How Can A Public Relations (Pr) Manager Of A Project Team Use Fiber Optics To Facilitate Virtual Work?

1) Introduction to the properties of a PR manager

Virtual work is work that is time and/or space independent. As mentioned in Coursework 1, the most important use of fiber optics is in communication. Fiber optics communication is used in contribution to virtual work when internet and telephone lines are used due to their high speed and high capacity. A PR manager needs to do three basic duties in the course of her work everyday. They are:

1. To communicate with the client

2. To communicate with her subordinates and her boss

3. To communicate the client's message to the target audience1

In performing the three basic duties, duties 1 and 2 can be grouped together as they will involve almost the same type of virtual work. Duty 3 is slightly different. (how different? Different in what areas?)

2) Duties 1 and 2

"A team is a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals, and approach for which they are mutually accountable." (Katzenbach and Smith, 1993) 2 The PR manager forms a team with her subordinates and her boss as they have a common purpose of which they are all accountable for. They have to perform the service which they have promised to their client as they are paid by the project, not by the hours. The PR manager has 3 ways to communicate with her team and the client: face-to-face meetings, in print or by electronics.

2.1) Face-to-face meetings

Although most virtual teams need some face-to-face time to function effectively, especially initially, they can become more virtual over time. Once the group has established trust and set up its processes of interaction, it can make quality improvements without meeting.3 The PR manager can choose to make her team a virtual team. In doing so, her reliance on fiber optics communication will increase. Initially, she will have to do face-to-face meetings to establish trust. She is likely to use emails/phones/fax/printed matters to convey the meeting time and agenda to her team. Indirectly though, the use of electronics to arrange face-to-face meeting can be classified as virtual work. She need not be present in the office to arrange face-to-face meetings. Once the team has met and established trust, her team is likely to become more virtual especially with PR involving a lot of mobility.

With the client, similarly, it is likely that once that trust has been established, the PR manager will use emails and landlines to communicate with the client on small matters like daily updates or minor decision. The initial meeting to discuss the client's expectation and desired result, especially with a new client, is a face-to-face meeting to ensure that there is trust which can be established more easily in person. The indirect use of fiber optics communication again comes in during the arrangement of a meeting time. It is likely though that face-to-face meetings will occur when there is a need to communicate sincerity or very important matters in the discussion.4 (unnecessary sentences, repeating what you've mentioned above)

2.2) Print

This area is unlikely to use fiber optics communication. It is likely to be by post or courier. If the PR manager needs to send out printed promotional materials to a client, who requested for printed materials, for approval, she will use this medium. (need to elaborate on your definition of print cuz printed promotional materials can be also sent through pdf to be printed remotely by her clients.)

2.3) Electronics

This area is the broadest and involves the highest use of fiber optics communications. The PR manager is unlikely to be in her office most of the time because her role involves her being mobile. Her team is also likely to be mobile to carry out supporting or individual duties.

When the PR manager is out of office, she is likely to be using her mobile to contact her teams or clients. Mobile uses wireless signal which is then converted to electronic signals, then to light to enter the fiber optics network core if she is calling people who are at home or in the office. If they are calling her, the signals move the reverse way. 6 However, the use of fiber optics can be bypassed if she is calling other people on their mobile directly. There are even people now who do not use land lines but rather, use mobiles instead especially if they are on the move frequently.5 It is likely that the PR manager and her team are all using mobiles to contact one another when they are out of the office although the office will have its own landline phone. This allows them to update each other and the client on the project.

In using Internet based programmes like email and webcams for video conferencing, the PR manager can use wireless or cables. In both cases, they are connected to the fiber optics network. 6 In her office, LAN (local network access) is likely to be used, involving fiber optics as it can accommodate a large number of people using the network at the same time. However, in her home, she is likely to be using broadband cable or dial up access. While the speed is slower, they ultimately link up to the backbone system of fiber optics, thus helping her to work from home. When she is out of her office and home though, she is more likely to use wireless access points as it is more convenient. The increased in speed and data carrying capacity by the backbone fiber optics network allows her to view videos, email large graphics and even use web cam to have virtual meetings with her group.

It is likely that the PR manger uses a mixture of the 3 ways to communicate with her team and client depending on the time constraint, the type of information that has to be conveyed and her movement schedule.

3) Duty 3

In conveying the message to the target audience, the PR manager can use road shows, television, radio, the Internet. Her team would have gathered market information for her to decide which of the mixture of mediums they can use to reach the target audience. It is virtual work as the conveyance of the message is space and time independence.

Fiber optics net work plays a part in television, and