In focus: Communicators’ power to drive business purpose

Companies that can’t clearly articulate their reason for existence—beyond making a quick dollar—won’t be in business by the end of the coming decade.

That was the bold claim by Disney’s former head of innovation, Duncan Wardle, in kicking off PR Week’s PR Decoded conference in Chicago. The day and a half of sessions focused on how PR pros and corporate communicators can help their organizations attract customers, employees and investors around the unique value they offer their communities.

Wardle put the problem in the context of defunct brands like Blockbuster versus innovators like Netflix that have adapted to disruption and rapid technological change.

The difference? A brand that pursues iteration versus a brand that embraces expansive thinking. Iterative thinking leads to price hikes and new fees, revenue generators and profit centers. A more expansive approach that focuses on consumer pain points can offer ideas that result in both increased profits and happier consumers.

Thinking outside the shelf