Vickers PLC - a Very Brief C ase Study

The development of financial public relations at Vickers PLC from the mid-1980s provides a good example of the benefits of having a clear financial public relations strategy in good times and bad.

This famous name in British engineering is now a medium-sized company with an interesting portfolio of companies including Rolls-Royce Cars and Vickers Defence Systems, the UK's only manufacturer of main battle tanks. In the mid-1980s, Vickers was still recovering from the nationalization of its shipbuilding and aircraft business in the mid- 1970s, but following its merger with Rolls-Royce Motor Cars and under the guidance of its new chief executive, David Plastow, was just developing its strategy of concentrating on a limited number of areas of engineering and technological excellence. Its public relations and investor relations strategy was also developed at this time and given particular impetus by the Big Bang in the City.

The communications strategy devised by management and the in-house public relations director was simple: to ensure an understanding of the company's business strategy and its aim of re-focusing its somewhat diverse businesses. A key aim of the programme was to achieve a thorough familiarity with the company's senior management - and its ability to deliver the goods -among a clearly defined specialist City audience. No attempt was made either then or since to explain to the public the confusing situation whereby Vickers owned Rolfs-Royce Motor Cars rather than Rolls-Royce PLC, that the Vickers Shipyard in Barrow no longer belonged to Vickers. Or that Vickers which has been historically famous for aircraft manufacture since the days of Alcock and Brown and the Vickers Vimmy, the Wellington and not to mention the Spitfire, no longer manufactures aircraft. The in-house public relations department was set up to both manage media relations and investor relations in a coordinated fashion and to develop an understanding of the company's followers, whether they are journalists, investment analysts or institutional fund managers. The department of eight or so people divided the work into three main areas - media relations, investor relations and the rest, including internal communications, events and publications. The director of public relations personally took on the responsibility for investor relations, with the number two being the media relations specialist. They carried out all the public relations functions, including the running of a press office, but their prime responsibility was as an advisor to the chief executive and finance director. They were supported by ad hoc consultancy advice. If the strategy was simple, the tactics were even simpler: to take the opportunity of acquisitions and disposals, results announcements and the high profile of the chief executive to put across the company's messages, either via the press or directly to analysts and fund managers. It was important, however, that these opportunities were taken against an established background of understanding. The initial part of the public relations programme involved organizing briefings usually on a one-to-one basis for the chairman, the finance director or the director of public relations as appropriate with key journalists, analysts and other key City players whose opinions would be sought in the City. The importance of the chief executive, Sir David Plastow, in all of this cannot be over-estimated. A natural communicator and a man who clearly understood the need for proper public relations, he already had a good reputation in the City for being a straight talker and someone who did not disappoint shareholders. It is all too easy for corporate and financial public relations to become focused around the personality of one person, but people like to see companies with clear leadership and to be run by one or two people who are demonstrably in charge. In David Plastow, Vickers had a very good man to put forward.

 

 

17

⇐ Предыдущая123456Следующая ⇒

Поделиться: