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Quality and conflicts of communication consulting: Demystifying the concept and current practices based on a study of consultants and clients across Europe

  • Daniel Ziegele EMAIL logo , Sabrina Doberts , Ansgar Zerfass and Dejan Verčič
Published/Copyright: August 31, 2024
Communications
From the journal Communications Volume 50 Issue 2

Abstract

Major changes in the technological, societal, political, and economic environment have forced organizations across Europe to reshape and expand their strategic communication activities. However, knowledge of the future viability of public relations, employee and consumer communication, public affairs, or investor relations is often scarce. This has led to an increased demand for external consulting in the field. The quality of such intangible services is difficult to assess; this is a challenge for clients and consultants alike, and often results in conflict. Communication research has rarely addressed this topic to date. This article expands the body of knowledge by introducing the key concepts, exploring drivers for quality assurance, and identifying sources of conflict in an empirical study of 1,558 communication practitioners in 43 European countries. The findings provide insights into current practices, indicate ways to secure quality and avoid conflict, and suggest directions for future research in an area of growing importance.

Keywords: communication consulting; conflicts; consultants; clients; strategic communication

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Published Online: 2024-08-31
Published in Print: 2025-05-28

© 2024 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

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  17. Solving the crisis with “do-it-yourself heroes”? The media coverage on pioneer communities, Covid-19, and technological solutionism
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  19. “That’s just, like, your opinion” – European citizens’ ability to distinguish factual information from opinion
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  23. Frau-Meigs, D., & Corbu, N. (2024). Disinformation debunked: Building resilience through media and information literacy. Routledge. 328 pp. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003387404
https://doi.org/10.1515/commun-2023-0049
Keywords for this article
communication consulting; conflicts; consultants; clients; strategic communication

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Titelseiten
  2. Articles
  3. Communication and academic burnout: The effects of social support and participation in decision-making
  4. With time comes trust? The development of misinformation perceptions related to COVID-19 over a six-month period: Evidence from a five-wave panel survey study in the Netherlands
  5. A qualitative examination of (political) media diets across age cohorts in five countries
  6. Oldies but goldies? Comparing the trustworthiness and credibility of ‘new’ and ‘old’ information intermediaries
  7. Life online during the pandemic : How university students feel about abrupt mediatization
  8. Publishing strategies and professional demarcations: Enacting media logic(s) in European academic climate communication through open letters
  9. International cooperation on (counter)publics between tradition and reorientation: Social democracy and its media in the Cold War era
  10. The Silicon Valley paradox: A qualitative interview study on the social, cultural, and ideological foundations of a global innovation center
  11. Quality and conflicts of communication consulting: Demystifying the concept and current practices based on a study of consultants and clients across Europe
  12. Hate speech mainstreaming in the Greek virtual public sphere: A quantitative and qualitative approach
  13. Examining the spread of disinformation on Facebook during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic: A case study in Switzerland
  14. COVID-19 vaccine reviews on YouTube: What do they say?
  15. It’s the political economy after all: Implications of the case of Israel’s media system transition on the theory of media systems
  16. Periods of upheaval and their effect on mediatized ways of life: Changes in media use in the wake of separation, new partnership, children leaving the parental home, and relocation
  17. Solving the crisis with “do-it-yourself heroes”? The media coverage on pioneer communities, Covid-19, and technological solutionism
  18. What makes audiences resilient to disinformation? Integrating micro, meso, and macro factors based on a systematic literature review
  19. “That’s just, like, your opinion” – European citizens’ ability to distinguish factual information from opinion
  20. Book reviews
  21. Cuelenaere, E., Willems, G., & Joye, S. (Eds.) (2021). European film remakes. Edinburgh University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781474460668. 272 pp.
  22. Cushion, S. (2024). Beyond mainstream media: Alternative media and the future of journalism. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003360865. 193 pp.
  23. Frau-Meigs, D., & Corbu, N. (2024). Disinformation debunked: Building resilience through media and information literacy. Routledge. 328 pp. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003387404
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