3 Credit(s)
Reputations, in today's court of public opinion are subjected to intense scrutiny and crushing verdicts. Typically, public relation issues are visible long before the crisis stage. Learn what should be in place before a crisis hits, how to spot triggers, develop a narrative, and create successful  messaging based on audience profiles. Thankfully, most crises can be managed by amassing relational capital. By discovering how to develop and maintain relational capital, students will be able to apply these skills to any high-stakes issues in their chosen industry, and understand the fundamentals of protecting reputations.

(As Needed) [Graded (Standard Letter)]

Registration Restriction(s): None

Alsop, Ronald J. (2004) The 18 Immutable Laws of Corporate Reputation ISBN 0-7432-3670-X

Kawasaki, Guy (2011) Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions ISBN 9781591845836

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

1. Identify basic components of reputation management. 
2. Describe the role of Relational Capital in protecting and defending reputations.
3. Utilize a reputation audit and assess crisis situations. 
4. Identify issue/crisis triggers and apply messaging strategies.

Assignment Outline

Note: All the names in the assignment exercises unless specified as a public figure, are fictional.

Discussions

There are four discussions in which you will need to participate throughout this course that cover topics ranging from course materials/readings, specific elements/policies/principles of crisis management, etc. Discussions in this class are are expected to contain thought-provoking, descriptive and specific exchanges--completely unlike texting. 

Posts such as, "I agree," or similar: "That is a great idea," will not be considered as a comment. Your responses should add value to the comments made either by agreeing or disagreeing (but both with valid argument and references). 

When responding to others in all discussions, always list their names first and then respond on each exchange. If there are two classmates with the same first name, list the first name and last initial.

    Note: Only two (2) errors in any combination of capitalization, grammar, punctuation, spelling and typos are allowed in discussions without penalty. 

Initial posts are due on Tuesdays by 11:59PM. Remaining post are due on Thursdays by 11:59PM. 

Assignments

Each assignment for this course has specific instructions on how to complete it. While some assignments require simple responses, others will give you options that you can choose from to submit, such as videos, infographics, or a document with your responses. 

PDFs and PowerPoints are accepted for assignments with graphic elements, like charts or infographics. All other text-only assignments are acceptable only in Word.  This means Google slides, Google documents and PDFs are not acceptable mediums for text assignments.   

Videos, Word Submissions & Assignment Examples 

If the instructions state a 2–3-minute video, you may go up to 15 seconds over.  Any submission over this time window will not be watched and receive zero points.

You may not use the same subject as those in the PPTS, readings or assignment examples; i.e. if the Salvation Army or Airbnb is used in the example, you must choose another company/organization. ALWAYS check the examples first to make sure you are not working on the same one as you will get a zero.

For Both Discussions & Assignments

Attributions/citations/sources:

Make it clear what is your writing and what is not. Use quotations at the start and end of any content which is a direct quote from someone else or content written by them; you must attribute this to the author. Simply dropping in a link is not sufficient. 

The following examples illustrate the only acceptable method for attribution in this course. Note that not all student examples reflect the 2026 rules; however, your submission must adhere to this style, otherwise points will be deducted. 

Example: 

CORRECT:

Example 1: According to Kris Mamula with the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, "Health insurance is going up in Western Pennsylvania where the local provider is seeking to lift individual premiums by 6.2% next year." 

In Western Pennsylvania, health insurance premiums are going up over 6% according to Kris Mamula with the Pittsburgh Post Gazette in a story posted on August 6, 2024 (or) 8/6/2024. 

INCORRECT 

1. Health insurance is going up in Western Pennsylvania where a local provider is seeking to "lift individual premiums by 6.2%" next year. (Pittsburgh Post Gazette, 2024.) 

2. Health insurance is going up in Western Pennsylvania where a local provider is seeking to lift individual premiums by 6.2% next year.

Mamula, Kris (2024 Pittsburgh Post Gazette) 

Opinions = Non-Substantive Responses

You will be required to synthesize information and give substantive responses and references. Opinions, without reference to an independent source are a superficial response and considered non substantive. Here are examples of non-substantive replies: 

“Everyone should smile. Relational capital is great.”

“I personally have heard only good things about that actress in the case study.”

“This is a common attitude with our elected officials today.”

You may include these responses but without providing validation, citing independent sources or specific references from the assigned class material (readings, PowerPoints, etc.,) they are just opinions and will receive zero points. 

Non-Substantive Response - Example

Imagine we studied the sinking of the Titanic which included how the ship was constructed and other factors. 

If the assignment instructions state:  "What are the three main reasons why the Titanic sunk?" And your answer is, "The Titanic sunk because it hit an iceberg. The iceberg is the reason why the Titanic sunk. If the Titanic didn't hit the iceberg it would not have sunk." This would receive zero points, for the answer given is generalized knowledge with no specifics or attribution of the other contributing factors.

