Examines communication decision-making in organizations by looking at the extent to which public relations executives have control over channel selection for the media mix in an overall public relations program. Shows a variety of structures and procedures for channel selection decisions in United States organizations. (SR)

Advocates the development of an international perspective in the study and application of issues management. Proposes an action determinant matrix approach to classifying issues and quantifying the potential impact of an issue so that corporations can determine appropriate actions, if any. (KEH)

Team briefing, a technique used to communicate information to employees on issues of concern, is examined in three different establishments. Problems in the way it is practiced are identified, with the suggestion that its appropriateness and effectiveness may depend on the type of company or service in question. (SK)

Argues that, as human resource development programs in organizations expand, communication educators need to address the issue of training communication trainers within the context of the consultation process. Outlines a college course on communication training and consulting, including course structure, major assignments, and ethical…

A survey of 120 executives at eight United States organizations attempted to find out what executives thought about the meetings they attended, and to find out what an organization could do to make meetings more productive. Provides five tips for making meetings matter. (MLF)

Reviews research on issue management. Argues for a better tool for issue analysis, outlining criteria for such a tool. Discusses an approach to issue development which allows the tool to be formulated. Presents the tool, an issue development graph, and a case study which illustrates the benefits of the tool. (MS)

Examines variables hypothesized to contribute to discrepancies between an organization's view of itself and news articles written about those organizations. Finds organizational structure and values appear to affect openness of organizational communication. (MS)

Discusses the importance of internal communication in creating a productive organization; characteristics of effective internal communication; and how to apply these ideas within schools. (SR)

Uses genre and genre repertoire to investigate a community's structuring of communicative practices. Examines communications exchanged by a group of distributed knowledge workers in a multiyear, interorganizational project conducted primarily through electronic mail. Results reveal rich, varied communications shaped in response to community norms,…

Argues that the internal agency model of a marketing communications department forces the department to compete with outside sources for work, while department members sharpen their skills and improve their knowledge of their company's business. Describes the process for creating such an internal agency, including initiating, implementing, and…

Proposes that social constructivist theories of communication technology in organizations that interact with social agents influence technology-related cognition and behavior. Finds that individuals' cognitions of their combined network partners' attitudes and behaviors in using electronic mail predicted the individuals' own attitudes and…

Discusses what makes business communication research interdisciplinary and why interdisciplinary research is difficult yet desirable. Details the value of interdisciplinary concepts, methods, and perspectives. Notes how business communication research might be made interdisciplinary and points out the need for tolerance in interdisciplinary…

Responds to an article is this issue regarding the challenge of interdisciplinary research in business communication. Maintains that business communication currently has individual research projects from various perspectives rather than true interdisciplinary research. Argues that researchers simply bring their own disciplinary training to the…

Shows how compliance-gaining theory (more accurately than the "bad news formula") can help to explain the content and style of two kinds of memos that deliver bad news from managers to subordinates. Finds that features of compliance gaining governing message production explicate the power base, verbal strategies and tactics, and…

Explores the relationship between self-reported managerial work roles and successful influence strategies with subordinates. Finds that in the role of motivator, managers can obtain more commitment and effort from subordinates by relying less on coalition and exchange tactics and more on use of ingratiating and inspirational appeals tactics. (SR)