The importance of mastering communication
Research highlights with Eric Knight
Research by Associate Professor Eric Knight from the Discipline of Strategy, Innovation and Entrepreneurship focuses on the communication practices managers use to influence people inside and outside of their organisation.
US President Donald Trump鈥檚 unorthodox communications style, which includes late-night tweets and impromptu television appearances, reflects the latest corporate strategy of gaining power by delivering winning messages directly to consumers.
Dr Knight described Trump鈥檚 approach as both 鈥渋nnovative and extremely disruptive鈥�. Trump has transformed the way in which politicians think about the power of their communication and message.
Uber is another interesting case study for thinking about the different ways in which communication can influence the fate of organisations. The company rose to success by building trust through technology and direct communication with users, but also fell victim to the #MeToo movement when aspects of its internal culture were aired through social media.
You can see how those who don鈥檛 hold power, whether they鈥檙e employees inside an organisation or small firms in large industries, can actually transform themselves by grasping the message in a very effective way.
Dr Knight and his team have recently launched a new massive open online course (MOOC).听Design strategy: Design thinking for business strategy and entrepreneurship听looks at the challenges pioneering companies face with the aim of teaching students how to bring design thinking into their corporate strategy. To learn more about the course and enrol,听.
Published work
Knight E R W, Paroutis S and Heracleous L, 2018,听, Strategic Management Journal, vol 39:3, pp 894-921
Knight E R W and Tsoukas H, 2018,听, Organization Studies