The President Could Use a Little Crisis Management

As the president is continually bombarded with protests and endless accusations about her support to amend the constitution in order to have the power to extend her presidency, surveys have showed that the Filipino people have lost their trust. Since this was not the first time that the president has received such low ratings, I think that she should lecture whoever is handling the issues against her. The process of responding to the criticisms being hurled at the president requires a team of experts that would provide an organized system of managing the crisis regarding her bad image. Though the tinted impression the administration has projected would be impossible to be reverted, the least that the president could do is to make sure that she does not make the situation worse. Specific strategies that could be used would be framing the response of the palace spokesperson whenever the media or any private institution throws him questions or accusations about the president. I am not recommending the use of false information; the administration’s speakers may just structure their messages in such a way that they will be perceived as being reliable and capable enough to handle the issue. Being defensive or acting nonchalantly would only either communicate that the president is indeed ineffective and may be denying certain shortcomings or that the administration does not take the public’s opinion seriously. In contrast to projecting a confident, but not overbearing image in cases where they are truly at fault, then at least the public are assured that the administration will do everything to make the necessary actions.

Other than the government, any organization could definitely make use of crisis management whenever an issue evolves into a crisis. Most often crisis management teams are initially formed in preparation to any huge problem that may arise. Crises include not only internal problems within the organization such as an error in a specific area of operations or an intended scam by an employee. Natural calamities may also become a crisis that can greatly affect an organization’s overall functioning. Because of the many unforeseen circumstances that may affect a whole organization, crisis management teams are definitely important components of all kinds of institutions.

Ruminations: My Christmas Wishlist

“I don’t want a lot this Christmas...I don’t care about the presents underneath the Christmas tree…All I want for Christmas is you.”

***

Back when I used to be a lot cuter (lol) and a bit chubby, I remember my mom and dad putting Cadbury chocolate and milk on a tray near our Christmas tree. I would often cross my fingers while in bed and wish that it was already Christmas morning. When morning finally comes, I’ll be greeted with colorfully-wrapped gifts that had very awkward handwriting. I would always ask my mom, does Santa really write that badly, like a grade one student? She would always answer by saying that he’s an old man that’s why he writes a little crookedly. But after that I would not have any care for Santa’s very bad handwriting because only two things mattered: That I see a bite on the Cadbury chocolate, that the milk was only half full and my present waiting to be opened. So for over a few years, I’ve been the innocent victim of my parents’ fun and games; my dad would bite off the chocolate and gulp down the milk as my mom try as her might to write using her left hand, imprinting in my mind that Santa writes like an 8-year old. At other times I remember being such an impatient kid as I end up opening my gifts (I think I did that two times) the day before Christmas. Then I would realize how foolish I was because when Christmas day comes, I regret what I did for I was one gift short. Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. Poor kid:(

Less than a month before Christmas, I’m sure most people have already posted their wishlists for everyone to view, mine is a little bit odd, since I don’t think anyone would find them in any store (well except for the bibingka):


1. Christmas when I was a kid

It’s so sad that as I grew older, the giddy and magical feeling that
Christmas brings gradually lessened. I would gladly trade a Starbucks planner for waking up again on Christmas day as a 6-year old.



With some of my cousins




Jico and I opening our gifts from Santa


2. Annual Christmas at Westgrove

It has been our tradition back in high school that right after the Christmas party, my barkada would go to my friend’s (Ysi-I miss you!) house in West Grove, Sta. Rosa Laguna to celebrate our own Christmas party: Stargazing, swimming, climbing hills, pigging out, lying on the street, catching fireflies, of course opening gifts, and long walks. Can’t wait for the day when everyone’s here in the Phil. again.



Our favorite house!




Stars


3. A White Christmas

I’ve always dreamed up of experiencing a white Christmas and making my own snow angel.





4. Bibingka


Aside from puto bung-bong, my other favorite Christmas food is bibingka. Christmas wouldn’t be the same without buying bibingka at 11 pm in the evening and eating it with hot coco.




