Communicate, Communicate, and Communicate Some More

In real estate it’s “location, location, location.”

In Corporate Citizenship it should be: “communication, communication, communication.”

A strategic communications plan that includes everything from listening, speaking, print materials and an Internet presence is essential to creating opportunities and yielding business benefits. Taking into consideration the interests and needs of all key stakeholders – both inside and outside the company – is integral to creating a robust communications plan that can deliver at a minimum:

Trust that allows companies to be innovative and progressive
Goodwill among stakeholders
Employee pride and loyalty
Socially responsible investors

By developing a strategic communications plan for corporate citizenship, companies can avoid the situation of having to react to negative attention and start proactively seeking positive opportunities. Honest and effective communications can also help companies avoid crises by generating trust that can preempt difficult situations such as citizen complaints and lawsuits, delays in obtaining permits, and negative media coverage. In addition, since communication is a key element for securing internal buy-in, it helps move corporate citizenship to the next developmental step within the company.

Despite the importance of communication, many companies fully engaged in corporate citizenship sometimes still avoid sharing their message. These companies claim that communicating these efforts is not part of their corporate culture, that there is no perceived value in communication or that they do not want to position themselves for scrutiny. Common challenges within departments include: lack of training in communicating risk, difficulty in translating technical information into common terms and ambivalence for these efforts within the senior-level of management. However, research shows that communication helps embed corporate citizenship into the business and companies that communicate their corporate citizenship efforts are more likely to notice returns. In a climate when the public expects greater transparency from companies, communicating honestly about successes, problems and areas need improvement is what will ultimately earn respect for companies.

Framing the Communications Issue: Thinking Strategically

The strategies that guide corporate citizenship communications can be quite different than those that guide other corporate communication initiatives. Releasing information about your corporate citizenship plan and actions has implications for other facets of business and you should consider several points:

Communication v. Demonstration – efforts to merely tell audiences about your company’s corporate citizenship efforts will not be convincing. Show through examples instead of merely presenting information.
The Value of Corporate Citizenship – in order to effectively communicate your company’s corporate citizenship message, it is important that you understand that corporate citizenship adds value to your business. That value can only be conveyed if you understand the benefits that corp-orate citizenship activities can reap.
The Link between Internal and External Stakeholders – communication provides consistent reinforcement of a company’s values and activities to employees and communities alike. Outside stakeholders come to feel more connected to the company and employees to feel a part of the community.
Inquiry and Accountability – the process of communicating corporate citizenship is based on the demand for information and the manner in which it is supplied. Businesses are held accountable for the issues about which stakeholders inquire; your audience expects transparency.
The Advantages and Disadvantages of PR – communicating corporate citizenship is not a matter of public relations, but transparency. Shifting perspectives helps companies to avoid accusations that corporate citizenship is “all about spin” or “green-washing.” However, public relations competencies, such as networking, can be useful during the communications process.
Providing Resources v. Promoting – by providing information proactively, you become viewed as a resource instead of merely a promoter.

During the past several years, many companies have begun to produce social and environmental reports that detail their activities and performances in those areas. These reports are one of the most important vehicles for accountability and transparency. NGOs, investors, and the general public are increasingly interested in a company’s environmental and social behavior and consequently, are interested in the reports that contain that information. It is clear that corporate citizenship reports are among one of a company’s most essential communications vehicles.

Determine goals and objectives – what can producing a social report help the company to achieve? Are you seeking returns on investment? Is compliance with legal or social standards a factor?
Identify key audiences – who will read this report externally and internally? What kind of information will each of those groups expect from the report?
Determine who needs to contribute – what departments/functions need to provide data/feedback to make the report successful?
Determine the scope of analysis – what kind of data and information is necessary to deliver what your audience desires? Does your company have the resources that will help you mine that information?
Determine reporting standards and verification – Does your company wish to align its report with a guideline or standard such as the Global Reporting Initiative? What are the benefits of doing so?
Determine resources available – What is the financial budget for this report? How much staff time can you afford to devote to the project?

Each company should establish a corporate citizenship communication strategy that best serves both its citizenship and business goals. However, companies should follow some standard steps when preparing to communicate a corporate citizenship message.

Establishing a measurement process should be a universal practice in any corporate citizenship strategy. There is no one way to measure the intangible aspects of corporate citizenship, but well-accepted guidelines such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and SA8000 provide starting points for measuring the more concrete dimensions. The measurement process provides information that can inform both internal and external stakeholders of both the merit and success of your efforts.

But most importantly, remember: communicate, communicate, communicate.