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For many people today, regrettably, the term business
ethics is an oxymoron. Its mere mention stimulates images
of disgraced CEOs being led away in handcuffs after
bilking their shareholders and employees out of millions
of dollars.
Many believe the term “crooked CEO” is redundant. One book, written by former management consultants, described CEOs thusly:
Among the more than 14,000 publicly registered companies in the U.S. and the even larger number of privately held companies there is a class of people who will lie to the public, the regulators, their employees and anyone else in order to increase personal wealth and power (A. Larry Elliot and Richard J. Schroth. How Companies Lie: Why Enron Is Just the Tip of the Iceberg (New York Crown Publishers, 2002)).
Corporate Codes of Conduct
A code of conduct is a formal statement of the values and business practices of a corporation. A code may be a short mission statement, or it may be a sophisticated document that requires compliance with articulated standards and has a complicated enforcement mechanism.
The reasons corporations adopt such codes vary from company to company.
To increase public confidence. Scandals have shaken investor confidence and have led to a decline of public trust and confidence in business. Many firms have responded with written codes of ethics.
To stem the tide of regulation. As public confidence declines, government regulation of business has increased. Corporate codes of conduct are perceived to serve as a self-regulation mechanism.
To improve internal operations. As companies become larger and more decentralized, management needs consistent standards of conduct to ensure that employees are meeting the business objectives of the company in a legal and ethical manner.
To respond to transgressions. Frequently, when a company itself is caught in the web of unethical behavior, it responds with its own code of ethics.
Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote, an organization is the lengthened shadow of a man. Today, many corporate executives realize that just as an individual has certain responsibilities as a citizen, so, too, does a corporate citizen have responsibilities to the society in which it is privileged to operate.
As business becomes globalized, companies are being encouraged by interest groups, governments, educational institutions, industry associations, and others to adopt codes of conduct. Accordingly, formal ethical codes, addressing such topics as executive compensation, accounting procedures, confidentiality of corporate information, misappropriation of corporate assets, bribes and kickbacks, and political contributions, have become a corporate fact of life for every company executive, up to and including the members of the board of directors.
Corporate Social Responsibility
Closely related to the ethical conduct of an organization is its social responsibility. Simply stated, corporate social responsibility is about how companies manage the business processes to produce an overall positive impact on society. This implies that any social institution, from the smallest family unit to the largest corporation, is responsible for the behavior of its members and may be held accountable for their misdeeds.
In the late 1960s, when this idea was just emerging, initial responses were of the knee-jerk variety. A firm that was threatened by increasing legal or activist pressures and harassment would ordinarily change its policies in a hurry. Today, however, organizations and their social responsibility programs are much more sophisticated. Social responsibility is treated just like any other management discipline: analyze the issues, evaluate performance, set priorities, allocate resources to those priorities, and implement programs that deal with issues within the constraints of the organization's resources. Many companies have created special committees to set the agenda and target the objectives.
Social responsibility touches practically every level of organizational activity, from marketing to hiring, from training to work standards. A partial list of social responsibility categories might include the following:
Product lines---dangerous products, product performance and standards, packaging, and environmental impact
Corporate philanthropy---contribution performance, encouragement of employee participation and social projects, and community development activities
Environmental activities---pollution control projects, adherence to federal standards, and evaluation procedures for new packages and products
External relations---support of minority enterprises, investment practices, and government relations
Employment diversity in retaining and promoting minorities and women---current hiring policies, advancement policies, specialized career counseling, and opportunities for special minorities such as the physically handicapped
Employee safety and health---work environment policies, accident safeguards, and food and medical facilities
More often than not, organizations have incorporated social responsibility into the mainstream of their practice. Most firms recognize that social responsibility, far from being an add-on program, must be a corporate way of life. They recognize that in a skeptical world, business must be responsible to act ethically and improve the quality of life of their workforce, their families, and the broader society.
Ethics in Government
Politics has never enjoyed an unblemished reputation when it comes to ethics. In the first two decades of the 21st century, politicians seem to be losing further ground in terms of trustworthiness and ethical values.
*SOURCE: THE PRACTICE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS, 10TH ED., FRASER P. SEITEL, PGS. 112-116*
The practice of public relations is all about credibility. Credibility, in turn, begins with telling the truth. Public relations, then, must be based on "doing the right thing"---in other words, acting ethically.
In the 21st century, with scandals materializing in every sector of society---from politics to religion, from business to sports---the subject of ethics is a pervasive one. What precisely are ethics? A sociologist posed that question to business people and got these answers:
"Ethics has to do with what my feelings tell me is right or wrong."
"Ethics has to do with my religious beliefs."
