Caven Masuku 2009


A COMPARATIVE ASSESSMENT OF THE APPROACHES AND PRACTICES OF CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY BY ECONET AND NRZ.



CERTIFICATION OF SUPERVISION

I hereby certify that I personally supervised this thesis in accordance with departmental
regulations and the University’s General Regulations.
On that basis, I confirm that the dissertation is examinable.
Name of Student:
Caven Masuku

Title of the Thesis:

A comparative assessment of approaches and practices of corporate social responsibility
by Econet and NRZ.

Name of Supervisor: Mr Zvenyika Mugari
Supervisor’s

signature:.............................................................................

Date:................................................................................................
vii




DECLARATION BY STUDENT

I, Caven Masuku (R0722915x), hereby sincerely declare that this thesis is my original work that
has not been previously submitted to any other university. Equally, I also declare that proper
citations and acknowledgements in accordance with copyright law and ethical requirements have
been strictly adhered to in writing this thesis.

Name of Student CAVEN MASUKU
................................................................................................

Signature of Student C.MASUKU
..................................................................................................

Date
..............05/10/2009........................................................................
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DEDICATION

This research project is dedicated to my late Father, Pamu Masuku and the late mother Moraine
Jubani, you were and always will be my pillar of strength. You taught me to be hardworking,
persistent, persevere and excel in all that I do. Your guidance and words of advice and wisdom
took me up every ladder I‘ve climbed in my life. Through joy and tears, your words persist to
orient me. I owe my success and achievement to you dad and mum. Thank you for everything
you did for me and for the heritage you left for me (words of wisdom). Your deeds and guidance
shall for ever speak for itself through my person. I love you dad and mum and no one can ever
fill the gap you left. May your soul’s rest in external peace, till we meet again
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Following the successful completion of this thesis, I would like to express my deep gratitude;
first and foremost, to my supervisor Mr. Zvenyika Mugari whose unwavering support and ideas
made this thesis a success.. My thanks go to Mr Peter Mandava, Doctor Anthony Mhiripiri, Mr Oga Ndoro, Mr Tanaka Mhlanga, Mr Makombe, Mr Theo Tsokota and Ms Taruva. I am particularly indebted to Mr Fanuel Masikati (NRZ PR Manager) and Mr Ranga Mberi (Econet Corporate Communication
Manager) for their assistance in this research. Also to be thanked are Mr Chikono and Mr
Dhlamini at Econet together with PR team at NRZ and Econet for the support they offered.
Theirs are singular examples of excellent PR professionals. I for one drew lot of inspiration from
them. My colleagues in the Media Department at MSU are, in reality, my teachers. I have learnt
a lot from them. My family members’ brother Chrispen Masuku and my wife Nokuthula Masuku
have stood by me in times of challenges. Their love, affection and encouragement have been
bountiful.I will be failing in my duty if I do not express my deep gratitude to Mr and Mrs Nicholas Oppenheimer, Mr and Mrs Clive Swanepoel, Mr and Mrs Collins for the financial support they offered me from the beginning of my studies up to the present. In fact, but for their
encouragement and high degree of result-orientation, this humble effort would not have seen
light of the day. In fact, there are many more whom I owe my gratitude. I seek their indulgence
for having left out their names for reasons of space. Above all thanks to God, the Almighty for giving me strength, life and wisdom to go through this thesis with insatiable appetite for the best. You are almighty and awesome God.
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ABSTARCT

A comparative assessment of approaches and practices of corporate social responsibility by
Econet and NRZ.This research focuses on the application of CSR by PR departments at Econet
and NRZ in practicing excellent PR. CSR/CSI is modern PR and is guided by reciprocity
between the corporations and their publics for creating a mutual understanding and goodwill
between corporations and the public. The study is based on two corporations Econet and NRZ,
whose business can be immensely influenced by effective PR and communication with
stakeholders for success.PR is fast becoming the core of corporate success in Zimbabwe and
problems has been highlighted with the manner in which corporations mishandle the PR’s role
through the use of propaganda or failure to engage the publics as major stakeholders in policy
initiation and decision making processes. There is vast need, to trace PR activities in CSR/CSI,
from the initial planning stage to the evaluation stage and determine whether these activities tally well with the corporate goals and objectives in serving the public. Also to be noted are the effort made by corporations to identify problems faced by their publics and give hand as a remedy in order to create good corporate citizenship or corporate community relations. Qualitative and quantitative methods of information gathering were used in this study. The findings of this study highlighted that the PR department contributed significantly in the application of CSR programs at both Econet and NRZ, in creating and maintaining mutual understanding and goodwill between corporations and their publics, despite few loophole realized within the operations of the PR department and its communication channels. The research briefly concludes by providing solution to the PR practice loopholes and less participation by corporations in CSR to meet their public needs. Furthermore, lack of public centered CSR programs can be highlighted as an area that requires further research within the topic under study
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ACRONYMS

