EVALUATING ROLE OF COMMUNICATION IN CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Corporate communication is the message issued by a corporate organization, body, or institute

to its publics. "Publics" can be both internal (employees, stakeholders, i.e. share and stock
holders) and external (agencies, channel partners, media, government, industry bodies and
institutes, educational and general public). An organization must communicate the same message
to all its stakeholders, to transmit coherence, credibility and ethic. Corporate Communications
help organizations explain their mission, combine its many visions and values into a cohesive
message to stakeholders.. A corporate communication structure is a system which enables
organizations to strategically orchestrate all types of communication.
To address concerns of stakeholders, most companies have created specialized departments
responsible for communicating about and with these groups:
• Internal Communications: A group responsible for communicating with employees, that
frequently interfaces with the human resources function in the company.
• Marketing Communications: A group responsible for communicating with the company's
customer accounts and often interfaces with marketing and customer service functions in
the company.
• Investor Relations: A group responsible for communicating with investors and analysts
who monitor the company's financial performance and prospects.
• Government Relations: Often called "public affairs", these specialists are generally
responsible for improving the company's relationships with regulators, legislators, and
other government representatives.
• Public Relations: A group whose responsibilities would include interacting with the
diffuse public.

The roots of corporate communication

some issues that managers still face today in corporate communication are:
• The large social, political, economic, and cultural climate in which corporations create
their images and project their voices;
• The “opportune moment” or the creation of circumstances for corporate
communications;
• The need to understand and capitalize on the psychology of constituencies
• The best mix of communication channels (e.g., videoconferences, email, reports)
• The ethical dimension of corporate communication.

Key tasks of corporate communication

the responsibilities of corporate communication are:
• to flesh out the profile of the "company behind the brand" (corporate branding);
• to minimize discrepancies between the company's desired identity and brand features;
• to delegate tasks in communication;
 • to formulate and execute effective procedures to make decisions on communication
matters;
• to mobilize internal and external support for corporate objectives
• to coordinate with international business firms

Components of corporate communication

a) Corporate branding -A corporate brand is the internal perception of a company that

unites a group of products or services for the public under a single name, a shared visual
identity, and a common set of symbols. The process of corporate branding consists
creating favorable associations and positive reputation with both internal and external
stakeholders. The purpose of a corporate branding initiative is to generate a positive halo
over the products and businesses of the company, imparting more favorable impressions
of those products and businesses..
b) Corporate identity/organizational identity
Corporate identity is the reality and uniqueness of an organization, which is integrally
related to its external and internal image and reputation through corporate
communication. It comprises those characteristics of an organization that its members
believe are central, distinctive and enduring. That is, organizational identity consists of
those attributes that members feel are fundamental to (central) and uniquely descriptive
of (distinctive) the organization and that persist within the organization over time
(enduring)". Four types of identity can be distinguished
• Perceived identity: The collection of attributes that are seen as typical for
the ‘continuity, centrality and uniqueness’ of the organization in the eyes
of its members.
• Projected identity: The self-presentations of the organization’s attributes
manifested in the implicit and explicit signals which the organization
broadcasts to internal and external target audiences through
communications and symbols.
• Desired identity (also called ‘ideal’ identity): The idealized picture that top
managers hold of what the organization could evolve into under their
leadership.
• Applied identity: The signals that an organization broadcasts both
consciously and unconsciously through behaviors and initiatives at all
levels within the organization.
c) Corporate responsibility - Corporate responsibility (CR) constitutes an organization’s
respect for society’s interests, demonstrated by taking ownership of the effects its
activities have on key constituencies including customers, employees, shareholders,
communities, and the environment, in all parts of their operations. In short, CR prompts a
corporation to look beyond its traditional bottom line, to the social implications of its
business
d) Corporate reputation-Reputations are overall assessments of organizations by their
stakeholders. They are aggregate perceptions by stakeholders of an organization's ability
to fulfill their expectations, whether these stakeholders are interested in buying the
company's products, working for the company, or investing in the company's shares.
e) Internal/employee communications-This is about building a corporate culture on values
that drive organizational excellence. itis expected to fulfill one or more of the following
four roles
• Efficiency: Internal communication is used primarily to disseminate
information about corporate activities.
• Shared meaning: Internal communication is used to build a shared
understanding among employees about corporate goals.
• Connectivity: Internal communication is used mainly to clarify the
connectedness of the company's people and activities.
• Satisfaction: Internal communication is used to improve job
satisfaction throughout the company.
f) Investor relations-The investor relations (IR) function is used by companies which
publicly traded shares on a stock exchange. In such companies, the purpose of the IR
specialist is to interface with current and potential financial stakeholders-namely retail
investors, institutional investors, and financial analysts.
The role of investor relations is to fulfill three principal functions:
• comply with regulations;
• Create a favorable relationship with key financial audiences;
• Contribute to building and maintaining the company's image and
reputation.

