The mass-media audience has been viewed by some commentators as forming a mass society with special characteristics, notably atomization or lack of social connections, which render it especially susceptible to the influence of modern mass-media techniques such as advertising and propaganda.

EXPERIENCE:

The technologies are changing in a very rapid pace, and communication is no exception. Though man has been using technologies in communication since the inception, now we are seeing a sea change in the technology development. Information is disseminated at the speed of light and there is a need for more. Few decades ago corporate communication were done primarily through print media and public and stakeholders functions. Now with the advent of IT, companies interact with its constituencies through internet, video conferencing and telecommunications, thereby literally evading the geographical barriers.

Investor Relations

Investor Relations

Investor relations is a set of activities which relate to the ways in which a company discloses information required for regulatory compliance and good investment judgment to bond and/or shareholders and the wider financial markets. Investor relations is considered a specialty of public relations by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Most public quoted companies now have dedicated IR officers or managers who looks after the company's investor relations activities and deal with investors wishing to know more about the company. Functions of investor relations personnel often include collection of information on competitors and dissemination of information via press conferences, one-on-one briefings, investor relations sections of company websites, and company annual reports. The investor relations function also often includes the transmission of information relating to intangible values such as the company's policy to corporate governance and its wider corporate social responsibility.

The investor relations function must be aware of current and up-coming issues which the organization may face, and which may have an impact on the organization. In particular, it must be able to assess the likely impact or reaction of any announcements (or any research reports issued by Financial analysts) to be made on the share price of a company. It will have top-level access to the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman or President of the corporation to ensure that the image of the corporation is maintained in a coherent fashion.

Example: www.ibm.com/investor/

Investors are the backbone on the company. The primary objective of the corporate communication department is to build a better relationship with the investors.

In the recent times companies are understanding the investor relations in a better way and are trying to service the investors on a broader arena. The world wide web is helping the companies to service the investors in a better manner and more efficiently. Any information required by an investor or the prospective investor in available in the company websites. For example the Infosys website provides a wide variety of information such as financials, notices to the investors, information about future projects and acquisitions.

COMMUNICATION THEORY

Communication as a named and unified discipline has a history of contestation that goes back to the Socratic dialogues, in many ways making it the first and most contestatory of all early sciences and philosophies. Aristotle first addressed the problem of communication and attempted to work out a theory of it in The Rhetoric. He was primarily focused on the art of persuasion.

Humanistic and rhetorical viewpoints and theories dominated the discipline prior to the twentieth century, when more scientific methodologies and insights from psychology, sociology, linguistics and advertising began to influence communication thought and practice.

Most theories associated with communication are based on notions that can be traced back thousands of years. In ancient Greece, the subject we now refer to as communication was rhetoric, using language to persuade whoever was listening to do something. Practicing the art of rhetoric was highly regarded by the Greeks.

Whether an organization is trying to enhance its reputation through corporate advertising, to communicate effectively with employees about the rising cost of health care, to convince shareholders that the company is still worth investing in, or simply to get customers to buy more of its products, using a coherent communication strategy is critical.

REFERENCE

http://www.tcw.utwente.nl/theorieenoverzicht/

http://users.fmg.uva.nl/lleydesdorff/montreal.htm

CRISIS MANAGEMENT

Crisis refers to the uncertainty that may occur because of natural calamities, economic instabilities, and internal factors such as labor unions and malfunctions in the domain process. With respect to a corporate crisis, the main objective of crisis communications is to maintain stability and continuity in the business process of the organization. As the crisis is not predictable, it's very difficult to manage when it occurs. Though crisis management team is not a separate department, during a crisis the team consisting of the people from corporate communication department, company advocates and the specialized managers should join hands to overcome the crisis.

One can ensure to overcome the crisis by sticking to the following guidelines.

• Maintaining centrality in disseminating information
• Look for facts and not base decisions on rumors.
• Act prudently but in a quick and efficient manner.

The recent Mumbai train blast was a typical crisis. As soon as the blast occurred there were voluntary groups formed among the public who helped the survivors. The state police also acted in a timely fashion to take the situation under control and also to identify the suspects. There were rumors spreading about the attack and the consequence, but the authorities revealed the fact and figures through media in a very efficient manner.

REFERENCES

http://www3.niu.edu/newsplace/crisis.html

http://www.lsu.edu/pa/crisis.html

MEDIA RELATION

One of the most important areas within any corporate communication function is the media relations department. It refers to the relationship that needs to be built upon by the company with the media by interacting with them. Here interaction means providing the required information to the media which in turn is passed on to the customers and end-users. The media has a direct link with the prospective and current customers. It helps in creating a favorable image among the customers. It is through media that most of the information is publicized. A good relation with the media can act as a potion and a bad one can produce a deadly poison for the company.

The following steps may be considered in the process of Building relationship with media.

• Conducting a research for targeting media
• Responding to media calls
• Preparing for media interviews
• Gauging success

One example that comes to my mind while talking about media relations is fashion. The fashion gurus when they come up with new designs, they specifically target particular journalists to pitch their information. Because a fashion designer will have nothing to do with a crime reporter. Generally the fashion news does not turn up in daily papers and magazines. They get published in fashion magazines which are meant for the upper class people.