5. Completing the 9 na simbang gabi

I’ve never ever completed any simbang gabi in my life. Though it’s actually one of the things that make me feel like it's Christmas, I’ve never had the discipline to go to Church for nine straight days. I truly hope this year would be different.




For my real wishlists, anything from these stores would be fine:


1. Fully Booked
2. Power Mac Center
3. Nine West
4. Rustan's make-up and perfume section
5. Nike


Haha. No really, any form of gift will be greatly appreciated:)


Ruminations are weekly blog writing assignments by the Green & White 2009 Literary Committee. Comments are more than welcome.


*Boo. i don't know how to place the captions for the photos at the center:(

Have a break, have a Kitkat

Despite the unending hurl of assignments and requirements, I am amazed at how I am still able to go out and spend time with my friends. Because of strangely having extra time in my hands, I’ve been using more public transportation recently and in the MRT station, this Kitkat promo caught my eye. They were selling MRT passes for fifty pesos inclusive of a thirty five peso load and most importantly, it also comes with a free Kitkat bar! If you were stuck in line sweating and getting irritated of course you wouldn’t think twice on shedding off fifty bucks for not having the need to line up and of course the free Kitkat bar! Haha! I just found the whole promotional idea very effective because the message was so perfect: “Why wait in line when you can have a BREAK?” You don’t only get to avoid the long lines just to get a ticket, you also get to have snack. I think that it is a perfect example of being able to truly identify the needs of the target audience. As in the people using public transportation, they are often met with the hassles of lining up and wasting time to just to buy their ticket. The promoters were able to effectively integrate Kitkat’s tagline of “Having a Break” with the MRT pass as one takes a “break” from the usual hassles of using public transportation. It just goes to show the importance of framing messages and also combining them in order to come out with effective promotions.

CB MEETS OCM

I feel like I’ve just trained for track and field again—sore feet, stiff neck, lower back pain, strained muscles. I did not run ten laps straight or gotten myself into a fight—I watched a concert. Other DLSU students must have also seen the Chris Brown and Rihanna concert in The Fort Open Field yesterday and I’m sure at least one of their body parts must be aching right now. It was actually amazing. Well that is if you don’t count the gruesome physical torment of standing for three hours straight, craning your neck while tiptoeing and taking a bath in your own sweat (plus the ten other people cramped beside you) just so that you could get a good view of Chris Brown’s abs. So if I judge it based solely on the production and their performances, well I could say that saving my two weeks worth of allowance was well spent.

Since I’ve used up seventy-eight percent of the word limit by announcing my verdict on the concert, now let’s sort of digress a bit and go to the connection between Org. Comm. and the concert.

As seen in our elective for next term, organizational communication practitioners may also deal with organizing events that vary in purpose and scope. From what I’ve observed and gathered so far, they are mostly responsible for coming up with concrete ideas on how an event would possibly be a medium to say promote an organization or probably be a venue for achieving the goals they have set to exercise corporate social responsibility. Furthermore, this task entails designating people and specific tasks, overseeing the progress of the needed activities and constantly communicating and reporting to the organization holding the event. An org. comm. practitioner must also be able to provide contingency plans since any event would always have the possibility to not go as planned. In coming up with such plans, of course not only the organization’s wellbeing should be taken into consideration bust most especially its audience who will be participating in the particular activity. As one would see, a successful event may it be a concert or a fund-raising activity imperatively needs proper organizing of persons and duties and also of the sequence and the detailed execution of the different segments of the event.

As for the concert I’ve watched, I’ve observed that it was quite organized and that there were enough security personnel present to ensure everyone’s safety. Signs were also huge and clear enough to be seen and the organizers implemented systematic processes in arranging the lines and also in designating specific portions of the concert area.

Marshall "the medium is the message" McLuhan for President?

Since the U.S has just recently elected their 44th president, and our own presidential election is nearly only a year away, it would be apt to discuss it in relation to organizational communication.

