Building Publics: Employee & Other Constituencies

Employee communicators used to be under - appreciated and underpaid. No more. Organizations are realizing that employees can be their most effective advocates, and that their willingness to act in that capacity will be in direct proportion to their conviction and to the quality of the information they have about the organization. Cases will be examined that show how organizations have enlisted their employees to accomplish things no outside advocate could. Other cases show how organizations - for - profits and not - for - profits - have failed dismally to consider the people who made them successful - with dire consequences. Guest lecturers will include communicators from organizations that have been most successful with employee communications. Students learn how and when to employ the various communications media such as the Internet and Intranet. While most of the emphasis is on the employee constituency, other audiences and potential constituencies, including shareholders and customers, are studied as well.