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The Power of Corporate Communication: Crafting the Voice and Image of Your Business Paul Argenti and Janis Forman Higher Education, McGraw-Hill, New York; 2002; ISBN 0 07 137949 5; 256pp; hardback, £25.99, US$34.95
Most managers still consider corporate communication to be a marginal function of corporate life, an attitude resulting from the fact that managers in general are not well informed on the topic. The Power of Corporate Communication addresses this flaw and attempts to 'pull corporate communication out of . . . the public relations tradition ... usually taught in schools of journalism and communication, and to place it squarely within management and within business practice' (p. 18).
Corporations today are under 'persistent scrutiny' because of some dubious behaviors which generate strong reactions from the media and hence a 'noisy and chaotic business environment' (p. 13). It is in this environment that corporate communication becomes relevant. In Chapter 1, the authors define corporate communication as the 'corporation's voice and the images it projects of itself'. As such, communication needs to be aligned with what the company is about: 'corporations must have a coherent, consistent voice and image. The whole of the organization needs to speak with one voice' (p. 13).
In Chapter 2, the authors trace the roots of corporate communication to the public relations tradition defined by Ivy Ledbetter Lee and, later, by Edward L. Bernays at the turn of the 20th century. The authors provide a detailed account of the philosophy and practices of these two pioneers.
Chapter 3 describes how corporate communication works. The management style of General Electric's Jack Welch is presented as an example of excellent communication practice. 'Welch was the teacher, role model and coach for all his employees' (p. 41). The authors argue that to be excellent communicators, chief executive officers (CEOs) need help: 'CEOs need counsel and support to get their company's messages out to important constituencies and to ensure that their strategic decisions are implemented' (p. 45) and, therefore, corporate communication directors should 'have a seat at the CEO's table' (p. 47). Communication professionals will then bring the perspectives of the various constituency relationships into the process of strategy formulation and implementation.
Chapter 4 provides an interesting overview of the key concepts of identity, image...