Like so many specific disciplines within the practice of public relations, the work done by community relations practitioners is extremely complex. And yet, if you leaf through the general public relations texts, you won’t find much discussion about "community relations."
It’s probably because community relations activities emulate the work done by public relations practitioners on a regular basis (that is, carefully researched, targeted communications to achieve an organizational goal -- community acceptance and support). Consequently, the authors probably didn’t think it necessary to break out community relations activities from the work that’s done every day.
None-the-less, community relations deserves some serious discussion. Basically, what good, effective community relations does is involve the people, businesses and organizations who live, work and operate in the surrounding community in company activities.
A company does not live in a vacuum. The citizens and groups that populate its geographic operating area are essential to its operation. The employees live in the community; they very likely grew up there. The company banks in the community. Municipal, county and state governments set the parameters by which the company can operate.
As a result, a successful organization must continuously establish understanding and support for its products, services and positions among those publics important to its welfare. And you only get this by applying good public relations principles over time.
Good community relations should involve several activities:
A new breed of community relations specialists has emerged -- people who are called in to gauge a community’s degree of acceptance or rejection of an issue ("Run it up the flagpole and see if anybody salutes"). More likely than not, the issue involves a controversial proposed development or facility siting. These specialists do more than just field research, however. They often serve as social analysts and are skilled in drawing out long-suppressed resentments and attitudes during their interviews.
The information they obtain is invaluable. For one thing, management may have no idea that they are feared or disliked in the community. And this is as good a time as any to find out. If there is resentment out there, or if people are uncomfortable about what goes on within your walls, the sooner you know about it, the better.
For another, to be forewarned is to be properly forearmed. The feedback allows management to identify problem areas -- not just to strategize tactics that hopefully will neutralize the problems, but also to change operating procedures and bring them in line with community expectations.
Periodic surveys will help gauge the public’s attitudes about the company and its activities. If your community relations specialists have done their job right, they will provide short-term information. What the surveys will do is provide short-term measurement of issue opinions, and long-term information on trends.
Feedback also can be obtained simply by being a willing participant in community activities. Your management and staff should know their neighbors, join civic groups, and participate in community activities. And, they should keep their eyes and ears open.
It’s hard to imagine people being afraid of what you do, especially if you’re convinced that your company is a good corporate citizen that minds its own business, provides jobs, buys locally, and operated profitably. But ignorance is the breeding ground of fear and suspicion.
Just imagine living in a neighborhood with a large house at the end of the street. People come and go at all hours through a locked gate. Noises of all sorts emanate from the house. Strange smells waft their way through the neighborhood. Lights go on and off. Boxes and crates are delivered, and even more are taken away.
You and your friends wonder what’s going on there. You talk about it at gatherings. Why, one of your children even says she and her friends are afraid to go near the front gate. They think a witch or vampire lives there.
Sound ridiculous? Well, your company or plant just might give that impression to your neighbors, especially if energy, chemicals or manufacturing by-products are involved. If people don’t know what you do, how you do it, and how you plan to protect them in case of an accident, they have every right to be afraid of your company.
The cure? Open up your house to them. Sponsor an annual community day with displays and tours of your plant. Give your employees and their families a chance to meet their neighbors in THEIR house, so to speak. Participate in community fairs. Get your people interviewed by the news media, talking about what they do for a living.
It all seems so simple. If your neighbors know you, they become your friends. If they’re your friends, they won’t be afraid of you. If they’re not afraid of you, they’re less likely to fight you. It seems simple, but it takes a lot of work to make it happen.
The community depends on you to ensure its health and safety, especially if you are manufacturing a product. They need to know that you’re doing whatever you can to prevent accidents (i.e., traffic, chemical spills, fire), that you will give them adequate and timely warning if an accident is about to occur, and that you will do what is right to mitigate (correct) any damage -- physical or otherwise -- that might befall them as a result of an accident.