"Being ethical is doing what the law requires."
"Ethics consists of the standards of behavior our society accepts."
"I don't know what the word means."
Classical ethics means different thing to different people. Ethics theories range from utilitarianism (i.e., the greatest good for the greatest number) to deontology (i.e., do what is right, though the world should perish). In one survey of 1,700 public relations executives, it was revealed that 25 percent of those interviewed admitted they had "lied on the job," 39 percent said they had exaggerated the truth, and another 44 percent said they had felt"uncertain" about the ethics of what they did ("In Public Relations, 25% Admit Lying," New York Times, May 8, 2000, C20). That was reason enough to propel the public relations society of America (PRSA) to invest $100,000 in revamping its code of ethics. The code, underscored by six fundamental values that the PRSA believes vital to the integrity of the profession (Figure 1), demonstrates the significance of ethics to the practice of public relations.
PRSA Member Code of Ethics 2000
PRSA Member Statement of Professional Values
This statement represents the core values of PRSA members and, more broadly, of the public relations profession. These values provide the foundation for the member code of ethics and set the industry standard for the professional practice of public relations. These values are the fundamental beliefs that guide our behaviors and decision-making process. We believe our professional values are vital to the Integrity of the profession as a whole.
Advocacy
We serve the public interest by acting as responsible advocates for those we represent. We provide a voice in the marketplace of ideas, facts, and viewpoints to aid informed public debate.
Honesty
We adhere to the highest standards of accuracy and truth and advancing the interests of those we represent and in communicating with the public.
Expertise
We acquire and responsibly use specialized knowledge and experience. We advance the profession through continued professional development, research, and education. We build Mutual understanding, credibility, and relationships among a wide array of institutions and audiences.
Independence
We provide objective counsel to those we represent. We are accountable for our actions.
Loyalty
We are faithful to those we represent, while honoring Our obligation to serve the public interest.
Fairness
We deal fairly with clients, employers, competitors, Piers, vendors, the media, and the General Public. We respect all opinions and support the right of free expression.
*The public relations Society of America, 33 Irving Place, New York, NY 10003 - 2376
Figure 1
PRSA's six values. The values of advocacy, honesty, expertise, independence, loyalty, and fairness form the basis of the PRSA ethical code.
Are We Doing the Right Thing?
What exactly are ethics? The answer is not an easy one.
The Josephson Institute, which studies ethics, define ethics as standards of conduct that indicate how one should behave based on moral duties and virtues.
In general, ethics are the values that guide a person, organization, or society---concepts such as right and wrong, fairness and unfairness, honesty and dishonesty. An individual's conduct is measured not only against his or her conscience but also against some norm of acceptability that society or an organization has determined.
Roughly translated, an individual's or organization's ethics come down to the standards that are followed in relationships with others---the real Integrity of the individual or organization. Obviously, a person's ethical construct and approach depend on numerous factors---cultural, religious, and educational, among others. Complicating the issue is that what might seem right to one person might not matter to someone else. No issue is solely black or white but is rather a shade of grey---particularly in making public relations decisions.
That is not to say that classical ethical distinctions do not exist. They do. Philosophers throughout the ages have debated the essence of ethics.
Utilitarianism suggests considering the greater good rather than what may be best for the individual.
To Aristotle, the golden mean of moral virtue could be found between two extreme points of view.
Kant's categorical imperative recommended acting "on that maxim which you will to become a universal law."
Mill's principle of utility recommended seeking the greatest happiness for the greatest number.
The traditional Judeo-Christian ethic prescribes loving your neighbor as yourself. Indeed, this Golden Rule makes good sense as well in the practice of public relations.
Because the practice of public relations Is misunderstood by so many, public relations people, in particular, must be ethical. They cannot assume that ethics are strictly personal choices without relevance or related methodology for resolving moral quandary. Public relations people must adhere to a high standard of professional ethics, with truth as the key determinant of their conduct.
Professional ethics, often called applied ethics, suggests a commonly accepted sense of professional conduct that is translated into formal codes of ethics.
The essence of the codes of conduct of both the Public Relations Society of America and the International Association of Business Communicators is that honesty and fairness lie at the heart of public relations practice. Indeed, if the ultimate goal of the public relations professional is to enhance public trust of an organization, then only the highest ethical conduct is acceptable.
Inherent in these standards of the profession is the understanding that ethics have changed and continue to change as society changes. Over time, views have changed on such issues as discrimination, the treatment of women and minorities, pollution of the environment, concern for human rights, acceptable standards of language and dress, and so on. Again, honesty and fairness are two critical components that will continue to determine the ethical behavior of public relations professionals.
