Chapter 10 / Supplemental Readings

Chapter 10

Chapter ten revolves around conflict management. The chapter begins by describing the key components for conflict management-  these components are strategic, managements, competition, and conflict. The strategic component defines the purpose of achieving certain objectives. The management component defines planned action. The competition component defines competitors who are aiming toward the same goal. The conflict component defines a sharp disagreement or opposition that results in a threat from another competitor.

            Then, the chapter describes the factors that these components can be made up of. The chapter splits these factors into two categories: external and internal. The definitions being pretty obvious because of their name, the chapter lists some examples. Eternal factors include: external threats, political environment, and public opinion / characteristic. Internal factors include: internal threats, corporation characteristics, management’s characteristics, and personality characteristics.

            After defining the key components and what make the components of conflict management, the chapter then goes into the use of conflict management. The chapter describes this use as a life cycle. The cycle has a six step process: environmental scanning, risk communication, conflict positioning, crisis communication, conflict resolution, and reputation management. Environmental scanning is the analysis of current affairs. Risk communication is the analyzing of dangers and threats, which could include organizations or environmental factors. Conflict positioning is the ability to place your organization in a favorable position for public viewing. Crisis communication is the understanding of a crisis plan if one should ever occur. Conflict resolution is the ability to turn a conflict around and make it beneficial for a company. Finally, reputation management is the research used to learn about the organizations reputation.

            The chapter then describes some basic steps for managing crises or predicting them – which all seemed pretty redundant and like common sense. It then provided some strategies for addressing conflict, which seemed like something that could potentially be useful in class. These included: Attack the accuser, denial, making excuses, demanding justification, ingratiation (changing something to appease to the public involved) corrective action (steps taken to repair actions that are done) or a complete apology (however, we were instructed that this should almost never be used). In order to address these strategies, it is necessary to know the foundations of an organizations reputation: economic performance, social responsiveness, and the ability to deliver valuable outcomes to stakeholders.  The chapter also pinpoints some other minor strategies to recover reputation, which include reviewing policies, hiring other that make the organization look good, and improve governance structure.

Supplemental Reading

Chapter 1

This reading covered crisis communications and pegged this communication into four different categories: media relations (building positive relations with the media) community relations (building positive relations with leaders), employee relations (building positive relations with staff) and consumer relations (building positive relations with customers). There are several different tactics to each relation, ranging from pitch letters, media tours, open houses, emails, and return policies.  The chapter also provides crises prevention tips for each of these categories, that include following up on past crises or reducing the amount of hazards that happen.

Chapter 2

This chapter goes beyond crises communication and focuses on crisis communication theory. IT pegs two different significant theories: diffusion theory and apologia theory. Diffusion theory involves a five-step process of awareness, interest, evaluation, trial, and adoption. Apologia theory involves a three-step process of redefinition, dissociation, and conciliation. Both of which involve similar steps, yet different qualities and success rates.

Chapter 3

This chapter goes over the steps to communicating a process. It defines six steps that are pretty much self-explanatory. These steps include: keep the old customers, attract new customers, market new services and products, handle complaints swiftly, educate customers, and organize out reach programs.

Chapter 4

This chapter ascribes tasks to when a crisis happens.  The results of a crisis may put an organization out of business, loses image, or is seen more favorably than before. There are four stages to a crisis: breaking the news, details become available, analysis of what happened, and remembrances.