Chapter #9 put an interesting light on government and private businesses. According to the text, private business and government have an adversary relationship. Interestingly enough though, is the fact that the government can have a large impact on the success of not only an organizations endeavors but also their lifespan. Some acts that were placed by the government affected not only the daily routines of an organization but also their sales.
For example, the book used the Cigarette Labeling and Advertising Act that occurred in 1965. Under this act, all cigarette manufacturers were required to inform the consumer about the hazards of smoking. Along with the push to inform the consumer through this label, came numerous studies that linked cigarettes to heart disease and lung cancer. All of these occurrences negatively affected cigarette manufacturer’s sales, as well as increasing their costs because of the required Surgeon’s warnings. Therefore, the book suggests that it is important to have a role in government relations.
Government Relations
Government relations are a process that needs to start from the top down. It cannot simply be a committee of staff people actively attempting to deal with public affairs. The text states that is it very common for CEO’s to be a part of the government relations group. But organizations do not stop at in-house committees to solidify political influence; it does beyond to having lobbyist groups illustrate the organization’s opinion at Capitol Hill.
Finally, according to the text, organizations also create political action committees as a method of getting involved in the government. Through these committees, organizations can contribute to campaigns that could then lead to increased political awareness of the organization when it requires help.
Student’s Perspective
It is evident through this chapter that the government plays a vital role in the success of organizations, especially those that require agency regulations. By enacting groups such as government relations groups, lobbyists, and political action committees, organizations can have a better understanding of not only the government’s stance but also their potential to achieve a set goal. I learned that the government does not just stop with laws and regulations. In fact, the government whether local or national, can affect an organization for other reasons such as environmental reasons and business ethics.
Nonetheless, it is self-evident that with the increased in information flows via the internet, that an organization stays ahead of the game by implementing one of the techniques suggested in the text. It is a never-ending battle to stay on top of competition. If it requires sending lobbyists to Capitol Hill so the organization’s voice is heard when Congress is discussing legislation that may negatively effect the company, than that is what must be done for the success and future of the company.
Please see the below links for further information regarding government and its role in business.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/29/AR2009032901876.html?hpid=moreheadlines
An article about how even though the economy is going through rough times, the demand for lobbyists has increased because organizations want to receive as much money as possible from the government packages.
http://www.allbusiness.com/north-america/united-states-texas/970463-1.html
An article that illustrates that political action campaigns should not only be seen as negative choices. It discusses both the positives and negatives about PACs.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123120451951755975.html
This is another article discussing lobbyists and how competition is high as they try to get a portion of President Obama’s stimulus plan. The article talks about the various types of organizations that sent lobbyists and how there are more organizations with requests than there is money.
Undoubtedly,government relations plays important roles in almost every association.Developing and maintaining a strong and effective government relations program can help associations achieve its mission.
ReplyDeleteIn some companies I worked,maintaining good government relations is one of important duties of management.
Chieh Chang
As much as I would like to think that government is separated from the influence of corporations, I am well aware that this is not the case. The U.S. designed, through its constitution that church and state should be separate but this is not the case with corporations. It is sad to think that big corporations have alot of influence on shaping policy and regulations.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I have worked as part of a small group to lobby government officials about regulatory statute and found the experience somewhat disheartening. As we tried to promote our concerns it became very clear that our interests were secondary to a much larger, more influential private corporation that opposed our ideas. Needless to say, our concerns were largely ignored. It is very easy to see how companies must pay close attention to their government relations.
An interesting site to visit is the American League of Lobbyists website. This organization represents government relations and public affairs professionals. Take a look and see how they make the process work!
http://www.alldc.org/
Mary