Adopting Corporate Communication in Local Government Units

for Successful Government Reform Initiatives

By: Miguel Ferido

1. Introduction

Currently, Filipinos’ general distrust for the government is no understatement.

Looking at the Philippines, the ADB (2005) observed that its governance patterns have
evolved a rather intricate history highlighted with rages of foreign invasion, suppression
of democracy, civil uprising, political conflicts, social unrest, and corruption. According
Cielito Habito, the former National Economic Development Agency Secretary, the
Filipinos’ trust in their own government leadership has become a scarce commodity
since over a decade ago, especially in the last five. Blemished with scandals of graft
and corruption, political killings, its inability to deliver quality basic social services and
mitigate incidences of poverty, it is no surprise that public opinion about the government
is on a distrusting and disapproving note. According to Pulse Asia (2010), during the
last quarter of the term, 59% of Filipinos disapproved of the PGMA administration. This
result came as no surprise since approval ratings for her presidency was spiraling down
since the controversy of election fraud, exposes of fixing of multimillion government
contracts and misuse of government funds were made known to the public. What came
to a surprise was that during the time these scandals were happening, the Philippines
achieved continuous successful economic growth. This showed the disconnection
between the developing Philippine economy versus the increasing public opinion, both
national and international, on the disenchantment and distrust of its government.
Furthermore, Habito further argues that this doubt on government “has diminished
overall business confidence, impeded domestic and foreign investment, and constricted
growth in the number of quality jobs that Filipino workers could have otherwise had”.

With the growing disenchantment with the “big government”1 in serving the people’s
interest and providing the much needed quality basic services, scholars have looked
into local governments to provide good governance. The direction of reforms has now
been shifted from centralism to decentralization of power to local units. According to
scholars, efficient decentralization is equated to good governance in the sense of
responsive public welfare that directly and immediately affects local levels and assures
equal distribution of power and public goods. Furthermore, based on UNESCO’s eight
characteristics of good governance, decentralization pushes the government to be
transparent and accountable because the people are able to closely monitor the one

1
Big government pertains to the National Government
seated in power (Naluz, 2010). According to the World Bank (1997), micro-level
accountability reinforces macro-level accountability. This allows a bottom-top approach
in promoting state capability, accountability and responsiveness at all tiers of
government.

Gaining support by optimistic public opinion for government reform is critical for its
success. According to Odugbemi and Jacobson (2008), public opinion processes matter
if governance reform initiatives are to succeed. It is also critical that the public or critical
stakeholders go through a non-coerced change in attitude, opinion or behavior, which is
addressed through the use of communication. Black and Bryant (1992) present a
purposive definition to communication which states that it is a process by which an
individual (the communicator) transmits stimuli (usually verbal symbols) to modify the
behavior of the individual. With regards to this definition, communication is a deliberate
but no-coerced work that influences public opinion. Even with the existing realization
that communication is important in government, there are not a lot of literature done on
communication and public governance. Communication in governance has always been
attributed to corporate governance. According to (Riel and Fombrun 2007a), corporate
communication is set of activities involved in managing and orchestrating all internal
and external communications aimed at creating favorable starting points with
stakeholders on which the organization depends on. Furthermore, it also deals with how
an organization delivers the same message to all of its stakeholders, in order to transmit
coherence, credibility and ethic, thus building trusted reputation in public opinion.

This paper specifically looks at the role of communication, particularly corporate

communication, in gaining support and sympathy of the public opinion to aid in the
success of government reform initiatives at the local level. It will try to contextualize the
need for communication in the local government by revisiting decentralization and its
importance to promote good governance in the Philippines. It will also try to define
communication and its importance to successful governance reforms, corporate
governance and communication, and, lastly, identifies how local governments can use
corporate communication techniques to influence public opinion to ensure successful
government reforms.

2. Revisiting Governance and Local Government in the Philippines

2.1. Governance and Good Governance

To understand Local governments, we must first understand Governance.