Boiled down to its essence, the ethical heart of the practice of public relations lies in posing only one question to management: Are we doing the right thing? In posing that critical question, the public relations officer becomes the "conscience" of the organization.
Often the public relations professional will be the only member of management with the nerve to pose such a question. Sometimes this means saying no to what the boss wants to do. Public relations professionals must be driven by one purpose---to preserve, defend, sustain, and enhance the health and vitality of the organization. Simply translated, the bottom line for public relations professionals must always be to counsel and to do what is in the best long-term interest of the organization.
*SOURCE: THE PRACTICE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS, 10TH ED., 2007, FRASER P. SEITEL, PGS. 108-112*
Like other management processes, professional public relations work emanates from clear strategies and bottom line at objectives that flow into specific tactics, each with its own budget, timetable, and allocation of resources. Stated another way, public relations today is much more a planned, persuasive social managerial science than a knee-jerk, damage control reaction to sudden flare-ups.
Don't get me wrong, the public relations professionals who have the most organizational clout and get paid the most are those who demonstrate the ability to perform in a crisis. Thinking "on your feet" is very much a coveted ability in the practice of public relations. But so, too, is the ability to think strategically and plan methodically to help change attitudes, crystallized opinions, and accomplish the organization's overall goals.
Managers insist on results, so the best public relations programs can be measured in terms of achieving results in building the key relationships on which the organization depends. The relevance of public relations people in the eyes of top management depends largely on the contribution they make to the management process of the organization.
With nearly a century under its belt, the practice of public relations has developed its own theoretical framework as a management system. According to communications professors James Grunig and Todd Hunt, public relations managers perform what organizational theorist call a boundary role: they function at the edge of an organization as a liaison between the organization and its external and internal Publics. In other words, public relations managers have one foot inside the organization and one outside. Often this unique position is not only lonely but also precarious.
As boundary managers, public relations people support their colleagues by helping them communicate across organizational lines both within and outside the organization. In this way, public relations professionals also become systems managers, knowledgeable about and able to deal with the complex relationships inherent in the organization.
Top managers are forced to think strategically about reaching their goals. So, too, should public relations professionals think in terms of the strategic process element of their own roles. Specifically, they must constantly ask, in relation to their departments, and assignments:
What are we attempting to achieve, and where are we going in that pursuit?
What is the nature of the environment in which we must operate?
Who are the key audiences we must convince in the process?
How will we get to where we want to be?
It is this procedural mindset directed at communicating key messages to realize desired objectives to priority publics that makes the public relations professional a key adviser to top management.
Reporting to Top Management
The public relations function, by definition, must report to top management.
If public relations is truly to be the interpreter for management philosophy, policy, and programs, then the public relations director should report to the CEO. In many organizations, this reporting relationship is not the case. Public relations is often subordinated to advertising, marketing, legal, or human resources. Whereas marketing and advertising promote the product, public relations promotes the entire organization. Therefore, if the public relations chief reports to the director of marketing or advertising, the job mistakenly becomes one of promoting specific products rather than promoting the entire organization.
For the public relations function to be valuable to management, it must remain independent, credible, and objective as an honest broker. This also mandates that public relations professionals have not only communication competence but also an intimate knowledge of the organization's business. Without the latter, according to research, public relations professionals are much less effective as top management advisers.
Public relations, rightfully, should be the corporate conscience. An organization's public relations professionals should enjoy enough autonomy to deal openly and honestly with management. If an idea doesn't make sense, if a product is flawed, if the general institutional wisdom is wrong, it is the duty of the public relations professional to challenge the consensus. As Warren Buffett, the legendary CEO of the Berkshire Hathaway company, put it, "We can afford to lose money---even a lot of money. But we cannot afford to lose reputation---even a shred of reputation."
This is not to say that advertising, marketing, and all other disciplines should not enjoy a close partnership with public relations. Clearly, they must. All disciplines must work to maintain their own independence while building long-term mutually beneficial relationships for the good of the organization. However, public relations should never shirk its overriding responsibility to enhance the organization's credibility by ensuring that corporate actions are in the public interest.
To perform that function effectively, it needs to report directly to top management.
Conceptualizing the Public Relations Plan
Strategic planning for public relations is an essential part of management. Planning is critical not only to know where a particular campaign is headed but also to win the support of top management. Indeed one of the most frequent complaints about public relations is that it is too much of a seat-of-the-pants activity, impossible to plan and difficult to measure. Management's perspective is, how do we know the public relations group will deliver and fully leverage the resources they're asking for? They must see a plan. with proper planning, public relations professionals can indeed defend and account for their actions.
