✅ The data-led business intelligence opportunity in public relations

Corporate communications, public relations, media and management insight

Providing business intelligence within management and operational functions is generally an untapped opportunity for public relations and corporate communications functions. New management research shows the potential for this opportunity to build on the strategic and professional advisory role of practice.

This isn’t a new concept. The corporate communications function is often called upon to contribute to annual and quarterly management planning cycles through activities such as horizon scanning.

What is novel is the real-time, always-on opportunity. It’s based on the unique and broad perspective that the communications function has of an organisation’s stakeholder relationships. This includes employees (staff polls and surveys), media (press coverage), competitors (research and reports), suppliers (research and reports), customers (customer polls, satisfaction surveys and feedback) and government (policy insight).

The data perspective of corporate communications or public relations has been a topic of discussion for as long as I've worked in practice, but we’re held back by an obsession with the media perspective of organisations.

A new study in the Italian Journal of Management identifies this fixation to the detriment of the more significant opportunity. Two German researchers, Elias Weber and Ansgar Zerfass, have investigated how corporate communications teams can use data to create business intelligence and become more effective professional advisors for their organisations.

Influence through Insights

A Wadds Inc. study for NewsWhip explored this issue and drew a similar conclusion last year. Influence through Insight - investigated the role of public relations and corporate communications in supporting management with planning and insight. We interviewed 20 senior communicators at organisations including Accenture, Adobe, BP, BT Group, Deloitte, Ford, Legal & General, Microsoft, Oracle, PayPal, Shell, Shopify and Workday.

We discovered that high-performing teams support management by using data to bring an outside perspective into the organisation, balancing business and society, and providing actionable insights. This opportunity isn’t simply about demonstrating the value of the corporate communications function. It's about fundamentally transforming how we advise management.