In the event of a disastrous accident, nothing short of a mea culpa ("my fault") will do. Despite what your legal counsel might tell you, the most important thing to do is accept the blame and take care of those who have been injured physically, emotionally or financially. It’s the right thing to do.
It will be expensive, but you might survive the crisis. If you fight the claims and take an extremely hard legal stance, it will be very expensive, and in the long run, you will not survive. Public relations counselor Jim Lukaszewski advises that companies settle as soon as possible. The settlement costs will be high, but not as high as they will be if the cases drag on in court.
Here’s a well-worn statement: Corporations must "give back" to the community in which they operate. But do they? Actually, the answer is "Yes, but not enough." Corporations generally give less than 2%of pre-tax earnings to charities.
Ideally, the company should strive to be identified with those organizations willing to give the company credit – either through publicity as a sponsor, or through casual mention if you prefer a low-profile participation.
Corporations are constantly approached by community organizations for contributions to help fund activities – e.g., youth sports, arts and crafts, educational programs. While it is to a company’s advantage to be identified with these groups, case-by-case contributions can be counter-productive in the long run.
A practical solution may be to set up an internal contributions committee that:
An internal contributions committee will make things a lot easier for management, and will involve other employees in the community relations effort.
Every employee is a public relations ambassador for your company. The work that employees do in the community can only benefit the company. To their friends and neighbors, acquaintances and chance encounters, they ARE the company. And as such, it is imperative that they are kept informed of decisions and practices that will affect them and the community.
Everyone in management should be required to participate in a professional organization, and should be required to sit on its board of directors; better yet, to serve as an officer; and even better yet, to serve as its president.
Everyone in management should be required to voluntarily serve on the board of directors of a non-profit charity, and every non-management employee should be encouraged to serve the community in a volunteer capacity. The company should unhesitatingly support every employee volunteer to the extent that it is fiscally possible.
Participation should also be encouraged in volunteer activities that build business skills, provide community support, and develop social and civic responsibility in young adults (e.g., Junior Achievement, the Jaycees).
Three words: "Equal employment opportunity." It’s the law. Don’t break it, that’s illegal. Don’t try to circumvent it by finding loopholes; that’s unethical. Be discriminating in recruitment, but do not discriminate. Your future and current employees have a right to fair compensation, safe and comfortable working conditions, and good direction.
The community needs to know that the company will help its sons and daughters, fathers and mothers, uncles, aunts and cousins make a decent and honest living. The community needs to know that its citizens are the heart and soul of the company’s employee pool. It needs to know that the jobs will be there.
It is the company’s responsibility to ensure – through educational support – that the prospective employee pool is deep.
The company must be successful in its endeavors, and has a responsibility to the community to survive – to provide tax income, employment, and jobs for its purveyors. In order to survive, it must be profitable. But this doesn’t mean it cannot operate ethically, for indeed, ethical business practices are the backbone of community relations.
This essentially means articulating and adopting an ethical community policy. It has been said that words are hostages to performance. If you talk the talk, you need to walk the walk. By putting the policy down on paper and distributing it widely, you are in essence saying: "Here is our promise. Hold us to it."
A community policy puts the commitment in writing and spells out guidelines under which the company will participate in community affairs. Here is a sample that can be adapted to meet various corporate needs:
As part of this community, we are committed to being a good neighbor. As such, we pledge to be responsive to the concerns and the welfare of those with whom we share the land.
We will work toward building a positive, open relationship and interdependence among all who care about this community’s well-being. We will be forthright and open in all of our dealings with the community.
We believe in the need for two-way communication with the community at large, and will seek its feedback. This feedback will be a valuable part of our operations and will be come an integral part of our decision-making process.
Finally, we pledge that any decisions impacting on the community will be communicated to them in a timely and accurate manner.
The value of such a policy statement is that it provides broad guidelines on a company’s intentions, on the way it sees its role in the community, and on its commitment to be a good neighbor. And THAT'S good community relations.
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