Philadelphia Housing Authority PR Crisis

Over the past few weeks, the Philadelphia news media has been flooded with headlines about a series of scandals involving Philadelphia Housing Authority Executive Director, Carl Greene. Greene has been under fire about the possible misuse of PHA funds and his failure to notify the PHA board about multiple sexual harassment lawsuits that were brought against him by former employees.

An article from philly.com features the accounts of many employees who worked for the PHA under Greene. The employees reported incidents of sexual harassment, verbal abuse, and what became known as the "Greene Mile:" the common practice of being demoted and eventually fired as a result of a clash with Greene.

The PHA has an annual budget of 345 million dollars, most of which comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. As Executive Director, Greene oversaw the budget, 1,150 employees, and a real estate network of 13,400 units that house 81,000 people. According to the philly.com article, Greene was paid $306,370 annually and the board gave him a $44,188 bonus last year.

Although Greene had previously received awards for his work as head of the fourth-largest public housing agency in the country, his morals and practices are now being questioned. Not only do the allegations give the PHA a bad name, but they also raise the issue of the misuse of taxpayers' dollars in the already struggling economy and tarnish the PHA's mission of helping people in need.

When the scandal broke, Greene was nowhere to be found. He failed to report to work for several days and is now suspended from his position for the duration of the investigation. Many questions remain about the fate of Greene and the future of the PHA.

The PHA clearly has a public relations crisis on its hands. However, the agency serves an important role and affects the lives of thousands of Philadelphia residents, so it must continue to function.

What do you think the Philadelphia Housing Authority should do to regain the public's trust amidst the scandal?

Internal Twitter

One company in Seoul recently harnessed the power of Twitter to facilitate its internal communications. Instead of using the public domain of Twitter for its messages, though, the company adapted the Twitter concept to create an internal Twitter-like network it has named BizTweet. Thanks to the network, employees can reach out to one another for information, or even to seek partners for lunch.

They're not alone. "Companies are using [the Twitter phenomenon] for internal communication and other purposes beyond the external marketing for which it has become well-known," said Evan Ramstad in an article for the Wall Street Journal.

"Twitter's creators laid the foundation for such development," Ramstad said, "by using open-source software to make the system and releasing features they've developed in a public form called an application programming interface, or API" he said.

Do you see "the Twitter phenomenon" as a useful tool for organizations? What uses could you find for an internal Twitter-like network in your workplace?

Where is Public Relations Headed?

There is no doubt that in the past few decades the internet has transformed the way public relations professionals do their jobs. Lately, social media has been leaving its footprint on the PR field as well. Mashable interviewed 14 PR pros on the future of public relations and how they see social media changing the industry. Here is a summary of what they had to say:

-The press release: There is an increasing shift towards the social media release. Experts agreed that press releases need a social element now so that viewers can comment or share them with their social networks. Many are also experimenting with distribution channels, including contacting journalists on Twitter and even directing them to YouTube clips. There are many alternatives to the traditional press release, which may be beneficial for reaching out in certain situations or to certain audiences. Examples of alternatives can be seen here.

-Social platforms: The most important platforms will be the ones most targeted to clients, making Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn important, but niche, industry specific networks of greater value. Measuring and monitoring the effectiveness of these tools will become more critical in the future, especially in finding out what happens to your message once it gets out there.

-Networking: Social media is driving relationships in the independent PR community. Independent PR professionals can share and get advice from one another through social media networking.

-Saving money: Social media has the ability to save companies a lot of money by enhancing traditional and online campaigns. It can also save time for PR professionals by yielding higher response rates to pitches.

-The human factor: This is the most important factor because public relations and social media are both about creating and fostering relationships. It is essential to remain relevant and engage friends, fans and followers.

How do you think social media will affect the future of public relations?

Press Releases May Become Obsolete for US-Listed International Firms

Interested in financial communications? Check out this article by IR Web Report. The article, "41% of heavily traded US-listed international firms shun PR wires," discusses how new rules by the New York Stock Exchange and the NASDAQ Stock Market minimize the need for international issuers to use paid PR wire services to meet their disclosure requirements.

In an attempt to distribute an earnings release as widely as possible for fair disclosure (meaning everyone has the same access to information, at the same time), many publicly traded companies use wire services (ex. PR Newswire). Now, it is being recognized that SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) filings, using the SEC EDGAR database, and simply posting the release on the company website is thorough enough.

Click here to read more about the new disclosure rules for US-listed international firms (I encourage you to read for yourself), how Investor Relations firms are impacted, and how companies are using social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter to provide information and establish closer ties to their US-based shareholders.

Google

They say "it's a small world," and rightfully so for Google employees and ex-employees. The technology and Internet industry seems to be an incestuous relationship, but in the best of ways. Check out this article about Xooglers (former employees of Google), as they are referred to, and their start-up ventures. As mentioned, there are about 10,000 Google employees worldwide and with that comes those that no longer work for the mega-company, who eventually embark on various projects with great potential for success. The most interesting thing about the programs and companies created is that many of them are purchased by Google. In fact, often times these Xooglers return to Google to further test and tweak what they created. Reading about these 15 Xooglers and their start-ups, its interesting to consider what influence these people have had on social media, the Internet and computer programming in general. They have already played such a transforming role and continue to do so with all the new ideas. Google certainly is on the forefront of technological advances.

I can't wait to know what we'll all be sinking our teeth into in the near future with all that Google has to offer. Any guesses on what's to come?

Back-to-School Sucess with iPhone Apps

With only a few days of summer left to savor before pool parties and beach trips are replaced with textbooks and midterms, Mashable has made the transition a little easier by compiling a list of 10 iPhone Apps to help get organized before the semester starts.

1. Open Culture: Gives you mobile access to educational audio and video collections in addition to university lectures, foreign language lessons and scientific tutorials. A great tool for efficient multi-tasking.

2. Mental Case: This app allows you to create flashcards on your iPhone with the added bonus of recording audio and inserting images to make the task of memorizing customized for you.

7. Blackboard Mobile Learn: Most universities and professors utilize Blackboard as a means of communication between students for assignments, tests, announcements, etc. Having access to Blackboard from your iPhone can make completing assignments and staying organized a lot easier.

10. Free Books: Textbooks are ridiculously costly and Free Books is a great way to cut down your expenses (and save a few trees!) This $1.99 app gives you access to 23,469 classics that you are able to email to yourself instantly.


Be sure to check out the rest of the great apps featured in the article! What apps do you use to get ready for school? Let us know!

Luxury Handbag Designers Battle to Unbrand

Branding is an important part of creating and perpetuating any successful product or service. Using product placement and celebrities to endorse products or services is not a new part of the branding concept. However, a recent battle between luxury handbag designers to disaffiliate their brands with a certain reality television star has developed the term "unbranding."

Designers such as Coach and Gucci have allegedly been sending MTV's The Jersey Shore star Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi bags from their competitors' collections in attempts of deterring her from carrying bags from their own brand.

When the reality star emerged in the spotlight, she was rarely seen without a Coach bag on her arm. Recently, her Coach bags have been replaced by Coach's competitor Gucci's bags. The switch is said not to be the result of a change in taste on Snooki's part, but a strategy by Coach to stop their brand from being associated with the self-proclaimed "guidette."

Whether or not Coach is behind Snooki's switch to Gucci bags may not be something they will admit, but it has certainly stirred up some talk about a new twist on branding.

All successful brands have their own strategies for building and maintaining their image, but how ethical is the strategy of "unbranding?"