Phillips' Public Relations and Student Relations
At Phillips, public relations was playing an important role in many areas: counseling management through a vice president
with a direct report to the maintaining solid relationships with
the company's advertising and marketing efforts; producing in-house
media training for management publishing a wide array of internal and
external publications; managing successful youth-oriented programs and
sponsorships such as U.S. Swimming and U.S. Diving; and overseeing a formalized
outreach effort called the Public Relations Education Program (PREP).
Phillips management had long identified the college and university community as a "key constituency," realizing it
encompasses tomorrow's thought leaders, including the journalists, public relations
and advertising professionals of the future. Through PREP in those years
between 1979 and 1983, Phillips public relations staffers spoke to communications
students on well over 100 college and university campuses in almost every
state.
"These weren't just one-class visits," recalls Dan Harrison, currently general manager of Phillips corporate affairs.
"The schools worked us hard. Some of us almost applied for tenure," he jokes. Harrison says Phillips staffers made themselves
available to students and faculty after class appearances, spoke with PRSSA groups, did interviews with
campus print and broadcast outlets, and "listened to what public relations educators had to say about ways to better
place students in professional situations."
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