UNESCAP (2009) gives a simple definition of governance as the process of decision-
making and the process by which decisions are implemented or not implemented.
Manasan, Gonzales, & Gaffud, (1999) adds to the mix that governance is a manner in
which power is exercised in the management of a country’s economic and social
resources for development. World Bank (1997) further explores this use of power in
governance as traditions and institutions by which authority in a country is exercised for
the common good. In line with this definition, World Bank (2007) also associates
governance to longer term results like robust growth, lower income inequality, child
morality, and illiteracy, improved country competitiveness, and investment climate; and
greater resilience of the financial sector.

In order for governance to be good governance, UNESCAP (2009) attributes it to

eight major characteristics which are participatory, consensus-oriented, accountable,
transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive and follows the
rule of law. The UK Department of International Development (2006), hones these
characteristics to only three requirements of good governance, which are state
capability, responsiveness and accountability.

Local governance also adheres to the same definitions previously stated, but due to
the relatively small geographic area there is more emphasis in collective action and
participation. According to Shah (2006), Local Governance is the formulation and
execution of collective action at the local level. They later define good local governance
as “not just about providing a range of local services but also about preserving the life
and liberty of residents, creating space for democratic participation and civic dialogue,
supporting market-led and environmentally sustainable local development, and
facilitating outcomes that enrich the quality of life of residents”

2.2. Local Government

According to scholars, efficient decentralization is equated to good governance in

the sense of responsive public welfare that directly and immediately affects local levels
and assures equal distribution of power and public goods. There are many theories
arguing that decentralization and a stronger role of local government promote
accountability, efficiency, manageability and autonomy. Table 1 presents a short
summary of some theories in decentralization.
Table 1. Summary of Theories in Decentralization

Theory Jurisdictional Design Reason

Stigler’s Menu Decision making should occur at the  The closer a representative government is to the
(Stigler, 1959) lowest level of government people, the better it works.
(jurisdiction) with the goal of  The People should have the right to vote for the
allocative efficiency kind and amount of public services they want
The Principal of Optimal provision of public services  The free-rider problem is overcome
Fiscal is ensured by equating political  The marginal benefit becomes equal to the
Equivalency jurisdiction to benefit area marginal cost of production
(Olson, 1969)
Correspondenc The set of individuals who consume  Establishes the concept of functional, overlapping,
e Principle the good should be included in the and competing jurisdictions
(Oates, 1969) jurisdiction that determines the level  Lets individuals and communities choose freely
of provision of each public good among competing jurisdictions
Decentralizatio Each public service should be  Local governments understand the concerns of
n Theorem provided by the jurisdiction having local residents.
(Oates,1972) control over the minimum geographic  Local decision making is responsive to the people
area that would internalize benefits for whom the services are intended, thus
and costs of such provision, encouraging fiscal responsibility and efficiency
 Unnecessary layers of jurisdiction are eliminated.
 Inter-jurisdictional competition and innovation is
enhanced
Subsidiarity Functions (taxing, spending, and  Local government in order to be responsive and
Principle Regulation)should be exercised by efficient must have autonomy to manage
lower levels of government unless a themselves
higher levels of government can
justify otherwise

Looking at the table, theories in decentralization generally argue that putting faith in
smaller jurisdictions like local governments to run themselves not only best serve the
people by being responsive in providing services and allowing them to participate in
government, but also promotes in fiscal efficiency, easier manageability and
competition.

