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PurposeComparatively, while the voice of customers, employees, and other stakeholders have been identified as key components of corporate and marketing communication, little attention has been paid to how organizations listen to, make sense of, and use the information provided. The research reported in this article examined how a multinational corporation and its subsidiaries listen to their customers, employees, and other stakeholders and explored how corporate listening can be improved for mutual benefits.Design/methodology/approachThis article reports participatory action research within a multinational corporation operating in Europe, Canada and Australia, which set out to become a “listening organization” to improve its relationships and performance. The research was informed by interviews, observation, content analysis of relevant documents, and critical reflection.FindingsThis analysis illustrates the need for and benefits of looking beyond statistical data to analyze textual, aural and visual data available from call centers, open-end survey comments, complaints, correspondence, social media and other sources, and it identifies methods, tools and technologies for ethical insightful corporate listening.Research limitations/implicationsThis article advocates a “turn” from a focus on voice to focus on listening, noting that expression of the voice of customers, employees and other stakeholders has no value to them or organizations without active listening.Originality/valueThis paper reports an in-depth study of corporate listening to multiple stakeholders and identifies opportunities for increased insights and understanding that can lead to tangible benefits for both organizations and their stakeholders.

Ethical conduct is a maxim in scholarly research as well as scholarly endeavour generally. In the case of research involving humans, few if any question the necessity for ethics approval of procedures by ethics boards or committees. However, concerns have been raised about the appropriateness of ethics approval processes for social science research arguing that the orientation of ethics boards and committees to biomedical and experimental scientific research, institutional risk aversion, and other factors lead to over-protection of research participants and overly restrictive processes that delay and sometimes prevent important social science research. This is particularly significant when social science research is required to respond to social, environmental, or health emergencies and in contract research projects for the reasons explained. This analysis of an ethics approval case study adds to increasing concerns that ethics approval processes can have perverse effects in the social sciences. While a single case study does not provide generalizable findings, in-depth analysis of a significant case can identify issues that need to be further explored. Recommendations offer pathways for facilitating social science research including in emergency situations in which timeliness is important and in collaborative approaches such as participatory action research, while maintaining high ethical standards.

The influence of public relations (PR) on media content has been shown to be substantial, and research indicates that it is growing through new media practices. However, the interrelationship between journalism and PR remains obscured by paradoxical discourses and stereotypes such as “spin doctors.” This article identifies gaps in the literature and current understandings, and reports findings from in-depth interviews with senior editors, journalists, and PR practitioners in several countries that provide new insights into how the fields of practice interact which not only debunk some myths but also expose a need for improved transparency and standards to ensure ethical media practice.

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the evaluation theory in a field closely related to corporate communication and public relations (PR) as well as in other disciplines and argues that embracing the evaluation theory more broadly can break the “stasis” and “deadlock” identified in evaluation of corporate communication and PR. Specifically, this analysis seeks to show that a transdisciplinary approach can contribute to standards and demonstration of impact – two long-sought goals in evaluation of corporate communication and PR – as well as inform methodology.Design/methodology/approachCritical analysis is applied to review the evaluation theory in a number of fields, including international development, public administration, management and health communication, compared with major frameworks, models and methods used for evaluation of corporate communication and PR.FindingsThis analysis shows that the evaluation theory in other fields and related theory of change, program theory and program logic models can contribute to advancing evaluation of corporate communication and PR in three ways: identifying standards in terminology and approaches, shifting focus from activities and outputs to outcomes and impact and applying appropriate and rigorous methodology.Research limitations/implicationsWhile this paper does not present new empirical data, it expands the theoretical perspectives, models and methods applied to the evaluation of corporate communication and PR and identifies new directions for research.OriginalityAs well as expanding the evaluation theory and opening up new ground for research, this analysis identifies a need for structural change in the field of practice.

Purpose – Noting findings by Michaelson and Stacks in the USA and Zerfass and colleagues in Europe that research-based measurement and evaluation (M & E) of public relations and corporate communication are still not widely applied despite more than a century of discussion and intense focus since the 1970s, the purpose of this paper is to explore the causes of this deadlock and presents an alternative approach and model to overcome identified obstacles and provide new insights to advance this important area of theory and practice. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is informed by critical analysis of the large body of literature on M & E, analysis of M & E reports, and ethnographic research among senior management. Findings – This analysis reveals that, along with long-cited barriers such as lack of budget, lack of knowledge and lack of standards, three other obstacles prevent demonstration of the value of PR and corporate communication. Based on critical analysis of literature and M & E reports and ethnography, this paper presents a new approach and model for M & E to help practitioners overcome these obstacles. Research limitations/implications – This analysis and the approach and model presented address an area of concern identified in research globally, such as a 2008 Delphi study by Watson and the European Communication Monitor in 2011 and 2012. The findings provide theoretical and practical contributions to address the deadlock between normative theories of M & E and practical implementation. Originality/value – The approach and M & E model presented make a significant original contribution to theory and practice.

