ABSTRACT
Decisions on professional communication strategic directions are influenced by internal discursive debates about the implications of external public policy issues on an organisation's performance. Scholars often call for professional communication researchers to engage with the theory and practice of other disciplines, especially management, broader communication theory, and social theory. Critical scholars argue that this positivist stance, based on the ‘laws' of symmetrical communication and excellence theory, ignores a demand for organisations to reflect environmental and social responsibilities, meaning professional communication is still linked to notions of power. Critical scholars situate professional communication in the context of social theory. The notion of strategic communication as a discursive social practice is reinforced by the view that communication practice is strategic because of its procedural and interactive nature.
