Philosophy

Control over communications

Many organisations are accustomed to showing their favourable side and use a persuasive or forceful communications policy for this. The added value of this form of communication is past saturation point. Organisations lose control over the effect of the statements in the communications. This is followed by overcompensation with even greater efforts at communication, leading to exaggeration and excess.

Challenge

Establishing the legitimacy of an organisation in the eyes of the public is the great, image-forming challenge for organisations in the coming years. The license to operate ascribed to firms by target groups is of overriding importance for the image and basis of organisations.

Recognition

It is no longer the case that organisations themselves state what added value they offer, rather the public recognises them as organisations with a clear social significance. This recognition forces organisations to communicate on the basis of institutional values which link up with social themes. It is no longer a question of how the organisation wants to come across and what it produces and supplies, but what the organisation actually finds and how it acts.

Social relevance

For organisations this means that they no longer limit their communications to their products and services, but that they take part in social dialogue. The way in which they contribute determines to what extent they are recognised as socially relevant. The communications policy must be in line with efforts to demonstrate overall identity. This has major consequences for communication by organisations.