Local Government is defined as “specific institutions or entities created by national

constitutions , by ordinary legislation, by higher level of central government, by
provincial or state legislation or by executive order to deliver a range of specified
services to a relative small geographically delineated area ” ( Shah, 2006). In the
Philippines the local governments or local Government Units (LGU) were created and
envisioned by the constitution to have local autonomy while general supervision was
only exercised by the president. The 1987 Philippine Constitution states that:
1987 Constitution, Article X, section 3. “the congress shall enact a local
government code which shall provide for a more responsive and
accountable local government structure instituted through a system of
decentralization with effective mechanisms of recall, initiative, and
referendum, allocate among the different local government units their
powers, responsibilities, and resources, and provide for the qualifications,
election, appointment and removal, term, salaries, powers and functions
and duties of local officials, and all other matters relating to the
organization and operation of local units."
 This provided the constitutional basis for the congress to later enact the Local
Government Code of 1991 or RA 7160, to strengthen the move towards decentralization
and local autonomy. RA 7160 states that:
“policy of the State that the territorial and political subdivisions of the State
shall enjoy genuine and meaningful local autonomy to enable them to
attain their fullest development as self-reliant communities and make them
more effective partners in the attainment of national goals”

The Local Government Code of 1991 strengthens the move towards self reliance
and local autonomy of local governments by providing their specific roles and
responsibilities with regards to devolved national functions and share of internal
revenue taxes or national taxes. Through this enacted law, the Philippines adopt the
theories of decentralization which believes that small jurisdictions provide responsive,
accountable and capable governments.

3. Importance of Communication in Governance Reform Initiatives

There is a simple explanation why communication is important in governance

reforms. According Odugbemi and Jacobson (2008), governance reforms are
technocratic solutions that are accompanied by strategies to understand and address
obstacles to reform. These solutions often rely on communication between and among
networks within and outside of government, among civil society organizations, and
between citizens in the public sphere. In relation to this, communication facilitates
adequate and efficient flow or exchange of information between citizens, tiers of
government and other institutions, which in turn contribute to improvement of public
governance.

According to Baker (2002), good communication strengthens our democratic system

of government by developing partnerships, informs policy development and improves
service delivery, anticipates issues and manages expectations and enhances
community participation in government. Communication in the public sector ensures
stakeholders such as citizens, leaders and institutions to be informed about the
programs, services and matters which affect their benefits, rights and obligations.
According to the Government Communication and Information System, in order to
enhance democracy and promote a better life for citizens, it is imperative that the
communication function in government is seen as an integral element of governance
and service delivery. Communication in public governance is no longer limited to a
“media liaison function which a respond during times of crisis or a marketing publicity
function” but a basic service that should be provided by government (Naluz, 2010).
 According to the Information and Communication for Development team of the
Department for International Development (DFID, 2006) and the Development
Communication Division of the World Bank, the communication processes and the
media of communication are a fundamental part of how governance systems operate in
any political community. According to them, communication, particularly at the local
level, plays a role in: shifting community biasness and addresses unity; keeping in touch
with the needs, concerns and aspirations of the community which can improve service
delivery; and create accountability by provide citizens information about performance of
elected officials which can directly influence quality of governance.

One important function of communication is its ability to affect attitudes, behavior

and opinion. Public opinion is no more than the aggregate of all individual beliefs or
opinion. Gaining support by optimistic public opinion for local government reform is
critical for its success.

According to Odugbemi and Jacobson (2008), good governance straddles both

supply and demand sides of governance by focusing on dynamic forces in politics (the
power of public opinion) and structural force of politics (Public Arena or democratic
public sphere). Simply put, it is how stakeholders like citizens, leaders and institutions
coexist and relate to each other to make reforms within the system. Odugbemi defines,
the Public Arena or the Democratic Public Sphere as the space between state and
household where free citizens come together to share information, debate, discuss
deliberate concerns. In this day and age, due to technological developments in mass
communication, it has grown out of the physical realm and entered the virtual arena.
Likewise, people, as it was in the past, do not have to go to physical locations to be
informed or engaged in public discourse but can participate remotely through mass
media. Due to this development, the public arena has become more accountable,
transparent and accessible.

In relation to this, Odugbemi defines Public Opinion as: community values, beliefs
and prejudice; political and academic elite opinion, individual attitudes on public issue;
and majority view which has been debated and discussed in a public arena. One critical
aspect of public opinion is that it legitimizes power and authority which in turn gives
consent to rule over them. Thus, public opinion processes matter if governance reform
initiatives are to succeed.

