Keeping Shtum and Other Communication Strategies: A disruptive look at public relations, reputation and crisis management that redefines communication - Paperback

by Steven Olivant (Author)

WHAT'S YOUR POINT OF VIEW? What's your story? When do you need to communicate it? To whom? How? And when is it better to keep shtum? "THIS BRACING AND BRILLIANT NEW BOOK from a senior practitioner who has also studied the public relations academic literature is a useful critique to the standard theories proposed in most textbooks on reputation, stakeholder relationship and crisis management." - Richard Bailey, Senior Lecturer, University of the West of England and Editor, Behind the Spin online magazine. Anyone in the public eye (institutions, businesses, individuals) needs a communication strategy that helps achieve their objectives. Without a communication strategy, you risk everything spinning out of control. Without a communication strategy, you can't put your strategy into effect. Without a communication strategy, you don't know when, to whom, or how to tell your story. There are thousands of books on public communication but: -Most of them are about tactics, not strategy. They tell you how to publicize a new product or run a campaign. They don't tell you where communication fits into your strategy. -Most of them are idealistic, preaching openness and transparency. -Most of them assume that publicity is a Good Thing. One of the secrets of top professionals is that it's often better to say less. This book is the product of lessons learned over more than 30 years in the business of communication and a study of communication strategy. Instead of telling you what you ought to do (or telling you the author's life story), this book tells you what works. Drawing on the literature about public relations, communication theory, strategic management, politics and other relevant fields, as well as making extensive use of cases, it proposes a new synthesis of communication strategy.

Author Biography

Steven Olivant learned about public communication with one of the world's largest corporations (BP) in New York and London. He has worked for a number of major businesses as a communication executive or consultant. Since 2000, he has served as director of corporate affairs at the world's leading airport company (BAA), and as director of communications and in-vestor relations director at two of the world's largest travel companies (MyTravel and Thomas Cook). Most recently, he has made a study of communication strategy. This book is the product of that study and lessons learned over more than thirty years in the business of communication. He holds a bachelor's degree in law and a master's degree in public relations.