Communication And Management in the Company - Case Study Example

COMMUNICATION MANAGEMENT (Student Name) (Course Number) (University) (Date) Introduction Communication serves as a primary tool in the efficient functioning of organizations. The management of information within any enterprise determines the success or failure of a business. It contributes to issues such as organizational behaviour which have a profound effect on overall organizational behaviour. Communication helps in determining the relationships between enterprises and thus helping them to interact in the competitive environment. The manner in which information is planned, organized, monitored, planned and implemented is referred to as communication management (Bell and Smith, 2010. P.32). Communication managers in organizations deal with the management of the flow of information within an organization. One of the importance of efficient and proper communication within an organization is the potential of building a good rapport with the clients as well as the employees. It is essential that a good relationship be built between the different people in an organization for the effective apprehension of the company goals. This can be done only through effective communication. Building a good relationship with the clients, for instance, increases their trust and thus they are able to deal more openly and freely with the enterprise. This way, the company enjoys good reputation and better market orientation (Doğac, 1998, p.90). Hennes and Mauritz is a Swedish company that deals with the selling of clothes for men, women, children and even teenagers. It is one of the leading fashion companies in the world with its presence in over 53 countries in the world. Currently, the company has approximately 3500 stores worldwide with an employee count of 132000. IN Austria alone, the clothing company has 73 stores in big cities such as Melbourne and Sydney. The company was founded in 1946 by Erling Persson who had the passion of providing fashionable clothes to women at affordable prices thus called Hennes. The inclusion of men’s clothing in 1968 changed the name of the company to Hennes and Mauritz. Its first store outside the domestic market was opened in Norway and since then the company embarked on a chain of developments in the global market, making it one of the bestselling clothing companies in the world today (Hennes and Mauritz AB and Hennes and Mauritz. SA, p. 23). H and M is set to open a new store in Adelaide, Australia in 2016 with increasing concerns over fashion in the area. The Australian market is a main target for the company since it is the only place that had been left in the expansion process. With such a process in pace, there is the need to launch the brand so that the people are aware of the products that are offered by the company. This, therefore, requires the intervention of a communication agency to publicize the brand. 1. Overview of the agency and profiles of key staff Emerald Communications Agency is a privately owned company that is based in Adelaide, Australia. The company was founded in 1996 by Jacob Williams, who is currently the CEO. His passion for communication drove him to invest in the private sector. Under his leadership, the company has successfully open branches in Australia and is currently among the leading communication agencies in the country. The director is passionate in developing communication solutions for clients and specializes in Business Planning with over 8 years of experience. Apart from the CEO, another important member of the agency is myself, the account executive whose work revolves around the clients and the agency itself. The accounts executive tries to find out the problems faced by the clients and device ways through which the organization can help in solving these problems, thus acting as a link between the clients and the agency. Some of the roles include organizing meetings with the clients to determine their marketing requirements and presenting budget advertisements to the clients. The experience of the account executive in this field has seen the business improve its pitching strategies in the last few years. Another key staff of the agency is the financial manager, Dr. Florence Row. With a 7 year experience in Finance, her contribution to the agency is of important concern. The areas of specialization of the finance manager include developing both short and long term financial goals for the agency, producing financial reports and making direct investments. Dr. Florence is equipped with skills in managerial finance, marketing, strategy, business planning and development, thus is an indispensable staff member. The main aim of the agency is the provision of relevant and timely information to the clients and customers at large through proper communication mechanisms. The key statement of the organization is to establish a platform for effective communication. The company focuses on making things known to people who may be interested through advertising over the internet and even on the local television and radio channels in Australia. Through effective and satisfactory interaction with the clients over the years, the company has gained recognition as the most celebrated communication agency within the country. This way, the agency has been able to build its market niche. 2. Capability Statement Helping clients to properly advertise their products and events at affordable prices is the key obligation of Emerald Communication Agency. Founded in 1996 by Jacob Williams, the company deals with the creation of adverts for their clients as part of marketing strategy, doing market research about products for their clients and finding out the customer reactions to the products as well as presenting budgets to the clients concerning the marketing requirements. The company has been at the core of managing clients’ projects in Australia and has expanded to have offices around the world, including the United Kingdom, the United States, and some selected African countries. The presence of ready and willing staff has also helped the company in effectively managing its clients. The company also has strict adherence to the Total Quality Management Standards as per the ISO 9000 series. It also complies with the Environmental Management Standards documented in ISO 14000 series by constantly increasing the environmental quality of products and services offered. The company deals with local, national and multinational companies operating within and outside Australia. The clients should be conversant with the current market requirements and the current technology while at the same time realize the importance of recruiting a communication agency for their marketing purposes. The company deals with clients from the commercial sector with proper external communication channels. 3. Overview of initial thinking Based on the campaign brief, the agency intends to have a proper background of the campaign requirements from H and M to enable the organization of its creative team prior to the campaign period of the new store to be launched at Adelaide. The agency intends to use H and M’s key messages and both direct and online marketing strategies to make the New Adelaide store the preferred shopping place for fashion conscious Australians. 