Considering the impact brought about by technology to make the Public Arena more
participatory and Public Opinions importance to consensus building and legitimacy, it is
critical for public governance to make good use of these forces in politics. It is critical for
government to maximize and use the technology available to tap into the public arena
and used non-coercive methods to influence public opinion for government reform
initiatives. Odugbemi sees “communication as a deliberate work to influence public
opinion” and “ensures that crucial stakeholders go through a non-coerced change in
attitude, opinion or behavior”. This emphasizes the fact that communication plays a vital
part in achieving consensus among stakeholders from both top- bottom and bottom to
top approach for governance reform.

According to Meisel (2007), developing countries should focus on four main priorities
when experimenting with governance in both the public and private sector. The four
focus priority areas are on: increasing individual autonomy while increasing
accountability; inclusive selection of government officials accessible to innovative
newcomers; increase participation of new countervailing organizations other than
hierarchal organizations in delivering activities toward general self interest; and
improving communication and the quality of information flows. The latter focus area
involves improving the quality of information and increasing the speed of dissemination
to the public.

Not much is known about the use of communication in public governance. The
appreciation and use of communication has always been tied-up to the public sector
and corporate governance. In light of the new developments of corporate governance,
link between corporate governance and public governance has become more evident.
Thus, adopting communication principles used in corporate governance may be
applicable to public governance.

4. Corporate Governance and Corporate Communication

4.1. Corporate Governance

According to Money and Schepers (2007) there is an emergence of a new corporate

governance paradigm where stakeholders are in prime consideration along with
shareholders. It has shifted from a shareholder-based approach to a stakeholder-based
approach. According to Preble (2005) the term stakeholder was chosen as a literary
device to call into question management sole emphasis on stockholders and instead
suggested that the firm be responsible to a variety of stakeholders. The previous
paradigm to corporate governance holds that mechanism of rule were designed to align
the interest of the owners or capital and the managers (Young & Thyil, 2008), and
issues around the control and composition of the board of directors, as well as
shareholders’ rights, in a “profit-centered model” (Shahin y Zairi, 2007). The new
paradigm suggests to emphasize on reputational risks and opportunities that corporate
responsibility brings, and for these companies to align with corporate behavior with
stakeholder expectations is an ongoing business priority (Dawkins, 2004).Stakeholders,
in contradiction to what was previously seen, are not enemies or having conflicting
interests but allies with mutual interest in the organization. The Organization for
Economic Cooperation and Development (2004) that this new paradigm of stakeholder
based approach corporate governance is one key element in improving economic
efficiency and growth as well as enhancing investor confidence. Corporate governance
involves a set of relationships between a company’s management, its board, its
shareholders and other stakeholders. This set of relationships that is based on mutual
interest, ensures a zero sum game beneficial to everybody.

According to Sapovadia (2003), the positive effects of corporate governance on

different stakeholders are strengthened economy; therefore good corporate governance
is a tool for socio-economic development. The OECD (2007) provides a more in depth
benefit of good corporate governance. They suggest that “good governance systems
allow organizations to realize their maximum productivity and efficiency minimize
corruption and abuse of power, and provide a system of managerial accountability.
These benefits and goals are equally important and applicable for both private
corporations and government bodies.

4.2. Corporate Communication

The origins of corporate communication can be trace to public relations. According

to White and Mazur (1995), public relations is a vocation where practitioners who are
advised on social attitudes and actions aim to win public support. Corporate
communication does not veer far from this idea since “it is mainly concerned with non
economic indicators such as changing attitude, altering perceptions and affecting what
an audience believes about the organization” and factors like “public opinion and social
responsibility are properly considered”(Dolphin, 1999).

