Abstract
Excellent organisations are more open to influences from wider environments than non-excellent organisations. It is precisely this openness that gives them a competitive, strategic advantage. This holds not only for companies, but also for governmental and non-governmental organisations. Survival and success are functions of adaptation, and excellent organisations expose themselves to as many challenges as early as possible, because problematic situations enable and force them to learn. They use insights about shifts in public opinion, megatrends and demands from stakeholders to identify opportunities for growth. Constantly scrutinising and reinventing the organisational profile, policies, products and services is a necessity in today’s hypermodern world.
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Notes
- 1.
Peters and Waterman (1982).
- 2.
Sennett (2008).
- 3.
- 4.
Van Ruler and Verčič (2005), p. 263.
- 5.
Zerfass (2014), pp. 28–32.
- 6.
Zerfass et al. (2015), p. 116. n = 1,600 communication professionals working in communication departments across Europe. Q: How do you and your department help to reach the overall goals of your organisation? Scale 1 (rarely) – 5 (very often). Mean values. ** Highly significant differences (Pearson correlation, p ≤ 0.01). * Significant differences (Pearson correlation, p ≤ 0.05).
- 7.
Zerfass et al. (2016), p. 124. nmin = 1,066 communication professionals working in communication departments across Europe. Q: When you coach, advise or enable executives/senior managers or other members of your organisation/client, how often do you practice the following activities? Scale 1 (not at all) – 5 (very often). **Highly significant differences (Pearson correlation, p ≤ 0.01).
- 8.
Zerfass et al. (2015), p. 117. n = 1,601 communication professionals working in communication departments across Europe. Q: How do you usually argue for the relevance of strategic communication when addressing top executives and (internal) clients? Scale 1 (never) – 5 (always). Mean values. **Highly significant differences for all items (Pearson correlation, p ≤ 0.01).
- 9.
- 10.
Zerfass et al. (2016), p. 125. nmin = 1,431 communication professionals working in communication departments across Europe. Q: Thinking of yourself, your current capabilities and your future development, which of the following skills and knowledge areas do you believe are in need of developing? My organisation offers/facilitates training. *Significant differences (chi‐square test, p ≤ 0.05). **Highly significant differences (chi‐square test, p ≤ 0.01).
- 11.
Zerfass et al. (2014), p. 144. n = 2,090 communication professionals working in communication departments across Europe. Q: How many hours do you work in an average week, compared to the hours required by your work contract (with or without financial compensation)? Highly significant correlations for all items (Kendall rank correlation, p ≤ 0.01, τ = −0.121).
- 12.
Zerfass et al. (2014), p. 145. n = 2,090 communication professionals working in communication departments across Europe. Q: How do you feel about your actual job situation? Scale 1 (strongly disagree) – 5 (totally agree). Mean values. **Highly significant differences (Kendall rank correlation, p ≤ 0.01).
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Tench, R., Verčič, D., Zerfass, A., Moreno, Á., Verhoeven, P. (2017). Commandment 3. In: Communication Excellence. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48860-8_3
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