Grady AdPR faculty participate in expansive communication mangement survey

Bryan Reber, the C. Richard Yarbrough Professor in Crisis Communication Leadership, and Juan Meng, associate professor of public relations, are among five professors directing a worldwide survey to understand changes in the communication industry.

The survey is the North American Communication Monitor (NACM), the first survey of its kind in North America, to explore the status quo, qualities and trends of communication management in North America. The Plank Center for Leadership in Public Relations is helping to direct the survey.

The survey, which was launched in May, addresses topics including “fake news” and how to tackle it, how communicators provide insights for decision-making, as well as leadership performance, job satisfaction and personal stress among communication professionals in the United States and Canada. Characteristics of excellent communication departments will be identified and benchmarked against results from other key markets in Asia-Pacific, Europe and Latin America.

In addition to Reber and Meng, the NACM is led by three other professors from universities affiliated with The Plank Center, including Bruce K. Berger and Karla K. Gower, The University of Alabama; and Ansgar Zerfass, from Leipzig University in Germany.

“Not only will we have a better understanding of the communication industry in North America, we will have a greater opportunity for global comparison on issues regarding integrity and trust in what we see, hear and read,” said Gower, director of The Plank Center.

The NACM becomes part of the Global Communication Monitor series, the largest regular global study in the field of strategic communication and public relations. The series, initiated and led by Zerfass with renowned PR professors across the world, has analyzed trends in the field for more than a decade and covers more than 80 countries across Europe, Latin-America and the Asia-Pacific region.

Almost 35,000 communication professionals worldwide working in diverse organizations have been surveyed. Comparative data will be made available for key markets worldwide, e.g. China, India, Germany, France, Italy, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Mexico, Canada and the United States.

“The NACM is a continuation of the [Plank] Center’s goal to build a research-based foundation of knowledge regarding the values, qualities and dimensions of leadership in public relations,” Reber said.

In addition to this study, the Center has conducted more than 35 research studies in areas of public relations leadership, mentorship, and diversity and inclusion.

Results of the NACM will be released in October 2018. Visit the NACM webpage to register to receive findings from the survey.

Date: July 11, 2018