Firstly, like many others, I despise the Philippine electoral system for the qualifications for acquiring the most powerful position in the land could very well fit any ordinary person. Moreover, our policies on forming political parties also seem to be very inefficient and outdated. Although my opinion are solely based on observations and newscasts, I believe that it doesn’t take a political analyst to at least say that there is something wrong with the way we form political parties that build up and present the candidates.

Of course, the two dominating parties would be that of the administration and the opposition. However, I’ve also noticed the many party-list organizations that spring out whenever election season comes around. Such a huge number of party-lists to choose from may leave voters confused and misinformed. Hence, I would prefer a system that would allow only a prescribed number of party-list organizations. This way, voters would only be presented with a limited number of organizations to choose from that would allow a clearer communication of information. In line with narrowing down the number of allowed parties, Org. Comm. practitioners may also get involved in forming a political party or party-list’s image. For example, a party may hire practitioners to provide the service of overseeing the consistent dissemination of information through communication materials and channels such as the fliers, posters, website and even the publicity events to be conducted. Consequently, the party would be able to build a consistent and clear image that would help the voters identify their key principles and political leanings. The public would be given complete and proper information that would guide them in making educated choices. Moreover, the Org. Comm. practitioners would also be able to provide contingency plans and interventions during crises and risk situations.

We may never know, organizational communication may have the possibilities of playing a crucial role in such an important national event such as deciding on our country’s future course.

Crossing Boarders

Being a LIA-COM major, I’ve had and still am encountering Org. Comm. through my business subjects. Though the familiar communication theories my professors have imprinted carefully in my system are slowly being taken over by marketing principles and statistics, amazingly, I’m still able to apply basic Org. Comm. theories in the business field. As I hear familiar words such as “organization”, “message”, “channel”, “proximity” and “culture” echo in the foreign walls of the LS building, I am constantly reminded of Org. Comm.’s extensive scope.

For instance, in my Market1 class, we’ve just finished discussing how marketing managers should be able to specifically describe their target audience from their basic interests down to the radio station they listen to at what specific time of the day. So how does Org. Comm. come into the picture? Our professor discussed that one way of segmenting a target market is through their location. Now this variable does not only pertain to an address or a particular place, but also involves a certain kind of culture that is developed by a group of people in a particular site. By identifying both the usual location and culture of a specific target market, marketing managers would have more detailed information on their needs, characteristics, routine activities and purchasing priority. All these data would lead to proper market segmentation and proper product development.

In relation to Org. Comm., the concept of culture is very important as it gives any organization an identity and a sense of belonging into a unique institution. It is also a significant factor in communicating messages and information within and outside the organization for culture encompasses both the formal and informal processes that organizational members always adhere to. Most importantly, since people are the most important elements to any institution, they also have control over creating and establishing specific behaviors that mirror their own subjective perceptions and also the company’s mission and vision.

As I’ve said earlier, the reach and the practicality of Org. Comm. theories allow me to also have a broader perspective and deeper understanding on how it is used in almost any field.

ORGCOMM PRACTITIONER

Since organizational communication is a relatively young field, I am often asked what I would end up to be after graduation, and most of the time I’m lost for words. However, since I’m on my last major subject, I believe I could finally go on and on about the important role that Org. Comm. practitioners play in companies or any other organization.

Communication specialists are vital team members in institutions because not only do they oversee their internal and external communication processes, they are also equipped in handling crises. Such crises may include reestablishing organizational identities and values, counteracting negative issues and also conflicts among organizational leaders or employees. Consequently, Org. Comm. practitioners either in-housed or outsourced are like doctors who are equipped for diagnosing problems that may be hindering a company in fulfilling its goals. As organizations have evolved into complex systems in order to adapt to the heightened culture of capitalism, globalization and corporate social responsibility, Org. Comm. graduates provide effective and creative intervention plans to improve execution of procedures to produce trusted and strong organizations.