My 1000 words…

Here’s my 1000 words, still alot of work to be done. Do realise that my research project may not be very focussed.

Singapore Spin: An investigation in public relations within charities

 

Abstract: Public relations is changing the way charities in Singapore are operating. This has been brought about by the prevalence of the Internet and triggered by a recent financial scandal. Branding and reaching target audiences have never been more important. An investigation into how public relations has become a powerful and vital tool in charities in Singapore will examine this.

 

Charities, or non-profit organisations in Singapore have always been an integral part of this South-East-Asian country. The city-state has achieved much economic success and growth since its independence for the best part of the last three decades. Unemployment and extreme poverty are maintained to a bare minimum with social ills heavily regulated and controlled by the ruling government. However, less privileged groups such as the disabled and the destitute do exist. As the government do not subscribe to a welfare state mentality and approach, charitable organisations and private donations are seen as an alternative way towards helping the this group of Singaporeans.

 

The first part of my research will examine the history of charitable organisations in Singapore up to the present. Secondary research will be done to ascertain the workings and mechanics this. The role that such volunteer bodies and community organisations have played and continue to play will be closely studied. The major organisations will be used as close case studies for the function and administration practices within large charities in Singapore. Wong & Chua & Vasoo (1998) provide an in-depth study and helpful investigation in this context. 

 

Public relations is still a largely Western concept and has only really begun to find its way into Singapore not too long ago. As such, it is a relatively new concept to firms in Singapore, not least volunteer organisations and charities. A study done in 1996 ( Wee & Tan & Chew) on organisational response to public relations showed how Singaporean firms with differing organisational structure and background respond to the challenges of executing core public relations such as community relations and internal communication. With public relations still a relatively young and budding arm of organisations, particular attention will be paid to the emergence and use of public relations in charities.

 

In this vein and timeline, it is also important to establish the emergence of the Internet and its rate of penetration and uptake within Singapore. Singapore has been one of the most wired and technologically advanced countries in the Asian-pacific rim and this is an important factor that must be considered when examining how the Internet changes how public relations is run and executed in charitable organisations. The way that public relations develops and evolves organically within charities hinges on many factors but the advent of and the widespread accessibility of the Internet should be considered as a major one.

 

The second part of the thesis will contend with how public relations can be seen as a vital and increasingly visible tool in a recent crisis that plagued the charitable organisation body in July 2005. The National Kidney Foundation, a Singapore-based foundation running kidney and dialysis programmes and fully supported by charity donations, was involved in a scandal which revealed excessive and over-extravagant salaries and benefits meted out to the top management. This was seen as a wanton disregard for appropriate use of money donated to the charity in good faith by the public. This controversy provides a ripe ground on which public relations was used by a newly-appointed set of leaders for communication to their stakeholders, both internal and external.

 

I will use this case study to display the extent and tools of public relations that have been used and to what effect by a major charity organisation in Singapore. The importance of having effective messages and communication to an internal and external public will be examined. Secondary research methods will be used in the collation of data to show the extent of success or not. The use of public relations tools within the Internet will be studied and investigated in especially close detail.

 

Lastly, I would like to examine the future direction of public relations in charity organisations in Singapore. With the Internet offering a plethora of options at a reduced cost, charity organisations in Singapore now have an array of tools that are available to them to increase their presence and voice in society. Special focus will be made on the rise and popularity of social-networking sites such as Facebook within Singapore and a possible marriage of convenience between the two.