Hundreds of public relations professionals are taking part in an ambitious project: Updating the definition of PR.
At the center is an ongoing online survey that generates a word cloud. The cloud shows that the majority of responses involve the word "organization."
And that’s an indication of everything that’s wrong with public relations: By default, we put the organization at the center of our thinking.
That may have worked in 1980. But the landscape has changed. The people formerly known as the audience have their own voice – and it’s a powerful one that can bring any organization to its knees. (Do you really need examples? Read the business pages.)
Suppose we shift our thinking. Suppose we replace “organization” with “stakeholder,” meaning anyone who has a stake in what the organization does.
What happens if we stop focusing on what the organization wants to say, and instead focus on the needs and wants (and, sometimes, demands) of the stakeholder?
What happens if we stop worrying so much about messaging, and worry more about responding?
What if we abandon “the engineering of consent” for “the nurturing of consensus"?
Suppose we redefine public relations this way:
Public relations works with stakeholders to improve the responsiveness of the organization.
How does that change the game?