REFERENCES

http://www.managementhelp.org/pblc_rel/pblc_rel.htm

http://www.aboutpublicrelations.net/mediarel.htm

INTERNAL COMMUNICATION

Internal communication is a two-way attempt between the corporate communication and human resources department. With all the sophisticated technology available to communicate with the employees such as e-mail, blogs, intranet, etc meetings connecting distant offices, the most important factor in internal communication begins with the manager who has a basic responsibility to his or her employees. The manager has to listen and really know how the individual is and how he or she deals with the work. Today's employees want to keep in touch with all the other employees and managers. Understanding these facts is the cornerstone of an effective internal communication

Recently I had a very nice experience regarding the internal communication. I worked for HDFC Bank for some time as a part of my internship program. The internal communication is done so well at HDFC that there is no room for any doubts. The messages are crisp and clear. Most of the communication between the subordinate and his immediate superior is done face to face. And communications from higher ups comes though Circulars and memos.

REFERENCE

http://www.managementhelp.org/mrktng/org_cmm.htm

http://www.expresscomputeronline.com/20050207/technologylife01.shtml

STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION

In today's world communicating in a strategic way is very important for the organization. This chapter speaks about the communication framework which is very important for today's business strategy. Communication framework helps a lot to convey a message to its constituency. While developing a corporate communication strategy it very important to focus how to communicate and which channel to apply. It's also very essential to understand constituencies of an organization so that we can put across our message in a strategic way.

REFERENCE

http://www.benton.org/publibrary/toolkits/stratcommtool.html

http://www.chass.ncsu.edu/ccstm/scmh/model.html

CORPORATE VS PRODUCT ADVERTISING

As discussed earlier companies image can be improved through corporate advertising. Corporate advertising helps sending a message to the public. Corporate ads basically try to tell the message about the company. It's playing a crucial role in challenging environment. It tries to influence opinion about the company among the consumers. Companies spend millions of money for advertisement which has a huge impact on the consumers mind. A corporate advertising emphasizes on the corporation alone and tries to communicate its identity to create a positive image in the minds of its constituencies. On the other hand product advertising communicates only about one particular product. One of the major differences between product and corporate advertising is who pays for the advertisement. The payment for the product advertising comes typically comes from the marketing g budget, where as the corporate advertising comes under the purview of corporate communication. Some times the corporate advertising is paid by the CEO's office.

Corporate advertising endeavors to create a positive image in the minds of the customers. The ITC (Indian Tobacco Company) entered various segments recently including food apparels and stationery. ITC created a social responsibility ad on child welfare. This ad concentrated on orphans and destitute children. The ITC gave certain percentage of their profits coming out of these ventures to these children. This ad changed the company's bad image to a socially responsive image.

REFERENCE

http://www.digibarn.com/collections/ads/ibm-50s/IBM%20Corporate%20Adverts%20LR%201948%20-1954.pdf

EXPERIENCE

By seeing corporate advertising we will come to know what the company is trying to say. These advertising has there own uniqueness to speak about the message about the company.

Product advertising speaks about what the consumer wants. They try to satisfy the consumer.

IDENTITY, IMAGE AND REPUTATION

Creating a strong identity is very important role of the organization. It’s a most critical function of the company in the present competitive environment. Identity, image should be able to differentiate the company from the other companies in the market so that consumer can recognize easily. By creating a good logo, name, it reflects and speaks about the company's clear objective. An organization that has a clear corporate identity which represents the image held by its constituencies will be rewarded with a strong reputation. They should be fully aware of the tremendous impact of identity, image, and reputation and must know how to manage these critical resources. The success of the company gives awareness among the public which is irreplaceable assets in an intensely competitive global business environment.

EXAMPLE

Levi's jeans, t-shirts etc

EXPERIENCE

As a youngster I love to wear jeans. I am brand loyal to the Levi's as it gives me good quality product. My experience with this company is this that, where ever I see the store of Levi's I definitely go and have a look over the jeans, t-shirt, caps etc. This has created a strong image in my mind which attracts me to the store.

REFERENCES

http://www.marion.com/houston-corporate-identity.htm

http://www.rojasyasociados.com.ar/ImageCorp.htm

THE CHANGING ENVIRONMENT FOR BUSINESS

INTRODUCTION

Business and businessmen are changing drastically over the half century. People who where dealing with business in 1860's is totally different from the people who deals in 21st century. As business is increasing, people's expectations is also increasing. By looking at the history of American business from 1860 to 21^st century, business has changed totally. It has progressed more rapidly in 20^th century which counts the most successful nation in the world. Everywhere communication plays a critical role and which has a massive impact on business. Today's business has to communicate efficiently to achieve the goals of the business whether it's a small business or large business. Communication helps us to contribute something in the society which will have a greater impact on future.

REFERENCES

http://www.1000ventures.com/business_guide/crosscuttings/new_economy_transition.html

http://www.chusho.meti.go.jp/sme_english/whitepaper/1999/chapter1.html

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m4070/is_n126/ai_20045527

EXAMPLE

Big Bazaar India

Experience

In a country like India, people speak different language in different state and as I come from a different state, I don't speak the local language of Bangalore. When I had to buy something it was difficult for me to communicate to the shopkeeper in their local language and they wouldn't understand my language as well. But in Big Bazaar and other malls it's very easy to shop as they understand and speak English. People from all over the country come and settle in Bangalore for professional or educational purpose and communicating in the local language have been a problem. As Big Bazaar has changed its environment and has applied the communicating strategy, people prefer malls to local stores.