g) Public relations: issues management and media relations-The role of the public relations
specialist, in many ways, is to communicate with the general public in ways that serve the
interests of the company. PR therefore consists of numerous specialty areas that convey
information about the company to the public, including sponsorships, events, issues
management and media relations.
o Issues management - A key role of the PR specialist is to make the company
better known for traits and attributes that build the company’s perceived
distinctiveness and competitiveness with the public.
o Media relations - To build better relationships with the media, organizations must
cultivate positive relations with influential members of the media. This task might
be handled by employees within the company’s media relations department or
handled by a public relations firm.
h) Company/spokesperson profiling -These "public faces" are considered authorities in their
respective sector/field and ensure the company/organization is in the limelight.
• Managing content of corporate websites and/or other external touch points
 • Managing corporate publications - for the external world
• Managing print media

Role of company secretary in corporate communication

• Communicates board decisions to management
• Acts as a channel for information to and from management and the board
• Liaises with management on implementation of decisions made/actions requested by the
board
• Responding to all committee correspondence
• filing all committee correspondence received and copies of replies sent
• keeping a record of any of the organization’s publications
• reporting the activities of the organization and future programs to members, the press and
the public
• Preparing a report of the organisation's activities for the year, for the A G M.
• Liaising with the Chair to plan meetings
• Receiving agenda items from committee members
• Circulating agendas and reports
• Taking minutes (unless there is a minutes secretary
• Circulating approved minutes
• Checking that agreed actions are carried out

Corporate Communications Policy

Corporate Communications Policy sets out the guidelines governing communication with the
internal and external stakeholders of a company. It outlines the guidelines governing internal and
external communications in company. The purpose of the Policy is to:

• promote effective communication with shareholders and encourage effective participation

at General Meetings of the Company);
• ensure that employees are aware of the importance of providing full and timely disclosure
of the Company’s activities to shareholders and the market so that all stakeholders have
equal access to company information, which is externally available; and
• Set out the framework and strategy for achieving those goals.
• The purpose of Policy is to define and provide guidelines on the extent, quality and
output of communication with company external stakeholders and on the adherence to
and quality of internal communications in line with company approved Standards.

Guiding Principles in a policy

• It highlights the authorized Persons who are permitted to have formal engagements with
external stakeholder via media engagements and press releases
 • Provides that all information must be conveyed through the appropriate and approved
communication channels to company`s stakeholders in a timely manner.
• It provides guidelines for External Communication and Internal Communication
• It describes issues relating to Disclosure of Confidential Information
• It highlights issues relating to Public Statements of Personal Opinion

Main goals for external communications:

• Support the business concept and strategies;
• Share information on a regular basis with regard to Investor Relations and Scientific
Affairs;
• Meet expectations concerning company’s compliance with legislation, regulations and
standards relating to communication activities;
• Manage the image of company, its products, and activities with a consistent look;
• Raise company’s profile and create greater awareness
Main goals for internal communications:
• Make sure that the Company’s goals, policies and guidelines are communicated and
strive to give employees the information they need, when they need it, in order to
increase understanding and commitment, build motivation, and support company
strategies
• Communicate with employees about decisions and events that affect them before (if
possible) and never later than when information is communicated externally
• Increase each employee’s knowledge about the company and its development
• Provide clear and current information to employees on company policies and information
vital to the Group with regard to corporate branding (Corporate Identity)