Before organizing for public relations work, practitioners must consider objectives and strategies, planning and budget, and research and evaluation. The broad environment in which the organization operates must dictate overall business objectives. These, in turn, dictate specific public relations objectives and strategies. Once these have been defined, the task of organizing for a public relations program should flow naturally.
Setting up objectives, formulating strategies, and planning are essential if the public relations function is to be considered equal in stature to other management processes. Traditionally, the public relations management process involves four steps:
Defining the problem or opportunity. This requires researching current attitudes and opinions about the issue, product, candidate, or company in question and determining the essence of the problem.
Programming. This is the formal planning stage, which addresses key constituent publics, strategies, tactics, and goals.
Action. This is the communications phase, when the program is implemented.
Evaluation. The final step in the process is the assessment of what worked, what didn't, and how to improve in the future.
Each of these four process steps is important. Most essential is starting with a firm base of research and a solid foundation of planning.
All planning requires thinking. Planning a short-term public relations program to promote a new service may require less thought and time than planning a long-term campaign to win support for a public policy issue. However, in each case, the public relations plan must include clear-cut objectives to achieve organizational goals, targeted strategies to reach those objectives, specific tactics to implement the strategies, and measurement methods to determine whether the tactics worked.
Creating the Public Relations Plan
The public relations plan must be spelled out in writing. Its organization must answer management's concerns and questions about the campaign being recommended. Here is one way it might be organized and what it should answer.
Executive summary---an overview of the plan.
Communication process---how it works, for understanding and training purposes.
Background---mission statement, vision, values, events that led to the need for the plan.
Situation analysis---major issues and related facts the plan will deal with.
Message statement---the plans, major ideas, and emerging themes, all of which look to the expected outcome.
Audiences---strategic constituencies related to the issues, listed in order of importance, with whom you wish to develop and maintain relationships.
Key audience messages---one or two sentence messages that you want to be understood by each key audience.
Implementation---issues, audiences, messages, media, timing, cost, expected outcomes, and method of evaluation all neatly spelled out.
Budget---the plan's overall budget presented in the organization's accepted style.
Monitoring and evaluation---how the plan's results will be measured and evaluated against a previously set benchmark or desired outcome.
A simpler, hypothetical five-part public relations plan for the fictional Fribbert's Frosty Frappuccino might break down like this:
Situation.
Our world is moving faster than ever before. PDAs and cell phones have overtaken our every minute. Even leisure-time activities have morphed into intensity from power yoga to power lunch to the 20 minute workout. The coffee break has become old hat. In short, the world desperately needs to chill. And what better beverage to chill with than Fribbert's Frosty Frapp?
Business Objectives.
To increase Fribbert's Frosty Frapp market share nationally by 20%.
To increase Fribbert's Frosty Frapp market share among young adults by 30%.
To increase product recall of Fribbert's among all cold beverages by 25%.
Public relations objectives.
Tie coffee break time with the need to chill with Fribbert's Frosty frappe.
Generate Buzz among younger workers to chill not with coffee but with Fribbert's Frosty Frapp.
Instill the importance of chilling.
Strategies.
Leverage a familiar concept---the coffee break---with a new approach---the Frapp chill.
Spread the word about the Frosty Frapp chill.
Commission original research to underscore the importance of chilling.
Recruit topic-specific experts to discuss chilling and Frosty Frapp.
Public relations program elements.
Fribbert's commissions survey of human resources professionals on the importance of short breaks during the day and associated increases and productivity. The survey will determine how a selection of leading companies handle the need for chilling time among employees.
Fribbert's launches national "Need to Chill" (NTC) program to introduce the ritual of "chillin' brakes" in workplaces across America. The NTC program will be led by a board composed of professionals in pertinent areas, such as a psychiatrist, a life coach, a relaxation expert, and a food expert.
Fribbert's launches a viral email campaign across the nation to encourage recipients to sign a petition to appeal to Congress to make the chilling break a federally-mandated activity,
Fribbert's announces a nationwide Chillin' Day, designating a moment in time when employees around the nation will be asked to stop and chill.
Advertising support is leveraged with Chillin' Day promotions, particularly on local radio.
A Chillin' Day spokesperson is appointed, representative of what it means to be cool and chillin'. Such cool personalities as LeBron James, Tiki Barber, Snoop Dogg, and Matthew McConaughey will be considered.
Local news hooks in key market areas are investigated to promote free Fribbert's and chillin'.
The beauty of creating a plan like this is that it clearly specifies tactics against which objectives can be measured and evaluated. In devising the public relations plans along these lines, an organization is ensured that its public relations programs will reinforce and compliment its overall business goals.
*SOURCE: THE PRACTICE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS, 10TH ED., 2007, FRASER P. SEITEL, PGS. 84-89*