Q&As

If an assignment states to draft Q&A’s, this means write both the questions and the answers.  

By posing the questions from whatever designated role (yourself, reporter, employee, etc.,) you must think about what that person would ask. In considering the answers, you have to reflect about the designated audience you are preparing these for, and what/how they want to hear the information.

Quizzes

There are 4 quizzes consisting mainly of multiple-choice questions over the course materials that assess how well you can identify elements covered in the course and apply your understanding of these elements. The quizzes range from 4 to 15 points. The Commenced Attendance Quiz is not counted but it is mandatory. 

Example of Assignment: 

Pre-Mortem -Threat Discernment 

To demonstrate the ability to discern threats toward an entity or individual's relational capital and subsequent public inquiries. 

Instructions

First review the NJ Port Authority exampleLinks to an external site. Next, imagine you work in the Port Authority Public Affair office as a spokesperson. You have just been notified about the video. The public is not yet aware the video exists but will in the next 24 hours.

Your task is to:

1. Write down a minimum of three questions you anticipate the public will raise. Each question must be complete with specific points. Open ended, commentary questions such as, “What kind of operation are you running?” or “How do you sleep at night?” do not count.

2. Identify and describe two instances in the video which pose the greatest threat to:

A. The Port Authority 

B. The Commissioner

Justify your points based on the material covered in the course to date, giving a minimum of two references. Below is a student example of this assignment that you can use as a frame of reference.

Grading of Assignment

This assignment is worth 20 points. Excellent is 18-20 points, satisfactory is 13-17 points, needs improvement is 9-12 points and not acceptable is 0-8 points. 

Instructor's policies on late assignments and or makeup work:

Late Policy: No late work accepted, unless an arrangement is made with your instructor. If an assignment is turned in late, without a prior arrangement with the instructor, a minimum of 2 points will be deducted. 

Make Up Work: This is a fast-paced class, any requests for make-up work will be considered on a case by case basis. If work is missed because because of a university-approved absence, or an absence approved in advance (2 days) by the instructor, the work can be submitted at the convenience of the Instructor.

It is my goal to: 

• Respond to student messages within two business days. 
• Provide grades and feedback within three days from the due date. 

Practice Etiquette: 

 Acknowledge receipt of announcements and comments about your assignments. This applies to assignments where detailed feedback is given beyond, “Good job,” or “Needs attribution”  Why? It lets me know you’ve received the message  and second it is good etiquette. It can be simple as in, “Received, thank you," or “Confirming receipt of your comments.”

Extend this courtesy to your classmates as well, no one likes guessing if a message was received. 

Instructor Feedback:

Depending on the type of submission, this feedback may take the form of comments or handwritten indications in your actual submission, remarks in Canvas, or criteria descriptions in rubrics. While adhering to the feedback will not change your grades on anything already submitted, understanding and applying the feedback will better inform you for subsequent submissions and will increase your ability of successfully achieving course outcomes.  

To locate instructor feedback on graded assignment submissions, click the Grades tab in the course navigation on the left. Scroll through the list of assignments until you find the one you are wanting to view. Note: You can tell which assignments are graded and which ones are not by looking at the Score column. Once you have located the assignment you would like to view, click on its title.

If there is feedback in your actual submission, you will see it in the center pane displaying your submission. You may have to scroll to see all feedback if your submission is multiple pages or slides long.

If there are comments in Canvas on your submission, you will see these in the Comment pane just to the right of your submission.

To see the Rubric by which assignments are graded, click on the blue Show Rubric button in the top right corner just under the Grade. The rubric with how I graded you will appear in the Comment pane to the right of your submission. You may need to scroll to see all feedback for longer rubrics. It is possible that feedback will be given in more than one form so you may need to check all three of these areas for feedback on a given submission. You can also look also take a look at this tutorial about finding instructor feedback: How do I view assignment comments from my Instructor. (Links to an external site.)

As this is an online course, your attendance will be measured through your participation and completion of course activities and assignments. 

Program and Course Fees

AI Not Allowed

Within this course, all submitted assignments should be written, developed, created, or inspired by you. If any work is created by artificial intelligence (AI) it will be considered plagiarized work and a violation of SUU Policy 6.33: Academic IntegrityLinks to an external site.. This could result in a failing grade to disciplinary action through the Dean of Students’ Office. AI is an evolving technology and will impact our academic, professional, and personal lives. It is important that as part of your education, you learn to critically think, create, and evaluate products/assignments.

Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, such as ChatGPT and BingAI, are not allowed to be used in this class be it discussions, homework assignments, or group projects, if assigned. This includes related AI tools  such as  Google Gemini, Claude, Meta AI, and Copilot.  Although the use of these types of tools may be allowed in other classes or are used professionally, this class will focus on learning foundations without the aid of generative AI. Any perceived use of generative AI will be investigated for possible submission to the university as cheating. Any work found to be plagiarized will be formally reported.