According to (Riel and Fombrun 2007a), corporate communication serves as the

liaison between an organization and its public. The liaison function entails conducting
activities oriented towards managing internal and external communications to establish
favorable relationships as well as enhancing organizations ability to retain legitimacy to
operate. In relation to this, Dolphin considers corporate communication as managing
company’s reputation to build consent for the organization and its business. Dolphin
further argues that it is the prerogative of organization to desire favorable attitude
towards itself from key publics just as it wants heightened perception of its purpose and
culture. Corporate communication is beneficial to an organization, since it develops
strong corporate culture, coherent corporate identity, reasonable corporate philosophy,
genuine sense of corporate citizenship, an appropriate and professional relationship
with the press, and understanding of current communication technologies ((Riel and
Fombrun 2007a),

According to Dolphin (1999), a corporation is an artificial person in law. Being an

artificial person entails having an identity which in turn makes an image and reputation.
According to Balmer (1997), in order for organizations to secure favorable corporate
image and reputation they must know and manage the organizations identity.
Communication plays a vital role in this identity “knowing” and “managing process”.
Dolphin considers communication, particularly corporate communication, having a vital
role in giving life and form to the organization function, its character and identity and
dissemination to various audiences.

Corporate communication mainly deals with corporate identity, image and

reputation. It can be said that corporate communication mainly deals with creation of
corporate identity, managing corporate image and building corporate reputation.
According to Balmer and Grey (1999), corporate identity is the reality and uniqueness of
an organization, which is integrally related to its external and internal image and
reputation through corporate communication. Albert and Whettan (1985) define
corporate identity as organizational characteristics that are most central, enduring and
distinctive. Argenti (1994) presents a more physical definition by arguing that it is the
visual manifestation of an image as conveyed through the organizations logo, products,
services, and buildings, stationary, uniform and all other tangible bits of evidence
created by the organization to communicate to a variety of constituents. Dolphin (1999)
simply defines corporate identity as what an organization really is and, unlike image,
does not change from one audience to another.

On the other hand, Dolphin (1999) defines image as “what the organization appears
to be” according to the “perception of the different audiences based on the identity as it
is communicated”. Moreover, it will also follow that image varies from one audience to
another. According to Argenti (1994) it is a reflection of the organizations reality. Riel
(2007), propose that it is the sum of all experiences that someone has with the
institution. Marziliano (1997) proposes that an organization creates an image to be
managed and controlled in order to survive to project a good perception of itself.
Moreover, Balmer (1997), suggest that positive image and reputation should be built on
an organization’s identity.
 According to(Riel and Fombrun 2007a), reputations are overall assessments of
organizations by their stakeholders. He further explains that is the aggregate
perceptions by consumers, employees or investors of the organization’s ability to fulfill
expectations. Fombrun (1996) believed, as quoted by Dolphin (1999), reputation is
partly, a reflection of a company’s identity and image, and, partly, the manager’s effort
to convince audience of the company’s’ excellence. In order to achieve this, Fombrun
suggest that managers can build, sustain and develop reputation by shaping a unique
identity and project coherent and consistent set of images.

Argenti (1998) suggested that communicating image and identity is the most critical
part of corporate communication. In addition to this, determining how an organization
wants to be perceived and how it identifies itself is the foremost function of corporate
communication. Thus, Dolphin (1999) argues that for corporate communication to
succeed identity and image must be one in the same. Likewise, reputation is built from
this juncture of identity and image as well as projecting coherent messages that build on
the organizations credibility and ethic.

According to Riel the tools in corporate communication are: adoption of a centralized

planning system; application of visual identity systems; use of integrated marketing
communications; and reliance on coordinating teams. Table 2 presents the tools and
related activities.
Table 2. Tools and Activities in Corporate Communication

Tools General Activities Specific Activities

 Determining stakeholders of the
Audit of Internal and
organization whom communication is
External Publics
directed
Adoption of a Centralize  Observing external audiences and
Corporate Communication Environmental Scanning environmental factors, and their impact on
Strategy the organization
 Developing polices on external images
Develop Strategic
and internal identities (ex. mission
Communication Policies
statement)
 Establishing the qualities and
Develop Brand Names characteristics that make the organization
Development of Visual unique ( ex. history, belief and
Identity Systems philosophies)
 Establishing of symbols associated with
Develop House Styles
the organization
Use of Integrated  Using marketing strategies like sales
Choose Marketing
Marketing Communication promotion, public relations and marketing
Strategies
Strategies through interaction
Create or Involve a group  Communicating coherent messages to all
Use of Coordinating Teams
Specializing in of its stakeholders, in order to transmit
 Communication credibility and ethic

