John Friedman's blog

Conclusion of the series "The New PR"

Many including this author, believe that forward-thinking companies will integrate sustainability goals into their business models and will use their visions of sustainability to help define revenue-generating strategies. Certainly the recent implosion of financial markets around the world offers a clear and disturbing picture of what happens when people lose faith in the long-term viability of businesses and business models.

As...

Part 11 in the series "The New PR"

Globalization

One hundred years after the first powered flight, the oceans are no longer impenetrable barriers that keep people, ideas and information apart. 

Today people travel more than ever before, and corporations often outsource products and send workers to new locales. This leads to exposure of both companies and individuals to differing practices and societal norms. This...

Part 9 in the series "The New PR"

In addition to the obvious impacts on the environment, business is a powerful force for driving social as well as economic gains. This can be seen from the benefits that generations have come to take for granted in industrialized nations. For millions of people around the world, capitalism has been a force for economic and social advancement. People are living longer, healthier lives and enjoying the...

Part 7 in the blog series The New PR

“All politics is local” – Tip O’Neil

With exceptions such as relief after the Indian Ocean tsunami and other disasters that draw international attention and concern, for the most part, people like to see the benefit of corporations in their own community. Impacts such as employment opportunities, contributions to tax revenues and bringing needed goods and services to the community are easily understood...

Part 5 in the blog series The New PR

From a Vision to a Culture (building an internal constituency)

For sustainability to be integrated into a business model, it must be compatible not just on the theoretical level, but also practically on a day-to-day basis. Asking people to engage in behavior that is seen as incompatible with their regular duties is a recipe for failure. For this reason, the human...

Part 3 in the blog series The New PR

The measure of success is not how well your business model supports sustainability objectives but rather how well your sustainability efforts support – and define - your business model.

The five “keys” that I have developed over the last fifteen years and have been teaching for about a decade are those elements that I believe are necessary to build a unlock the full potential of...

Part 1 in the blog series The New PR

The role of communications professional has dramatically and irrevocably changed in recently years. The instant-information age has not only changed the ways in which information is shared, it has exponentially increased the amount of information that people both need and receive.  In media relations the news cycle has expanded to 24 hours; and the increasing prevalence and importance of non-traditional social media (and the increasing influence of bloggers...

Are we so busy helping others to build their sustainability (environmental, social and economic) pillars that we're neglecting our own personal ones?

It is no secret -- in fact many take pride in knowing -- that altruistic endeavors traditionally pay less. Those working for not-for-profits accept that part of their income is psychological. However, the sustainability concept is not based on one of philanthropy....

Most companies envy the passionate loyalty that Apple customers have for their products, the dedication that Southwest Airlines employees demonstrate without understanding that effectively managing their stakeholder relationships is the key to earning these benefits. Employee engagement and customer loyalty are intangible (non-physical) assets that contribute more to the value of a company than the physical 'things' it owns....

The concept of 'The Butterfly Effect' explains that even small actions can have far reaching and unintended consequences. This presents a unique problem for businesses operating in a global context because any business working across cultures must face the fact that -- no matter how they conduct their business -- they are going to have some impacts that will cause some stakeholder to question their actions.

To be sure, global standards such as...