Institute for Public Relations

From the Dutch East India Company to a highly respected (and perhaps highest paid) specialization in public relations, Alexander Laskin, Ph.D. explores the investor relations (IR) research base in his section of the Institute for Public Relations’ Essential Knowledge Project. As Laskin tracks the evolution of IR, he also offers his historical take. It may be viewed as a post-World War II phenomenon, but the roots go much farther back. “The first company that could be called publicly traded is believed to be the Dutch East India Company, dating back to the 17th century,” he writes. “Some sources point to an ...

In any service based industry, client retention and employee retention are inextricably linked. In public relations consultancies, a firm’s success hinges on its employees and the level of service they provide. Their creativity, diligence and intelligence are firms’ most valuable resources. We conducted a study that evaluated and analyzed the factors that contribute to employee disengagement and turnover and uncovered six key areas for preventing the loss of key talent in PR firms. Many of us have found ourselves unhappy with our position, projects or bosses at one time or another in our lives. Hopefully, just as many of us have also ...

In any true profession, the practitioner deeply understands the importance of research-based knowledge in guiding the work and measuring the results. Recently in Bulldog Reporter’s Daily ‘Dog, I offered a few insights on new thinking that is driving the science of public relations. These included: More attention to the three kinds of research articulated by James E. Grunig, Ph.D. (professor emeritus at the University of Maryland): research in the practice of public relations, to guide and evaluate actual PR programs; research on the practice of public relations, to better understand what we do and how we do it; and research for ...