A quick-revision summary of Class 12 Home Science Chapter 14: Corporate Communication and Public Relations. Not in the CBSE 2026-27 syllabus; taught in UP Board and HBSE. For full explanations, figures and examples, read the detailed notes of this chapter.
1 Key definitions
Terms to learn
Corporate communicationset of activities in ‘managing and orchestrating all internal and external communications’, designed to create favourable starting points
CC (basic concept)efficient and effective avenue of communication, locally and globally
Public relationsboth an art and a science; 3 book definitions (bond between two groups of public; deliberate, planned, sustained effort for mutual understanding; attempt through information, persuasion, adjustment, contacts)
Internal communicationbetween and among the employer and employees
External communicationbetween members of the organisation and the outside world
Listeningactive process: hearing, understanding, response
Rapportestablishment of trust and harmony in a relationship
Accent neutralisationpronouncing so the listener understands what is spoken
Time managementprinciples, practices, skills, tools and systems to get more value out of time
Stresssituation causing pressure or strain; physical, mental, emotional response to life’s demands
ICTumbrella term for all technical means of processing and communicating information
2 Significance and basic concepts
- Communication is as important as food, clothing and shelter; every idea is static until communicated and understood
- CC = important tool of management; concerned with people, organisational processes, activities and media
- Success depends on the perception of the public; significance = ‘controlling how the world sees you‘
- In a crisis, people react to their understanding of it and how it was tackled
- Tools: press releases, newsletters, ads; PR approaches: press conferences, press releases
- PR objectives: positive image, handle crisis, motivate employees, curiosity about a product, advertise, inform about an event in advance
- “P and Q Survey” 1990: more than 88% of industrial engineers linked poor communication to reduced productivity
- A. Foster Higgins and Company (employee-benefits consulting firm): 97% of CEOs say communication improves job satisfaction; only 22% communicate weekly or more (Farnham 1989)
- Arthur W. Page: “The fundamental way of getting public approval is to deserve it”
- Code of ethics: never commercialise advance information about events to come
- CC creates: favourable public perception, efficient avenues of communication, strong corporate culture/identity/philosophy, corporate citizenship
3 Functions
| Functions of corporate communication | Functions of PR (5) |
|---|---|
| Healthy organisational environment; share information with employees, stockholders, media, customers; create and maintain brand; look after reputation; liaison with outside bodies; PR tool (image, stockholders, new products); reputation management (competition + information + media explosion); crisis control, global communications, complicated tools | 1. Public Relations Policy 2. Statements and Press Releases 3. Publicity 4. Maintaining Relations (Government; ‘good neighbours’; shareholders, annual/quarterly reports) 5. Publications (in-house magazines) |
4 Major areas of PR activity
- Press relations: editor to reporter; journalists need news, PR needs publicity
- Advertising: a product does not sell on its own merit; PR person decides budget and media
- Publications: brochures, folders, pamphlets, circular-letters; simplicity, clarity, cost, true image, attractiveness
- Other media coordination: films, exhibition, hoardings, puppetry, folk-songs; radio and television
- PR with constituents: financial analysts, bankers, share-holders, potential investors; internal PR with all employees
5 Seven principles of PR (Arthur W. Page)
- Tell the truth
- Prove it with action (90% does, 10% says)
- Listen to the customer
- Manage for tomorrow (generate goodwill)
- Conduct PR as if the whole company depends on it (PR professional = policymaker)
- A company’s true character is expressed by its people (every employee, active or retired)
- Remain calm, patient and good-humored (24-hour news cycles; cool heads)
6 Internal vs external communication
| Internal | External |
|---|---|
| Employer and employees | Members and the outside world |
| Binding, morale, transparency, reducing slow destruction | Positive image, brand preservation, PR, marketing, goodwill |
| Vertical, horizontal, diagonal, across the structure | Government, customers, dealers, inter-corporate bodies, general public |
| Memos, house journals, bulletin boards, handbooks, manuals, activity reports | Letters, memos, in-house magazines, posters, bulletins, annual reports |
7 Communication activity and the 7 Cs
- Two major areas: composing message and transmitting message
- 7 Cs: Conciseness, Concreteness, Clarity, Completeness, Courtesy, Correctness (no grammatical errors), Consideration (‘your’ attitude, not ‘I’ and ‘we’)
8 Skills required
- Self taught: listening; by observing: interpersonal, negotiation, rapport; formal training: presentation
- Listening: hearing → understanding → response
- Interpersonal: fewer conflicts, more productivity
- Negotiation: consider variables, estimate cost, trade concessions; both sides happy
- Presentation: content, structure, packaging, human element
- Rapport: 93% body language and way of speaking (analogue), 7% words (digital)
- Decision making: pocket money example; managers balance efficiency, profit, stakeholders, employees, owners
- Telephone etiquette, basic writing, public speaking (elocution)
- Accent neutralisation: opportunities, company image, confidence, understanding
- Time management leads to less stress; stress management aims at a balanced life plus flexibility
- In PR work: language depends on the target group
9 Technology and scope
- Technology revolutionised communication; ICT = union of IT and telecom; covers paper-based writing technically, mostly digital
- Scope: employer-employee communication in organisations; PR officer dealing with stockholders, media, press, NGOs, Government, customers, public; innovation in media and technologies
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