Integrative public relations in international business: The impact of administrative models and subsidiary roles

This dissertation focused on corporate public relations as practiced by international business operations (IBOs). The relationships between the public relations function of subsidiaries and their parent companies as well as other subsidiaries and/or sister companies were examined. Coordination mechanisms (socialization, formalization and centralization) used to manage the public relations function were identified and analyzed. Data gathered from four qualitative interviews (Michelin, BI-LO/Royal Ahold, Hitachi and BMW) and 70 participating subsidiaries (41 percent response rate) in a survey research step provided partial answers to four research questions investigated by 10 tested hypotheses. The research questions that guided the study were: (RQ1) How are the public relations functions in international businesses integrated worldwide? (RQ2) Overall, are the public relations functions in international business operations in South Carolina performed under the rubric of the transnational mentality defined by Bartlett and Ghoshal (1998)? (RQ3) Does the international business model an organization embraces significantly impact the types and levels of coordination mechanisms used by the public relations function of a given subsidiary? (RQ4) Does the level of importance of a subsidiary to the parent company significantly impact the types and levels of coordination mechanisms used by the public relations function of that subsidiary?;The qualitative findings indicated that the public relations function in IBO subsidiaries is coordinated with their parent companies and other subsidiaries/sister companies to achieve a balance between integration and localization of communication strategies. It appears that integration/localization is fostered by pursuing global efficiency, worldwide learning and national responsiveness (Bartlett and Ghoshal, 1998). In the quantitative part of the study, positive associations were found between (a) integrative communication devices, (b) communication quality, (c) parent company-subsidiary relationship quality and integration. Positive associations were also found between corporate socialization and both global efficiency and worldwide learning; between (a) integration and (b) communication quality and overall transnational mentality. The quantitative data from this study failed to support the hypothesized relationship between the international business models an IBO embraces and the role a specific subsidiary plays in the worldwide operation with the levels of coordination mechanisms used to manage the corporate public relations function.