PR’s place in decision making

Many years ago, I read an amazing issue of the Harvard Business Review on decision making. One of the things that has stuck with me since reading that issue is the question: Who has the “D”? “D” stands for decision.

It’s a very important question when it comes to decision making because eventually someone has to make the call or you’ll remain in meetings for the next 40 years, especially if things are decided based on consensus. As a PR pro, I know how important it is to make that decision quickly, especially in times of crises. But I also know how important it is that every decision be made with PR in mind.

Yes, that’s right – every decision should be made with PR in mind. Not in the sense that it should be made with the intent to promote it. Rather with the understanding that the decision will negatively or positively impact a public if not many different publics. The public could be employees, customers, investors, interest groups, other organizations, all of the above or any combination of them.  

When you don’t consider the potential impact on any one of the publics, you’re asking for either a crisis or a missed opportunity. I’ve experienced the impact of this hundreds of times in my career. You might call it job security for crisis management pros.

But PR is more than just a reaction-to-pushback machine. It’s meant to be your intuitive ambassador with the public, which is diverse and ever changing. It’s hard for a full-time c-suite executive to keep up with the changes. PR pros can help.

Contact Jakel Communications, a Denver PR agency, if you need help in this area.