Lawrence G. Foster
Ball State University
March 26, 1998

Long-time Arthur W. Page Society member and former president, Larry Foster, presented the following remarks at the Indiana Public Relations and Communications Conference in Indianapolis where he received the 1998 Ball State University Public Relations Achievement Award. Foster is retired as director of corporate communications at Johnson & Johnson and is now a consultant. He is a member of the Page Society's Hall of Fame and serves on the Board of Trustees.

It is an honor and a privilege for me to accept the 1998 Ball State University National Public Relations Achievement Award. I thank the Advisory Council and the faculty members at the University for adding me to the list of distinguished colleagues who have received it in the past. I am honored to be included among them.

I have been in the profession of public relations for some 40 years, and at no time have I seen a greater need for the skills and the judgement that we are capable of bringing to the organizations we serve. More than ever before, THE PUBLIC RELATIONS FACTOR has become a part of the solution to the major problems facing our organizations, as well as our society.

Today we are being swept along by a tide of new information, new knowledge and new technologies that will carry us into the millennium. If properly used, these new skills will enhance our stature as communicators and strategists.

But in our determination to grasp everything that is new, we should not forget that public relations is still a business of basics, where the human touch often plays the leading role.

In a society that is growing increasingly impersonal

Where fax and voice mail and e-mail are substituted for the warmth of human contact, I urge you to find ways to retain your human touch. Understand the value of it; nourish it as one of your skills that you will not surrender to technology.

The future belongs to those who can bring diverse, fractionalized publics together on opposing points of view. Those who can enlighten and persuade the angry, the discontent and the disenfranchised. And THE PUBLIC RELATIONS FACTOR, and THE HUMAN FACTOR, will be needed to forge consensus.

Along with the new technologies of the 21^st century, there will be attempts to redefine public relations, and the role it plays.

Before you embrace a new definition, I urge you to weigh it against one that was put forth some years back by a grand lady of our profession, Denny Griswold. I have never heard a better explanation of what it is we do. She wrote:

Public Relations is the management function which evaluates public attitudes, identifies the policies and procedures of an individual or an organization with the public interest, and plans and executes a program of action to earn public understanding and acceptance.

I cannot think of a more challenging assignment for people with our skills.

To build a successful career in public relations, you must become an integral part of the organization you serve. You must learn the rudiments of the business, and you must think like a member of management, not just as a communicator. You must be able to write clearly and persuasively.

You must demonstrate that you can contribute to management strategy in your area of expertise. You must be ready to play the role of the loyal opposition when management is leaning in the wrong direction, and particularly when the public interest is not being served. For we know that what serves the public interest also serves our business goals.

Problem-solving is what managing a business is all about. That's what CEOs do. They solve problems so the business can grow and prosper. The most valuable public relations executives are those who anticipate problems, counsel management on how to solve them, and then be part of the solution through the wise use of our communications skills.

We must learn to keep our eye on the big picture, not isolate ourselves behind a few public relations specialties. We must be able to determine public attitudes so we can help management anticipate change, and set a course for the future.

If we take an active role in creating, shaping and nourishing our corporate culture, we will find a more secure place in the management hierarchy.

We have the opportunity to contribute in so many ways. But how often do we fail to fill our agenda because we are afraid of taking risks? Risk-taking is an inherent part of good management.

By its very nature, and when practiced at its very best, public relations is about values.

In our work, we are asked to separate good from bad, right from wrong. We are asked to judge what is fair and what is unfair. What is in the public interest and what is not. Values, honesty and integrity are the tools we work with. We know how to define these qualities, and how to communicate them to others.

It is a responsibility we carry out best if our own values are in order. Some of the brightest, clearest-thinking people I know - people with excellent judgement and high integrity - are in the public relations field. And the best of today are every bit as good as the best of the past.

Our potential for service to society far exceeds that of many other careers - for we are the skilled communicators in a world desperate for better communications.

There is a role to be played by public relations professionals who see the need to help reshape America's agenda and redefine its values. If not in your everyday work, certainly in the organizations eager to get your volunteer services.

For a career that offers such vast potential for positive change, I am constantly baffled by people in public relations who have a problem with self-image.

Just as I grow weary of hearing people debate whether or not public relations is a profession. In the final analysis, that will be determined by individual performance.

It will be your knowledge and skills, your sense of values and your integrity, and the way others respect you and what you do, that will ultimately determine your professionalism. That challenge is yours to win or lose, and no piece of paper in a frame on the wall will alter the perception of how professional you really are.

One of the great rewards in life is to be able to truly enjoy your work.

Whether you are a student learning the skills of public relations, teaching it to others, or an active practitioner, it is work that offers a sense of fulfillment. It is work that is easy to enjoy. It is work that can help others lead better lives. It is work that can serve the public good.

In the Broadway musical Mame, there was a memorable scene. There was a table that was bountifully set with food fit for a king. The line from Mame to those standing around the table went something like this:

You poor people, some of you are hungry and some are starving, yet you don't know enough to step up and partake of this bountiful feast.

I remind you that a career in public relations can offer a bounty of rewarding and nourishing experiences. Enjoy them to the fullest, and good luck to you in all that you do.