Audit of Internal and External Publics. According to Riel (1999), "Publics" can be
both internal (employees, stakeholders, i.e. share and stock holders) and external
(agencies, channel partners, media, government, industry bodies and institutes,
educational institutes and general public).Since corporate communication deals with
various audiences, it is critical to the development of the strategy to identify audience or
stakeholders. Anyone involved with corporate communications needs to be aware of
their receivers' habits and idiosyncrasies before deciding on message and medium
(Chin, 2005).

Environmental/Boundary Scanning. According to Dolphin (1999), it is the process

of observing external audiences and environmental factors; evaluating how- and what
extent-they may impact upon the organization, carrying information to them and
conveying information back to the organization. Moreover, it is crucial since
communication with stakeholders and all those who form opinions about the
organization is an essential plank to corporate strategy. Scanning can be through formal
(media content analysis, public surveys, and focus group discussion) or informal (media
contacts, monitoring complaints and suggestions) methods.

Develop Strategic Communication Policies. The ability to create external images

and internal identities depends on strategic decisions enacted to make sense out of the
present and future (Marzillano, 1997). Furthermore, corporate identity is revealed
through organizational communication policies (Dolphin, 1999).According to Goodman
(1994), the first communication policy must be the creation of the corporate mission
statement-the first act.

Develop Brand Names. A brand name is a written or spoken linguistic element of a

product which is often interchanged with trademark. It usually signifies ownership
source of the service or product to the brand owner. The elements of the brand name is
usually found as corporate slogans, products and services, product names, product
features and positioning. Brand names must be a clear part of the corporate policy for
strategic corporate identity.

Develop House styles. House styles are defined as common elements on symbols
or graphics that represents the organization. These coherent elements associated with
the identity of the organization makes it easily recognizable and strengthen reputation.
According to Dolphin (1999), example of symbols that represent an organization are the
corporate name, logos , colours, icons, heraldy, flags, brand marks, corporate
headquarters and employee uniforms. House styles can also promote the feeling of
being collegiate and belongingness, increases employee self-esteem and self-
awareness and establish an environment of consistent high performance.

Choose Marketing Strategies. Marketing communications can be categorized as

sales promotion, public relations, and direct and marketing through interaction. Sales
promotion is primarily done through direct marketing of products, services, employees,
management and corporate behavior. Second, is public relations which is done through
websites and advertising, products are not sold but information is readily given. Lastly,
is marketing through interaction which is done by word of mouth.

Create or Involve a group Specializing in Communication. Corporate

communication consists of the dissemination of information by a variety of specialists
and generalists in an organization, with the common goal of enhancing the
organization's ability to retain its license to operate (Riel and Fombrun, 2007). In
addition to this an organization needs to talk the same message to all of its
stakeholders, in order to transmit coherence, credibility and ethic. An organization,
according to Dolphin (1999), also needs to impact upon its environment by
communicating integrated, coherent messages and themes to those internal and
external audiences with which it desires relationship for public support.

According to Dolphin (1999), image is the picture an audience has of the

organization through the accumulation of messages that it has received and decoded.
Figure 1 is a diagram of how corporate image is managed.

Corporate Advertising

Managing Publics' Expectations

Transmitting Decoding
the Picture the Picture
Developing Persona

Tr
Mirror Function: Monitoring and Evaluation
Figure 1. Management of Corporate Image
 Transmitting the Picture. Dolphin (1999), quotes Jackson (1995), stating that the
term used to describe how people perceive us is a term used in the art or photographic
world- an image is a snapshot of a given moment. When an image is developed, publics
interpret and judge this creating a picture of the organization. Dolphin adds that a
corporate image results from a series of impressions communicated by an organization
to its key publics. The images that are projected by the organization reflect the different
ways the organization perceives itself.

