Opportunities for Strategic Public Relations – Evaluation of International Research and Innovation Project Dissemination

Abstract

European industry, academia, and potential end users for future solutions are widely involved in applying for European Union (EU) funding of research and innovation and implementation of the projects. Funding instrument requirements emphasize the influence of skills and knowhow of these project consortia professionals. This chapter proposes a co-creative model for communication and dissemination, or project PR, based on the experiences of both planning and coordinating dissemination activities of three EU funded projects. Multidisciplinary international project PR offers strategic opportunities for PR professionals. The model employs the co-creation methods based on the pedagogical model called Learning by Developing (Laurea, 2011). In addition to the pedagogical model, the proposed conceptualization of co-creation for public relations and dissemination utilizes a media evaluation framework, which is adapted from Vos & Schoemaker's model (2004), combining elements of both balanced scorecard and quality management. The findings demonstrate that commitment and active participation of end user groups in the early stage of the project are needed for successful dissemination, which should be supported by each partner's PR actions and networks. The dissemination process should start when the project begins, be ongoing, even extending to beyond the project. Dissemination is an expanding process, and it requires facilitation that supports PR and the engagement of key stakeholders. The European Commission can gain from modernized PR and dissemination activities, and from as many end users as possible adopting new innovations, which generate more business possibilities for the industry, and further research projects for the academia.These same principles can be applied to projects as well as established organizations. Communication plays a role in a project's economic and social goals by seeking to enhance the reputation of the project in question, positioning of its outcomes and deliverables, and internal consistency. In their strategy map for communication, Vos & Schoemaker (2011) look at communication on four different levels: organizational goals, communication goals, key processes, and learning and growth.On the first level, organizational goals, or in this case common goals for a project network, are added value and social acceptance. On the second level, communication goals, are reputation and being rooted in the social environment; project outcomes are positioned as products or services, and coherence as the organization of the project network. On the third level, key processes include monitoring stakeholder perception, examining communication via news, social media, etc., and facilitation of network exchange. These key processes are identifiable in the dissemination and communication plans for all three projects ABC4EU, IECEU, and GAP. On the fourth level, learning and growth, one can find communication planning and research, and knowledge management and training. The focus of this chapter is on this level.Project...

Societal Impact Assessment of a Cyber Security Network Project

“…13 A traditional documentation in evaluating research impacts with quality dimensions (clarity, environment orientations, consistency, responsiveness and effectiveness) and systematic documentation activities (quarterly dissemination and progress evaluation, relevant exposures across targeted media sectors, successful two-way information transfer, committed project partners, and adoption of project processes). 13,28 Social learning can be treated purposefully as an outcome of impact assessment, which is facilitated through the organizational learning approach and linked with best practices of stakeholder engagement. Sánchez and Mitchell grouped learning outcomes into three different categories: "acquisition of knowledge and skills, developing new behaviours and developing sustainabilityoriented norms and values".…”

“…1 Partners, who work in collaboration in research and network projects, generate new knowledge and skills resulting to innovations. 13 Ruoslahti finds that co-creation in projects call for: collaboration and a common problem, and innovation networks have three main challenges to manage to ensure open communication toward co-creation of knowledge: stakeholders need to be actively engaged throughout the project, which takes time and effort. 34 Co-creation of knowledge can occur in physical spaces, digital environments or combining both.…”

“…This approach is discussed and modelled to practical needs of societal impact assessment below in the Conclusions section. normative evaluation criteria of participation models Research project dissemination evaluation framework Palttala & Vos 28 Henriksson et al 13 quality dimensions in evaluation systematic documentation of dissemination Organizational learning approach and stakeholder engagement in impact assessment…”

“…Learning outcomes have to go beyond instrumental learning to reach new behaviours, norms and values 36 to enable an increasingly practical approach to Societal Impact Assessment. When Societal Impact Assessment becomes measured as both learning outcomes and as evaluation outcomes, a matrix of quality dimensions as noted by Palttala and Vos 28 and Henriksson et al 13 can be developed ( Table 2, below) to provide a way of evaluating societal impacts of network and innovation projects. The innovation co-creation and understanding of communication as issue arenas contribute to The blue areas in Table 2 represent the linkages of learning approaches to SIA.…”

“…This paper builds on the dissemination evaluation framework for European research projects presented in Henriksson et al, "Opportunities for Strategic Public Relations -Evaluation of International Research and In-novation Project Dissemination." 13…”