BSAC: British South Africa Company
CA: Communication Audits
CC: Corporate Citizenship
CMM: Corporate Communication Manager
CCS: Corporate Communication Strategy
CSI: Corporate Social Investment
CSP: Corporate Social Performance
CSR: Corporate Social Responsibility
EWH: Econet Wireless Holding
HAC: Harare Athletic Club
IPR: Institute of Public Relations
JNSF: Joshua Nkomo Scholarship Fund
NRZ: National Railways of Zimbabwe
NHTZ: National Healthcare Trust Zimbabwe
PCP: Plan Communication Programs
SAEDF: Southern African Enterprise Development
SARA: Southern Africa Railway Association
SARCL: South Africa Rail Commuter
ZES: Zimbabwe Stock Exchange.
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LIST OF FIGURES

Fig 1 The Corporate giving spectrum 17
Fig 2 The 3C-SR Model of CSR 26
Fig 3 Two-Way Symmetrical Model 31
Fig 4 Lasswell’s Model of Communication 33
Fig 5 Schramm Model of Communication 34
Fig 6 Econet Wireless Organogram 55
Fig 7Corporate Communication Department at Econet 59
Fig 8 External Public for Econet 61
Fig 9 Public Relations Structure at Econet 67
Fig 10External Publics of NRZ 69
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CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

1.0 Introduction
This study seeks to look into the application of corporate social responsibility by National
Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) and Econet’s PR department. Corporate social responsibility
which is sometimes called corporate social investment reflects excellent PR that is talked about
by Grunig (2001). Corporate social responsibility is the continuing commitment by business to
behave ethical and contribute to economic development while improving the quality of life of the
workforce and their families as ell as of the local community and society at large
www.mallenbaker.net/csr. Corporate social responsibility is about capacity building for
sustainable livelihoods. It respected cultural differences and finds the business opportunities in
building the skills of employees, the community and the government. In short corporate social
responsibility is about business organizations giving back to society. Corporate social
responsibility have six salient aspects that is community involvement, development and
investment, involvement and respect for diverse cultures and disadvantaged people, corporate
philanthropy and employee volunteering, customer satisfaction and adherence to principles
of fair competition, anti-bribery and anti-corruption measures, accountability, transparency and
performance reporting and supplier relations, for both domestic and international supply chains.
http://www.mallenbaker.net/csr/definition.php.

NRZ is a national rail transport company which was formed by the British South Africa
Company in terms of Royal Charter granted to it on October 1889. NRZ has various programs
that it conducts to assist the community in Zimbabwe which will be compared with the CSR
programs conducted by ECONET, a wireless company privately owned by Strive Masiyiwa.
Econet is the largest wireless company in Zimbabwe which is made up of Econet Wireless
Holding Limited with five merged departments namely Buddie, Libertie, Business partner, TXT
and YourFone. htpp:www.econet.co.zw/inside.aspx?paid=1. Econet Wireless Holding Limited
has many corporate programs that it uses to plough back to the community that it serves. Thereare five major programs that are conducted by Econet Holding Limited for social responsibility
across the country namely; Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo Scholarship (JNSF), Capernaum Trust, Employment Creation, Sports Sponsorships and HIV/AIDS. The two mentioned above companies based in Zimbabwe will be compared on their approach to corporate social responsibility as a communication strategy to enhance excellent PR. The research will then analyze comparatively how the internal and external public benefits from the corporate social responsibility programs run by NRZ and Econet Wireless Holding Limited.