PurposeThis paper aims to explore the evaluation theory in a field closely related to corporate communication and public relations (PR) as well as in other disciplines and argues that embracing the evaluation theory more broadly can break the “stasis” and “deadlock” identified in evaluation of corporate communication and PR. Specifically, this analysis seeks to show that a transdisciplinary approach can contribute to standards and demonstration of impact – two long-sought goals in evaluation of corporate communication and PR – as well as inform methodology.Design/methodology/approachCritical analysis is applied to review the evaluation theory in a number of fields, including international development, public administration, management and health communication, compared with major frameworks, models and methods used for evaluation of corporate communication and PR.FindingsThis analysis shows that the evaluation theory in other fields and related theory of change, program theory and program logic models can contribute to advancing evaluation of corporate communication and PR in three ways: identifying standards in terminology and approaches, shifting focus from activities and outputs to outcomes and impact and applying appropriate and rigorous methodology.Research limitations/implicationsWhile this paper does not present new empirical data, it expands the theoretical perspectives, models and methods applied to the evaluation of corporate communication and PR and identifies new directions for research.OriginalityAs well as expanding the evaluation theory and opening up new ground for research, this analysis identifies a need for structural change in the field of practice.

With the so-called 'Arab Spring' attributed at least in part to social media, communication scholars, sociologists, and political scientists concerned about a democratic deficit in many countries are looking optimistically to social media to reinvigorate the public sphere. However, research indicates that many claims in relation to social media are over-stated. This article reports critical analysis of five case studies of recent attempts by electoral management bodies in Australia and New Zealand to engage citizens in democratic participation that raises fundamental questions about the agonistic practices of social media and their relevance and role in representative and deliberative democracies.

Purpose - A number of scholars including Benno Signitzer and Jacquie L'Etang have proposed public diplomacy as an alternative model to describe and or inform the practices of public relations. However, international relations and political science scholars claim major differences between public diplomacy and PR, and few studies have sought to reconcile these claims and counter-claims. The purpose of this paper is to report a comparative analysis of key concepts and principles of public diplomacy.Design methodology approach - This article reports a comparative analysis of key concepts and principles of public diplomacy and the \"new diplomacy\" as described by Shaun Riordan and public relations (PR) as defined in Excellence theory and other contemporary models of PR to identify commonalties as well as divergences, and discusses how these can inform PR theory and practice.Findings - This analysis shows similarities between these fields of practice, as well as six unique concepts and principles of public diplomacy and \"new diplomacy\" that inform corporate diplomacy and organisational diplomacy as an alternative paradigm to \"public relations\".Practical implications - Reconceptualising PR as corporate and organisational diplomacy involves much more than a name change. It recasts PR within alternative theoretical frameworks that are significantly different to those of dominant paradigms of PR and informs new and refined approaches to practice.Social implications - Adopting the concepts and principles of public diplomacy and \"new diplomacy\" also would provide a more ethical and societally-orientated approach to PR.Originality value - Most studies comparing public diplomacy and PR have focussed on commonalities with a view to expanding PR's territorial claim or gaining validation of PR. This analysis takes the opposite approach, identifying concepts and principles of public diplomacy and \"new diplomacy\" that contribute to an alternative paradigm of PR that is more effective, more societally-orientated, more ethical, and ultimately more publicly accepted.

Research is recognised as an essential part of planning and evaluation in most areas of marketing and corporate communication, including advertising, direct marketing and, increasingly, public relations and corporate communication disciplines such as employee communication and community relations. Understanding of audience interests, awareness, perceptions and information needs is critical to strategic planning of communication campaigns. Secondly, identification and quantification of changes in awareness, perception and, ultimately, behaviour is necessary to evaluate objectively the effectiveness of communication (ie the outcomes or results). Nowhere is research more important than in multicultural and cross-cultural communication. International relations began with human migrations and trade and reach new levels today with globalisation, corporations, organisations and governments increasingly seeking to create consistencies and shared values across divergent cultural groups. They seek to create consistencies and shared values in relation to products (eg Coca-Cola, IBM, McDonalds), policies (eg trade agreements) and in popular culture such as films, television programmes and news media. Social rules and shared values, ie the culture of communities, affect organisations seeking to communicate multiculturally and cross-culturally at two levels. First, the \"home\" culture of the organisation wishing to communicate shapes policies, plans and products that are produced. Secondly, the cultures of audiences inform and substantially shape their interpretation and use of information. Often, multicultural and cross-cultural communication is a case of \"Chinese whispers\" on an international scale. What one says or shows is frequently not what others hear or see. Studies cited in this paper show that culture is a vitally important factor in communication. Yet, companies and even governments attempt communication with little understanding of audiences which they wish to reach and with which they wish to build relationships and understanding. This paper examines cultural considerations specifically in the field of public relations and corporate communication in the Asia Pacific region which is comprised of a diverse range of cultures and has been identified as the largest market in the world. Thus, it is increasingly a focal point of global communication campaigns.