Decoding the Picture. After transmitting the decoded image, the receiver decodes
it and forms an image according to his perception. Moreover, what was necessarily the
transmitted image may not be one in the same as the received image. Each audience
may see the organization in different ways, but from these impressions publics come to
know the organization as they perceive it. Over a period of time these impressions
gradually accumulate and build a picture of the organization.

Activities like corporate advertising, managing public expectations, developing the

persona and mirror function are crucial for managing the transmitting and decoding of
accumulated images or pictures. These in between processes see to it that the
accumulated images result into a positive impression of the company.

Corporate Advertising. According to Brown and Cox (1997), corporate image is the
degree to which the company is perceived as possessing qualities that make it
successful. Images, whether they are an accurate reflection of reality or not, may be
created by advertising (Dolphin. 1999). Corporate advertising is a deliberate action of
the organization to influence stakeholders to create a positive image of it.

Managing Public Expectations. According to Rindova (1997), image is

momentarily shifting and adjusting visible representation of the organization. Image is a
dynamic concept since it involves not only changing individual perceptions but different
perceptions of various audiences. Managing public expectations would be juggling this
various audiences, sometimes clashing in perception, to converge on a favorable
perception of the organization.

Developing the Persona. According to Dolphin (1999), persona is ultimately the

basis of the public’s decision whether or not they wish to have a relationship with an
organization. The persona reflects the reality of the corporation for which they are judge
by the audience. Persona may be seen as the reputation that bore out of the cumulative
building up of image.

Mirror Function. The mirror function is reflection of the identity of the organization in
the eyes of the stakeholder. Since much of corporate communication is towards
bolstering corporate image (Riel and Fombrun 2007), it is imperative that organizations
monitor and evaluate their reflection or publics perceived image at any given time. They
should anticipate the consequences of their transmitted images so that persona will be
develop according to their needs.

5. Conclusions

The purpose of the paper was to examine the role of communication, particularly
corporate communication, in gaining support and sympathy of public opinion to aid in
the success of local government reform initiatives. It wanted to put forth the two
assumptions before concluding.
The first assumption is that the existing environment in the Philippines is leading to
the belief that putting faith in local governments provided a better platform to provide a
capable, responsive and accountable form of governance. In the Philippines, public
opinion towards the government to serve peoples interest and provide quality basic
services is generally on a distrusting and disbelieving note. This negative public opinion
has put the focus on local governments to provide a more capable, accountable and
responsive form of governance. In spirit of the Philippine Local Government Code of
1991, local governments are given local autonomy and are only generally supervised by
the executive branch in all matters pertaining to operations of local units.
The second assumption is that since local government reform initiatives, involve
working with various networks of stakeholders, it is critical for local government to use
communication. It is even more vital since public opinion of government is a mixture of
distrust and disapproval. In order for local governments to work collectively with different
stakeholders, local government must deliberately influence public opinion through non-
coercive methods. Through communication local governments create adequate and
efficient flow of information for informed policy development and improved service
delivery. It also improves accountability and transparency of elected officials and
promotes unity by shifting community biases. These effects of communication contribute
to building positive public opinion.
In connection to this, the use of corporate communication principles to influence
public opinion would be beneficial to government reform initiatives. Furthermore, the
use of corporate communication principles will give local governments a defined
corporate identity which will allow them to establish favorable relationships with
stakeholders and enhance their legitimacy to operate in the public’s opinion.
 I conclude that in order for local governments to be successful in functioning as
organizations which will collectively work with a variety of stakeholders to create
development by local government reforms, they should engage in developing and
communicating their corporate identity and manage their corporate image to build their
reputation. This will allow local governments not only establish favorable relationships
and enhance its legitimacy on their stakeholders or publics, but also win desirable
attitude and public support. It will also increase their degree of professionalism inside
the local government by heightening their sense of purpose and culture.