4. Summary of how the agency would approach the project H and M being a multinational company may be challenging to pitch as they may opt for international communication agencies, but the communication agency is ready to face the challenge. One of the ways through which the agency would carry out the pitching process for H and M is by making the first impression to count, that is, building a relationship with the company through the accounts executive. This will help in building trust between the participants long before even the actual pitching process begins. Thus H and M is able to prioritize the communication agency to market its products. Establishing a good relationship with the client leads to a win long before the pitching process (Koekemoer, 1987, P. 45). Secondly, it is important for the agency to know the kind of problems that the clients are facing and propose solutions that can be provided. In the case of H and M for instance, there is the need to open a new store in Adelaide and the key challenge is creation of awareness among the people of Adelaide about the opening of the store and ensuring that the store is a prime shopping place for the inhabitants. Having known the problem. It is easy for the agency to provide solutions such as online marketing options for the company through the use of blogs and websites and social media such as facebook, twitter and instagram for advertisement. Audio visual alerts about the opening of the stores can also be done via televisions. Advertisements can also be done through print media. Offering clients with several options can also increase the chances of winning a pitch (Ragusa, 2011, p, 56). Another tactic that will be employed by the agency in trying to pitch for H and M is to announce its promises to the client. Having worked for other international companies in promoting their brands in the Australian market successfully, the agency has no doubt to deliver for H and M too. Through its accounts executive, the agency would make a promise to the clothing company that through advertisements and brand campaigns, it would increase awareness among the native Adelaideans about the new store, thus increasing chances of business when the store opens later in February next year. The pitching process for H and M would also involve the agency offering a plan of action to the client. This offers the client a clear picture of how the communication agency intends to carry out the duty of creating responsiveness among the people on the upcoming H and M store in Adelaide. First, the communication agency would seek to study the various fashion stores within the city and identify the loophole that can be filled by Hand M and capitalize on that. The agency would also give the time frames within which it intends to carry out various activities such as online marketing through blogs and social media, advertising through print media and collection of information from the public. This would increase the likelihood of winning the pitch as H and M will note how well organized the agency is. The pitching process would also involve leaving behind documents about the agency to help the clients in decision making. The pitching process involves presentations about the agency and how it can help solve the problems faced by the client. Leaving behind printed documents to the clients would help them in remembering the presentation and thus help in making informed decisions about the preferred agency for the job. The leave behinds can also be email follow ups where the agency asks the clients for the next move. 5. Indicative Budget for H and M Adelaide Store Activity Amount in dollars Branding 8000 Advertising 7000 Direct marketing 2000 Internet marketing 4000 Press release 4000 6. Media Release MEDIA RELEASE For Immediate Release H and M set to open a new store in Adelaide, Australia The Swedish multinational company H and M is set to open a new store in Adelaide. This is one of the important moves after the company moved into the Australian market with the first store in Melbourne in 2014. This is one of the moves by the clothing company to increase its branches after its discovery of the potential in the Australian market. The move is expected to create awareness as well as a new market for its products in Adelaide as well as obtain corporate trust from the native Adelaideans. According to the Australian Business Review, H and M CEO and president confirmed the opening early next year as part of the strategic expansion in the region. Speaking with the Australian Business Review, Karl Johan Persson said that the company had been looking at the Australian market for a long time and wondered why it took them long to reach there. The president in his statement about the Adelaide store said, “The launching of the H and M store in Adelaide will be an opportunity to fully utilize the Australian market by offering fashionable products at affordable prices.” The situation of the store in Rundle Mall is also expected to be an added advantage in Adelaide as the mall is situated within the city centre. The main target group of the store are the fashion conscious Adelaideans. H and M is a clothing company deals with the sale of fashionable clothes for children, men and women at affordable prices. About us Emerald Communication Agency is a private agency aimed at making clients successful in their business endeavours through online and direct advertisements. The company is situated in Adelaide and is known for its speciality in communication management. For more information contact 0416987145 or email info@emeraldcommunications.org. References Bell, A. H., & Smith, D. M. (2010). Management communication. Hoboken, N.J., John Wiley & Sons, p. 32. Cheng, T. C. E., & Choi, T.-M. (2010). Innovative quick response programs in logistics and supply chain management. Berlin, Springer, p.57. Doğaç, A. (1998). Workflow management systems and interoperability: [proceedings of the NATO Advanced Study Institute on Workflow Management Systems (WFMS), held in Istanbul, Turkey, August 12 - 21, 1997]. Berlin [u.a.], Springer, p. 90. Hargie, O., Dickson, D., & Tourish, D. (1999). Communication in management. Aldershot, Hampshire, England, Gower, p.72. Hennes and Mauritz AB (Stockholm), & Hennes AND Mauritz SA (Geneva). (2013). Hennes and Mauritz AB (Textilhandel) – Stockholm, p. 23. Koekemoer, L. (1987). Marketing communications management: a South African perspective. Durban [South Africa], Butterworths, p. 45 Ragusa, A. (2011). Internal communication management individual and organizational outcomes. Frederiksberg, Book boon, p. 56. Tripathi, P. S. (2009). Communication management: a global perspective. New Delhi, Global India Publications, p. 84. Williams, D. (1997). Communication skills in practice: a practical guide for health professionals. London, J. Kingsley Publishers, p. 105. Wywialowski, E. F. (2004). Managing client care. St. Louis, Mo, Mosby, p. 230. Read More