Functions and activities of the Public Relations department

Communication has changed from a linear to a network system through technological progress, internet and mass media evolution. Indeed, today communities communicate with each other in an increasingly rapid, efficient and economical way. Moreover, the public increasingly interacts with its interlocutor and companies have to dedicate a lot of resources to managing relations in order to stay up to date. 

For this reason, large companies usually have a specific department which deals with corporate public relations but according to scholars it has been extremely difficult to find a role and a definition that are universally recognized for this business division as well as due to the enormous variety of characteristics and sectors in which companies operate. Furthermore, there are some elements that complicate the analysis of this topic; in fact, some of its sub functions are often used as synonyms for this department, such as media relations or public affairs and other times some professionals use the corporate communication as an equivalent term. In addition, financial resources for corporate public relations departments can vary from company to company. For example, if the company's products are aimed at end consumers, the company has a predisposition to increase brand’s strength and for this reason it employs numerous resources in corporate public relations. Companies using this strategy operate in fashion, entertainment and travel. If, on the other hand, it operates business-to-business or for instance in construction or engineering, it is more likely that it will provide less resources for this department. 

Corporate public relations administer numerous functions within the companies and for this reason it was not easy to precisely identify its main objective. For this purpose, a study was conducted in 2001 for the Council of Public Relations Firms, an organization that promotes the best practices of this methodology, and the Arthur Page Society, a professional association for executives of corporate public relations. In fact, the objective of this analysis was to identify the functions and roles of corporate public relations in the largest American companies. The sampling frames for the analysis were Fortune 500 companies (the list of the largest US companies for total revenue ranked each year by Fortune), plus others members of Arthur Page Society. The study found that reputation management seems to be the main purpose of the corporate public relations departments for those interviewed. However, it is not easy to measure reputation because often this is the sum of the company's total operations. Furthermore, reputation is influenced by the financial performance and the quality of products and employees. Those elements are not directly controllable by corporate public relations. In fact, when analysts have to study the reputation of a company they usually consider: 

? Quality of products and management

? Degree of innovation

? Long-term investment value

? Financial soundness

? Corporate social responsibility

As a result, only in part this department can be responsible for the company's reputation. 

Moreover, communication is another area of interest of corporate public relations. In fact, in this department a careful analysis is conducted on the feedback of the corporate messages addressed to the various stakeholders and consequently corporate effectiveness in segmenting its audience is evaluated. 

The sub-functions of corporate public relations are often independent units, while other times they are inseparable from one another or overlap; this depends on the size and structure of the company. The main sub functions of this department are: 

Media relations. This function includes the management of social media for corporate communications, which can be internal (addressed to employees) or external, addressed to the public outside. The main task of this sub functions is the creation of news releases, podcasts, brochures, videos, e-mails and web sites. Furthermore, a direct relationship with the main national media can be very useful for transmitting company's point of view. 

Employee relations. These initiatives contribute to the important task of attracting and retaining the most professional employees, and they can also help to increase the creativity, quality and productivity of company services and products. 

Community relations. These are activities related to maintaining the relationships of the communities where the company is present. Besides, improving the community conditions increases the quality of local workers’ lives. Indeed, the satisfaction of the expectations and needs of the local populations is one of the most important keys to the success of international business. 

Consumer relations. The management of consumers and clients’ relationships is one of the activities which is most directly connected with the creation of profit and for this reason the company has to devote many resources to supporting consumers by guaranteeing services dedicated to them. 

Government relations and public affairs. Relations with governments are probably one of the most complex and delicate functions of public relations. Government relations is a branch of public relations that has the objective of creating and maintaining beneficial relations with governments using communication, while the aim of public affairs is to help companies to interact not only with public institutions but also with interest groups and media. The government relations and public affairs often overlap due to their objectives.

Corporate Social Responsibility. This methodology includes a set of initiatives and business practices that are aimed at improving society and environment conditions.

Financial and investor relations. It is one of the most important activities to increase the company's reputation. In fact, the public relations department draws up the annual report and all communications to investors and market analysts. These documents are very important for finding new financing and for the success of the business. 

Other important sub functions of this department are: marketing communications, internal relations, crisis management and advertising. 

In addition, public relations do not take place only within their company department, but they play a crucial role within the entire company. Indeed, the reputation of a company depends on its CEO and for this reason he/ she should have important skills in managing relationships. However, in the early 2000s, at least 60 percent of CEOs in Fortune 700 list were not specialized in public relations, but they conducted their careers in areas such as finance, marketing and sales. For this reason it is very important that they undertake initiatives and a path of specialization in relationship management.