7. Recommendations

The local governments may adopt principles in corporate communication by

adopting an identity and managing an image. The first step into developing their identity
is to create a corporate communication plan. In light of this, it is important for local
governments to know whom they will communicate with and what are the factors
affecting them. These questions can be answered by conducting a base line analysis of
stakeholders and the environmental factors that affect them. Using this data they should
be able to create informed strategic communication policies.

Flor and Flor (2007) in their study of typology of governance communication,

differentiate corporate and public governance communication at the national, local and
community level. By doing so, they present a template or starting points to identify the
stakeholders, goals, core values and strategic thrust, methods and messages important
to the local level. Table 3 presents Flor and Flor’s comparison of corporate governance
communication and public governance communication at the local level.

Table 3. Comparison of Corporate Governance Communication and Public Governance Communication at

the Local Level

CORPORATE
TYPE/ PUBLIC GOVERNACE COMMUNICATION
GOVERNANCE
ELEMENTS (LOCAL LEVEL)
COMMUNICATION
Corporate growth
Increased effectiveness of local governments
Goals Increased profits
Increased demand for good governance
Increased shareholders value
Management
Primary Employees Provincial, district and municipal governments
Stakeholders Investors Civil society (academe, media, religious)
Clients or consumers
Management efficiency
Public service
Employee performance
Core Values Transparency
Investor confidence
Equity
Customer satisfaction
Corporate communication Program implementation
Strategic
Products/services promotion Disclosure
Thrusts
Public relations Peace and order
Media and Advertising Local media
Methods Mass media New media
 New media Dialogue/ Public forums
Advocacy
Products and services
Public policy
Messages Profits
Programs and Procedures
Corporate policy

Local governments should also consider a broader perspective of their

stakeholders. Stakeholders can be categorized as internal and external publics. Internal
publics may include management, employees within the local government, while
external publics may include the community, government institutions and business
institutions willing to collaborate with the local government and clients of services
provided by the local government. Local government should also consider how the
changes or shifts of goals, core values, and strategic thrust affect both external and
internal publics.

Once both auditing of internal and external public and environmental scanning is
done. Data from both should be taken in consideration when developing strategic
communication policies. Adopting Tucker and Short ridge (1994), 4 steps to keep in
mind when developing policies on communication strategy:

 Identify/prioritize the most critical publics/opinion leaders important to advancing

the area
 Clarify desired behavior which will contribute to the development of the area of
each identified public
 Develop a goal describing the end result that the organization is seeking
 Develop specific messages that reflect the desired behavior

The Second step for developing ones identity is to develop a visual identity system.
Visual identity systems are textual or graphical representations of the corporate identity
of the organization. Once this is seen, it is associated with the organization. Local
governments should position themselves using brand name and house styles in
accordance with their corporate communication strategy . Establishing qualities and
characteristics that render the local government unique and excellent combined with
symbolic representations that enable publics to remember these qualities, makes a
positive image. This image will eventually result into a positive reputation that portrays
the organizations having the ability to fulfill expectations.

The third is deciding what marketing strategies are applicable to deliver these visual
identity systems to various internal and external publics. Marketing communication
strategies are categorized as sales promotion, public relations and marketing through
interaction. Local governments may choose to use a singular or integrated approach
depending on their capability and extent of coverage. One such approach is the use of
information education campaigns and exhibits to disseminate the mission and promote
services offered by local governments. They can also use technologies in mass media
like cable television, websites and radio. Community meetings and consultations can
also be done at the grassroots level.

Lastly, it is important that local governments create an office composed of specialist

and generalist, that is in charge with communicating an informing the public. This is
important to maintain coherence, credibility and ethic. This is also important for
monitoring and evaluating image and public opinion on the organization. Due to the
dynamic nature of the publics, image is constantly changing. It is important to
continuously monitor public opinion and image so measures can be made to influence
them or improve the communication strategy.
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