Corporate Communication: Strategic Adaptation for Global Practice

The chief communication officer at a Fortune 500 multinational corporation today faces the challenges of a rapidly changing global economy, a revolution in communications channels fueled by the Internet, and a substantially transformed understanding of what a 21st-century corporation stands for. This book provides an accessible framework for describing these forces and the specific communication challenges that they have thrown at the global corporation.

The text reviews the evolution of society's response to the development of the modern company and the corporate communication practices that grew up in response to it, as well as examining the impact of globalization, Web 2.0 and the networked enterprise on current corporate relationships with key stakeholders such as customers, employees, shareholders, communities and regulators. In examining these forces and how they are interwoven, the authors offer insights and strategies for deploying effective communication as a strategic business asset in today's global economy. Designed for the advanced student of corporate communication, the book contains updated guidelines for the management of investor relations, community relations and other corporate relationships in the age of social media. Specific recommendations for how to organize and execute effective communication for the contemporary practioner working in the communication field are also provided.

"Goodman and Hirsch's book is essential reading for corporate communications executives. Insightful and practical, it will help them become better counselors to their CEOs, better partners with their C-suite colleagues, and better leaders of their own organizations." Dick Martin, Executive Vice President, AT&T (retired); Author, Secrets of the Marketing Masters

"In situating corporate communication issues and practices within the context of globalization, rapid technological change, and the networked organization, Goodman and Hirsch offer readers a compelling and necessary discussion of the forces influencing corporate communication, and they utilize a host of contemporary examples to do so. This book is a must read for researchers and practitioners interested in business, corporate communication, corporate social responsibility (CSR), and environment society governance (ESG) on the global stage. Goodman and Hirsch encourage us all to think carefully about what effective corporate communication should look like in the 21st century." Stacey L. Connaughton, Associate Professor, Department of Communication, Purdue University

"In today's global environment, there is no function within a major corporation more important than what is commonly called corporate communication. This new book, Corporate Communication: Strategic Adaptation for Global Practice, written by Goodman and Hirsch, supports that conclusion with comprehensive and convincing evidence. Large companies cannot succeed today without successfully managing relationships with their key constituencies in the context of what is desired by those constituencies. Previously, only the CEO him or herself has been in a position to view all of those audiences with a balanced view of what is ethical and correct behavior. The fully developed corporate communication function of today has evolved to work side by side with the CEO and Boards of Directors. The function not only influences what and how a company speaks, but also how it acts. The Goodman/Hirsch book makes that case more strongly than any text written in the past. It should be must reading for not only the professional communicator but for all CEOs and Boards of Directors to see the unique and priceless value the corporate communication function can bring to the corporate table today." James E. Murphy, Retired Chief Marketing and Communications Officer of Accenture; Chairman & CEO of Murphy & Co.

"Goodman and Hirsch capture not only the theory and organization of corporate communication, but its true heart and soul, even as they show you how to ground this practice in a wholly changed and changing world." Raymond C. Jordan, Corporate Vice President Public Affairs & Corporate Communications, Johnson & Johnson

The Authors: Michael B. Goodman is Professor at Baruch College/City University of New York, where he is Director of the MA Program in Corporate Communication. He is Founder and Director of CCI Corporate Communication International. He is also Adjunct Professor of Corporate Communication at Fairleigh Dickinson University, and Visiting Professor of Corporate Communication at Aarhus School of Business (Denmark), University of Johannesburg (South Africa), Bangkok University, and Hong Kong Polytechnic University. He has published widely, including Work with Anyone Anywhere: A Guide to Global Business and Corporate Communication for Executives. He is on the Editorial Advisory Board and is Associate Editor for North America of Corporate Communication: An International Journal. He has been a consultant to more than 40 corporations and institutions on corporate communication, managerial communication, problem-solving, new business proposals, change, and corporate culture.
Peter B. Hirsch has more than 25 years experience in counseling global corporations and runs an independent consulting firm specializing in corporate reputation and issues management. He has also worked with foreign governments, including the governments of Greece, Colombia, and the Philippines. Previously, he was a partner at Porter Novelli, where he established the corporate communication practice and served as Global Practice Leader for Corporate Affairs. He has been Adjunct Professor teaching courses on a range of corporate communication topics at Baruch College/City University of New York, Columbia University, and Fordham University. He has also lectured at Fairleigh Dickinson University and New York University. He has written numerous articles, including ?The Ulysses Project? (Journal of Business Strategy) and ?My Country Is Different? (Corporate Communication, An International Journal). He is a member of the advisory board of Corporate Communication International and a member of the Public Relations Society of America.