Strategic Issues Management

Introduction

Week 1

This unit covers the specialist area of

issues management
from a public relations perspective.

Essential
Above all,
management of an organisation must be
competent and ethical.
Otherwise,
the handling of issues and crises
will expose managements failings to the world
and could destroy the organisation.

Today
The context all organisations depend on good relationships
with internal and external stakeholders.
Organisations constantly have to deal with a range of
challenges in their operating environment to be successful.

Effective issue management helps overcome these

challenges by focusing on effective stakeholder relations
management.
Corporate planning is strengthened by good issue
management.
The details of this units content and assignments will be
provided following this lecture.

Interaction with operating environment

Values &
lifestyle

Internal
environment

Public (govt)
policy
formulation

Ethical
standards

The
Organisation

Specialinterest
groups

Information
age

Attitudes
towards
business
Role of
Stakeholder
groups

Continuum of challenges

Concern

risk

problem

issue

crisis

This unit is about issues, which are located on a continuum of

organisational challenges caused by stakeholder attitudes and
actions. The strategy dealing with these challenges should be
an integrated process.
More discussion on this in later weeks.

Issues and crises

Issues are messy; they dont progress predictably in a straight line. They
are usually the outcome of trends, which are detectable changes likely to
affect the operating environment (Jones & Chase, 1979).
Issues and crises are closely related, but crises are not necessarily a failure
of issue management.
Ignoring an issue doesnt necessarily lead to a crisis some issues and
potential issues fade away without action by management.
A crisis can be an event that creates an issue or keeps an issue alive or
gives it strength (Heath, 1997, cited in Jaques, 2009).

What is an issue?
An emerging issue is a condition or event, either internal or external to
the organisation, which, if it continues, will significantly affect the
functioning or performance of the organisation or its future interests.
(Regester & Larkin, 2008, p. 44).

Issues are around us every day

Again, What is an issue?

It
Usually causes two or more strongly
held/opposing views
Involves emotions
Concerns that any decision will impact
peoples lives
Might become a crisis when not effectively
handled

Some levels of Issue

Latent - in the process of being formed
Emerging - begins to appear in journals,
specialty media sources, alternative media;
adopted by interest groups and opinion leaders
become aware
Hot - in current debate
Fallout - waiting to be rekindled (sparks of a
past fire ready to re-ignite)

More pressure on organisations

Organisations are under more public scrutiny than every
before, especially due to social media. Headlines are more
sensationalised. But most cases are merely issues, not
anything worse.
PR disaster!
Media disaster!

PR blunder!
PR catastrophe!
PR mess!
PR blow!
PR bungle!
PR stumble!

For example
This trivial example in 2013 occurred because a nervous US Congressman
fumbled for a drink of water while making an important speech.

Nevertheless, many genuine issues are around

Here are the business issues reported in the Asian
Wall Street Journal in just one day in October 2013.
Apple cuts orders for iPhone 5C
Ireland moves to block tax shelter for international cos
Laos aircraft crashes at Mekong River
Glaxos ex-China chief assists in bribery probe
A shakeout for Wal-Marts China stores
Danone cuts forecasts after baby-formula recall
Yahoo: profit stuck, for now

Mattel plants face scrutiny in China

JP Morgan fined $100m for reckless trading

What about issues caused by social media?

Types of issues
Negative comments
Rogue tweets
Campaign-gone-wrong
Any other categories of social media issues?
Specific examples?

Issues and issue management

Two ways to view issue management:
1. As a structural framework a public policy approach
2. As its application in practice a set of processes
This leads to three different ways to define issues:
Controversy or dispute (an issue is a contestable difference of opinion)
Gap in expectations (gap between organisational actions and the
expectations of stakeholders the legitimacy gap)

Impact (event, trend or condition creating, or has potential to create, a

major impact)
(Jaques, 2009)

Any issue can form when constituencies and organisations have different
expectations and behaviours.
This is called the legitimacy gap. Addressed through public policy or
through firms voluntarily making changes after engaging with
constituencies who want a change, or the firm persuading
constituencies to its point of view (Coombs & Holladay, 2010, p. 196-197).
Legitimacy involves sufficient people accept the issue as a public concern.

Power and influence are central in issue management, and therefore strong
need for an ethical approach (Coombs & Holladay, 2010, p. 210).
An issue always involves some degree of conflict (Hainsworth, 1990, cited in
Oliver & Donnelly, 2007).

Issue management
Issue management is a form of risk management. It reduces the risk of
the organisation being worse off than if it hadnt dealt properly with
the issues. We will talk about risk communication later in this unit.
Issues management was formed in response to activist action to shape
public policy (ie government) in the 1970s, but now extends to
general matters in public.
The term issue management actually gives the wrong impression.
Organisations cant actually manage issues; public issues are too big
to control management can just try to shape and influence them,
ideally to best mutual advantage with stakeholders (Arnold & Ewing,
2012, p. 344).

Issue management
IM is the function of strategically aligning the corporation with the operating
environment, allowing continued survival and development of
relationships with members of that environment (Bowen, 2002).
IM is about identifying risk and opportunity before your key audiences can
(Palese & Crane, 2002).

IM originally intended to help firms compete with governments and NGOs

in the development of public policy. But govts and NGOs themselves
now use IM techniques to promote and implement those very policies.

The focus of issue management

Issue management is about strategic issues the trends, events and
developments that meet three criteria:
1. They would affect the organisations business performance

2. The organisation would have to systematically mobilise resources to

deal with them.
3. The organisation may reasonably expect to exert some influence over
the outcome.
(Mahon, n.d. cited in Harrison 2011, p. 780)

Planning strengthened by IM
Corporate planning is strengthened by issue management when IM:
1.

Anticipates, analyses and prioritises issues

2.

Helps develop a position on vital issues

3.

Identifies stakeholders and key players

4.

Identifies desired behaviours of stakeholders and influential persons

These functions support achievement of the organisational mission.

Communication professionals are empowered
when they are involved in these functions.
(Heath & Palenchar, 2009, p. 31)

References
Arnold, J., & Ewing, R. (2012). Issues management methods for reputational
management. In C. Caywood (Ed.). The Handbook of Strategic Public Relations and
Integrated Marketing Communications (2nd ed., pp. 335-352). New York: McGraw-Hill.
Bowen, S. (2002). Elite executives in issues management: the role of ethical paradigms
in decision making. Journal of Public Affairs, 2(4), pp. 270-283.
Coombs, W., & Holladay, S. (2010). PR Strategy and Application: managing influence.
Chichester, UK: Wiley-Blackwell.
Heath, R., & Palenchar, M. (2009). Strategic Issues Management: organizations and
public policy challenges (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications.
Jaques, T. (2009). Issues and crisis management: quicksand in the definitional
landscape. Public Relations Review, 35(3), pp. 280-286.
Jones, B., & Chase, W. (1979). Managing public policy issues. Public Relations Review,
5(2), pp. 3-23.
Harrison, K. (2011). Strategic Public Relations. Melbourne, Australia: Palgrave
Macmillan.
Oliver, G., & Donnelly P. (2007). Effective use of a Strategic Issue Management System
(SIMS): combining tools and approach. Journal of Public Affairs, 7(4), pp. 399-406.

Palese, M., & Crane, T. (2002). Building an integrated issue management process as a
source of sustainable competitive advantage. Journal of Public Affairs, 2(4), pp. 284-292.
Regester, M., & Larkin, J. (2008). Risk Issues and Crisis Management in Public
Relations (4th ed.) London: Kogan Page.