module specification

This module encourages students to critically analyse the nature, value, and techniques of effective corporate relations.

The module also covers the analysis and evaluation of theories, models and issues relating to both corporate communications and that which informs its practice, namely corporate strategy. It encompasses both a global and a more “localised” perspective to the subject and is designed to help students to critically analyse and evaluate, emerging issues and trends in contemporary corporate relations.

These include all the critical drivers and determinants of corporate communications including macro & micro environmental analysis, corporate strategy analysis as well as issues related to leadership and management, international corporate relations, corporate social responsibility, investor relations, internal communications, communications audits, public affairs issues and crises management.

Key to the module’s focus is the examination of corporate strategy and the inter-relationships between corporate strategy, leadership and corporate communications.

The module will cover the following aspects of Corporate Communications:

• The relationships between public relations, corporate communications and corporate strategy.
• The role of stakeholders in corporate communications planning
• The role of research and communications audits in planning corporate communications
• Reputation and leadership to include its relationship with communications strategy
• Ethics and PR strategy
• Internal communications
• Communications strategies for crisis and issues management
• Evaluation of Corporate Communication campaigns/programmes

Learning Outcomes LO1 - O5

Delivery consists of 3-hour CCT using a combination of lectures, normally 1.5 hours, (including guest speakers) and seminars, normally 1.5 hours and industrial visits. Alternatively and where appropriate 2 hour workshops will also be used for skills based activities and industrial visits.  Where 2 hours class contact is used for workshops the remaining hours will be devoted to drop-in surgeries and/or “on-line” surgery time.

The module will seek to exploit the University’s location in the heart of the Corporate Communications highly London-centric positioning. The location of LMU facilitates these important aspects of the student learning experience.

In particular, guest speakers will be invited from various sectors of the economy and in addition, PR graduates from LMU will also be invited to discuss case studies of their work for clients/employers and their career paths to-date. 

As final year students, applicants will be expected to spend a significant amount of time on all aspects of independent learning including organisational research, media monitoring, journal article analysis and engaging with various aspects of specific corporate relations communication initiatives.

On completing the module students will be able to :

1. Demonstrate a significant degree of insight into the concept of corporate strategy, particularly in regard to how this is likely to determine the nature of corporate communications programmes.
2. Critically evaluate the various key specialisms within corporate communications practice including investor relations, strategy and leadership. as well as corporate communications, particularly in regard to how a comprehensive grasp of the former analytical subject will influence the application of the latter communication discipline.
3. Research and appraise varied sources of information in order to understand and appraise an organisation’s corporate performance, corporate strategy and communications.
4. Critically assess the concept of stakeholders and publics in corporate communications strategy and understand the relationship between the two by constructing a stakeholder map for a given organisation, identifying corporate communications priorities for each group and justifying such conclusions.
5. Evaluate the role that corporate communications should adopt in relation to issues encompassed by current views and approaches to Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG).

Description of assessment items.

The initial coursework - Assessment 1 - is designed to add a greater sense of student community and encourage bonding within the context of carrying out specific corporate strategy/communications related tasks with the emphasis on the former element.

Assessment 2 - aims to develop the appropriate learning outcomes within the context of a tailored and real-world corporate communications proposal planning exercise. Students are given the option of designing appropriate recommendations for either a FTSE100 company or a leading NfP organisation chosen at the beginning of the module.  It is designed as a logical and appropriate follow up to the earlier group task

Core Texts: Cornelissen, J. Corporate Communications, (2017) 5th Edition, Sage Publications
Tench, R and Yeomans, L (2017) Exploring Public Relations, 4th Edition, Pearson (E-text available)

Supporting Reading:
Cees, B, Van Riel, Fombrun, J (2007) Essentials of Corporate Communications, Routledge (E-text available)