How should a public relations department ideally be set up? What functions are required? How does it differ from marketing, journalism and advertising? Using your textbook, the online course modules, conference topics, and any appropriate outside resources, write a four- to six-page paper (double spaced) based on the following scenario.
Scenario
You work for a software development firm in Atlanta that has grown quickly by selling computer programs to huge corporations such as AT&T and Ford Motor Co. Your goal is to work in public relations, but you're still a student at UMUC. Still, when the company's president announces she is going to add a public relations person to the staff, you decide to apply for the job.
This is the first time the president has considered expanding the staff to include a public relations function. Up until now, she has seen no need for it. But the company has recently won a number of design awards for its software packages, and its competitors are beginning to bad-mouth the software in the media.
The president has the idea that the new public relations person will write two to four press releases per week and send them to local newspapers and broadcasters, business reporters, and technology writers. She believes those should set the record straight. She's looking for someone with strong writing skills. She tells you that she plans to hire a journalist or an advertising professional because those people have the same skills that a public relations technician needs, and she figures there's no such thing as a "true public relations professional." When there are no news releases to write, the new staffer will work on marketing the company's software. The job title will be "public relations writer," and the new employee will report to the president's assistant, who also serves as the company's office manager.
The president is surprised to discover how much you have already learned from JOUR 330 and decides to consider you for the job, even though you do not yet have a college degree. She says all she wants is someone to write press releases and get marketing information out to the public, so therefore a degree is not essential.
Is the president on the right track in her job search? Your response should address:
- The job the president plans to assign to the new public relations person, compared with the role of the public relations practitioner at firms that use that talent most effectively.
- The supervisor and job title of the public relations practitioner. Discuss the rank of the person in the eyes of this president compared with the actual practice in the field.
- The education and experience requirements for the new job and of the candidates being considered. Be clear about the differences among communications jobs.
- The president's plan to have the new person write press releases and marketing material. What is this kind of communication called? What's missing?
- Your recommendations to the president. Make them at the expense of losing the job yourself. Comment on the parameters of the job, the ideal job candidate, the job description, and the work the new staffer will do.
This assignment can be in the form of the actual letter, a detailed outline of what would be said in a letter you would propose to write, or some combination of the two. Neither format carries more weight than the other, but the questions above should be answered in either format. Also, if you only submit an outline -- be sure it is clear phrases or sentences, not just lists of words. "Etc." is NOT an answer. Don't assume the instructor knows what you are thinking.
Write and edit carefully; excellent style, grammar and mechanics are absolutely essential to the PR practitioner. Consult the Course Associated Press Style Guide for guidance.