Strategic Communication Management and Systems Thinking

Reflective journey: strategic communication management and systems thinking

Strategic communication management/ planning(SCP) entails the ability of organizations to plan and strategically and systematically organize the content of information, the information flow, and the selection of the most appropriate media of communication to attain the desired objectives. This involves the analysis of the dynamics of consumer needs, behavior, market trends, and changes in the global marketing cultures, crafting the most appropriate information and creatively sharing it to generate a positive impact. Therefore, strategic communication planning could be utilized to share innovative ideas, suggest new objectives, and advertise to stakeholders through different media channels such as local media, social media, and emails, among other platforms. However, an organization must use systems thinking strategy to attain the intended goal of crafting the right message for the intended audience at the right time and using the most appropriate channel. The main principles of strategic communication planning include message design, selection of audience and analysis, calculated timing, correct media, and the desired impact.

Strategic communication planning entails systematic and strategic crafting of the message design, selecting the audience and analysis, calculated timing, selecting the correct media, and the desired impact. Crafting the message design entails analyzing the communication and the organization's goal to develop a message that serves the intended purpose and is understandable by the target audience (Holtzhausen et al., 2021). Another crucial principle of SCP is the selection of the audience. For instance, communication could address managers, investors, employees, news media, customers, or influencers. Therefore, it is crucial to select the target audience to be able to use the proper terms, depending on audiences, beliefs, values, and attitudes, to enhance messages' relevance and avoid misunderstanding. However, it is also crucial to consider the platform/ media used to pass the message depending on the media consumption of the selected audience (Holtzhausen et al., 2021). For instance, one could address customers through local media, emails, social media platforms, or employees through memos, emails, or virtual meetings. It is also crucial to pass the message at the right time. Correct timing helps in enhancing the effectiveness of communication. Lastly, in SCP, one has to define the communication's desired outcome, such as increased sales, attendance, and market share, among others, to measure impact (Holtzhausen et al., 2021). Thus, strategic communication planning (SCP) is crucial in enhancing communication effectiveness through correct timing, proper selection of audience, use of the right media, analysis of the desired outcome, and correct message design.

On the other hand, systems thinking involves integrating different aspects of nature in analyzing a particular situation to broaden one's understanding. For instance, one could explore how different systems such as people, environment, culture, political, or economic factors connect to understand the cause of certain situations (Williams et al., 2017). Systems thinking enhances one's understanding by giving new insights inspiring change and innovation. For instance, in the six hats reality learning, the main issue is implementing change to embrace augmented and virtual reality to compete favorably. The company's weakness is messaging visibility. Systems thinking could address the underlying issues by integrating various aspects of learning reality in the organization, such as culture, structure, leadership, ethical conduct, employees' commitment, the systems used and their advantages and disadvantages, and the areas that need adjustments to improve performance (Williams et al., 2017). Systemic thinking helps enhance teamwork and employee involvement and reduce resistance to change. Thus, through systemic thinking and proper utilization of strategic communication planning (SCP) principles, it could be easy to message visibility. 

Thus, Strategic communication planning (SCP) and systems thinking play a crucial role in strategic communication to achieve the desired professional and personal goals. For instance, in life, one experiences different situations that could require systems thinking of the interrelated factors to establish the root cause and make the most appropriate decisions (Williams et al., 2017). Also, one must apply the SCP principles to convey a particular message at the right time to the selected audience, using the right channel to attain the desired goal (Holtzhausen et al., 2021). Professionally, systems thinking is critical in solving work-related issues such as reduced sales, enhancing product quality, marketing, or streamlining the supply chain processes. Therefore, systems thinking and the SCP principles play a critical role at work and personal levels to enhance healthy interactions and informed decision-making.

The main principles of strategic communication planning include message design, selection of audience and analysis, calculated timing, correct media, and the desired impact. Strategic communication management/ planning(SCP) entails the ability of organizations to plan and organize the content of information, enhance information flow, and select the most appropriate media of communication to attain the desired objectives Strategic communication planning (SCP) is crucial in enhancing communication effectiveness. In contrast, systems thinking involves integrating different aspects of nature to analyze a situation to broaden one's understanding. Systems thinking can solve personal and professional issues by analyzing the interconnection of the systems to determine the root cause of a particular problem. Therefore, systems thinking and the SCP principles play a critical role at work and personal levels to enhance healthy interactions and informed decision-making.

 Bibliography

Holtzhausen, D.R. et al. (2021) Principles of Strategic Communication. Routledge.

Williams, A. et al. (2017) “Systems thinking: A Review of Sustainability Management Research,” Journal of Cleaner Production, 148, pp. 866–881. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2017.02.002.