ABSTRACT
The essential problem that afflicts professional communication practice is that what is usually described as ‘strategic' too often fails the test of reflecting the reality of what being strategic really means. Professional communicators are so busily engaged in the day-to-tasks of tactical and technical integrated marketing communication, that they are unable to pursue strategic communication that deals with emerging mid- and long-term issues. Strategic communication should be understood and applied as a higher-order, value-added corporate function that involves analytical research and provides effective ways of dealing with important external public policy issues. Strategic communication is a high-level, planned function that should be accepted by managers as the compass for addressing social, political, cultural, economic, and regulatory issues in debates that occur in an organisation's non-market environment. Communication scholars have used contingency theory to investigate public relations practice in the guise of strategic communication.
