There have been many lessons learned in the past two weeks that truly have made this experience with the Plank Center truly life changing for me professionally as well as personally.
One of the responsibilities I had as a Plank Center Fellow was to work on a project (this could have been a research study, workshop, presentation, etc) during my stay here at GM.
What was great about the wonderful team at GM was 1) they provided me with a lot of great insight and background information to familiarize myself with the project, 2) lots of frameworks and documents to help guide me for my fellowship presentation and 3) opportunities to speak and chat with fellow professionals and teams.
Exploring around Detroit
I can’t say what my project focused on, but what I can say is the fact that this PR project pushed me and inspired so much. It got me brainstorming a lot of ideas and strategies/recommendations to put forth, and it allowed me to try and combine my research background with practical steps and strategies for GM as as brand. What a great learning experience overall and loved every minute of the process. I did my presentation yesterday and it went extremely well. So excited!
I still have a few days left of my fellowship here at GM, but I wanted to take a moment to share some of my overall thoughts about my experience here at GM. I am going to have a follow-up reflection post on highlights/best practices/lessons learned later on this week, but I wanted to focus this post on research and teaching implications I thought fellow PR professors should be aware of and think about.
Research Implications
Here are some of the trends I found to be very interesting from a research standpoint for PR professors to know:
Theory *does* inform practice – but we have to look at the big picture on how these can be applied
Too many times we see research stop short in asking how we can apply these findings for practitioners. For example, I was able to do this in my fellowship presentation by walking through the process of my influencer research and talk about takeaway points, specific strategies that this could help them with their future initiatives. Being able to see the whole forest rather than just a few trees (ex. theories) speaks volumes nowadays.
It’s not only what PR theories we can incorporate, but sometimes others. It’s about looking at the complete picture, be creative in terms of what theory could potentially be used given the challenge and opportunity being presented, look at the components to help analyze and determine the method of research/instrument, analyze and report, and them come together with key findings and implications for research and practice.
However, there are times where we as PR researchers get so wrapped up in metrics, what does the theory mean exactly, etc that we forget what are some other potential uses, implications, and important concepts/questions we should be asking ourselves that we may be missing. Sometimes it is good to take a step back, reflect, get other options, and look at this holistically.
There are a TON of collaborative opportunities for partnerships and research
This was very, very exciting to hear as part of the discussion here at GM. Most of the times, we think of publishing our work in academic papers, books, and conferences is all we can do. Times are changing and some of the barriers that have been made are now somewhat broken.
Corporations like GM want to engage with students and professors on research. I made an conscious effort to list professionals and professors for GM to talk to regarding my fellowship presentation who have expertise and have worked on some of the points and areas I covered. Reach out to professionals, practitioners, and brands to network and start the conversation yourself. They are waiting to hear from you and brainstorm ideas and formulate a strong networking professional relationship with you.
Importance of expanding horizon outside of the field and making bridges
I think this was interesting how GM professionals have to be experts in their fields and areas, but they have to expand and learn what other fields and teams are doing internally and externally. GM is a very large company and there are so many teams, brands, roles, and components that make it all come together. However, GM professionals are not just a PR professional – but they have to be integrated into the entire process. I have been EXTREMELY impressed with the work ethic, team collaboration, creativity and strategic thinking, and overall process and culture within GM throughout this process in making bridges internally on the corporate side as well as with the individual brands.
It’s not only about quantitative research – more on mixed method approaches
This was something I felt was extremely interesting. When you think about research – you may consider looking at quantitative methods or qualitative methods. Okay, news flash for my fellow PR professors – we can’t have this perspective any more. It of course depends on the question and we have to be open for the integration of mixed methods – while also exploring how other disciplines are measuring as well. We have to communicate, teach, and incorporate this into our classes (at the undergraduate AND graduate level for Master’s and PhD candidates).
Plus, we have to be open to what are the growing changes happening in practice and lead the way in these methods. I was able to sit in meetings where we were talking about true transdisciplinary strategies and what are the areas and methods students and young professionals need to not only know, but also understand and see the art AND science of all parts and how they are interconnected. This is sometimes missing in PR and social media, but I hope to bring back these insights to my students in my classes.
Teaching Implications
Of course, there were some validations I felt I got from this experience overall I wanted to share with you too – and this applies to teaching as well as research.
Preparing our students for the future workplace
More internships and leadership roles were two things that came up when I was talking across the teams at GM. Many of the interns come in with some sort of leadership experience (PRSSA president, team leader, etc), but they also have a range of different internship experiences from agencies, non-profits, etc. Plus, being able to hit the ground running and be motivated to keep on learning, growing, and expanding your knowledge base as a professional is absolutely key. Communicating this to students early on and reinforcing these points in each of your assignments and class expectations will help them build in this behavior for their classes, future internships, and jobs within the company.
Getting feedback on social media class from a corporate level
This was great to hear as well. I shared what I have been doing to prepare my students for future jobs and opportunities, and everyone was impressed with the level of hands on work experience and assignments I was giving the students in the field. This was encouraging for me to hear and talk with each team and with individual GM professionals.
Keeping up with the new terms being used to communicate certain strategic measures
Customer 360, journey roadmap, and flash reports are just some of the terms I heard over and over again during my fellowship. This can be applied for all sorts of classes and be translated into related terms for PR, but as professors, we have to keep our hand on the pulse on what are the tools being utilized and featured.
Embracing creativity in data analysis and research
I wanted to see what GM professionals thought about my class and what were some of the skills, expertise, and experiences they are looking for in young hires. Overall, it’s about hands on skills and thinking creatively with research. I don’t mean thinking creatively and making up numbers – but to look for themes, interesting findings, and take these insights to brainstorm creative strategies to better inform our audiences on what we want them to know about. This means having more assignments translating results from data into strategic, applicable implementation steps for businesses, professionals, and teams to run with.
In summary, I have been EXTREMELY impressed not only the GM corporation, but the activities, campaigns, and initiative they have in place. But most importantly, I have been very impressed with the professionals working in GM as part of the corporate team as well as the agency professionals as well. These are truly remarkable individuals at the top of their game and it has been very rewarding to brainstorm, chat, and bounce off ideas for research and strategy with them. This connections have been really amazing!
Plus, I have gained so much not only from the teaching and research side of things from this experience as a Plank Fellow at GM, but having the opportunity to bridge these points with actual hands on practice and use my experience and research to make a difference and help brainstorm future ideas.
This has been extremely rewarding for me and I am very grateful to the Plank Center and to the entire team at GM for this great opportunity.
Hope you all are having a great day!
Best Wishes,