1.1 BACKGROUNG OF THE STUDY

The history of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is as old as trade and business itself.
Freedman (1962) says that; CSR as an issue has been around since commerce began in the
ninetieth Century. Kotler and Lee (2005:5) state that according to KPMG, a US professional
service firm, a 2002 survey of the Global Fortune top 2005 companies indicated a continued
increase in a number of American companies reporting on corporate responsibility in 1998. In
2002, 45 percent of these companies issue environmental, social, or sustainability reports
compared with 35 percent in their 1999 survey.

One milestone Smith (2005) identified issues that contributed to the evolution of “New
Corporate Philanthropy” as the US Supreme Court decision in the 1950’s that removed legal
restriction and unwritten codes which up to that time had restricted corporate contributions
involvement in social issues. One of the next milestone Smith (2005) cited was the Exxon
Valdez Oil Spill in 1989, which brought into serious question the philanthropy of the 1970 and
1980’s, where corporations tended to support social issues least associated with their line of
business. A final milestone that Smith identified was the emergence and visibility of model in the
1990’s such as one used at AT & T that proposed a new view of the role of corporate foundation
and its relationship to the for profit arm. Prior to 1990’s, decision regarding the selection of social issues to support tended to be made based on themes reflecting emerging pressures for “doing good to look good”. Corporations would commonly establish, follow, and report on a fixed annual budget for giving, sometimes tied to revenues or pretex meaning. Funds were allocated to as many organizations as possible,reflecting a perception that this would satisfy the most constituent group and create the most visibility for philanthropic efforts (Kotler and Lee 2005:5) decisions regarding issues to support and organizations to sponsor were also more heavily influenced by preferences and wishes of senior management and directors of boards than the needs to support strategic business goals and objectives.

Econet Wireless Holding Limited is a cellular network operator and main subsidiary of
Zimbabwe stock Exchange-listed Econet Wireless Holding Limited (EWH), a company with
interests in telecommunications and other sectors of the Zimbabwean economy.
Econet is the largest telecommunications company in Zimbabwe, with an overall market share of
over 61 percent total mobile sector, and a cellular subscriber base of 1.2 million as at February
2009, the latest published figures available. Econet is currently upgrading its network capacity
towards 2.5 million, and has already secured funding for a further upgrade to five million.
The company’s network was launched on 10th July 1998 and the holding company listed on 17th
September 1998, and is now one of the largest listed companies on the Zimbabwe Stock
Exchange (ZSE) in terms of market capitalization.

To remain at the top, the company relentlessly pursues innovative strategies and constantly
grows its knowledge base with uncompromising passion for excellence. Its main products
include pre and post paid cellular service that are uniquely branded for easy convenience and
instantly recognition. In line with its Christian-based vision and mission, Econet has a broad strategy for social and community development called “Econet in the Community” through which the company supports diverse range of charitable cause, which includes children orphaned by HIV/AIDS,
religious and church organizations, as ell as an annual scholarship program that provides
financial assistance to the bright students selected from schools in the country’s ten provinces
under the Joshua Nkomo Scholarship Fund (JNSF).

Furthermore, other companies under Econet Wireless Holding Limited (EWH) are YourFone,
the largest public pay phone operator in Zimbabwe, with a presence in all major cities as well as
in the larger commercial agricultural centers. In addition to owing its own payphone shops,
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Econet has franchised the concept under which the pay phones are owned by small business
people who have assumed a significant role in the economy.Also in the group is Ecoweb, the largest independent internet service provider in Zimbabwe, serving both corporate and individual dial-up customers, as well as operating internet cafes across the country and at Econet retail outlets; Transaction Processing Systems, a leading provider of financial transaction switching, point of sale and value added support services that is exploiting the convergence of banking, information technology and telecommunications, and Econet capital, the vehicle through which the group invested in various sectors of the economy and also has significant shareholding in listed companies, Kingdom Financial Holdings Limited and First Mutual Limited.

National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ) grew out of a number of different companies most of
which were originally formed by the British South Africa Company (BSAC) in terms of the
Royal Charter granted to it on October 29 1889. Over the years these underwent amalgamations,
change of ownership. NRZ is controlled by the government of Zimbabwe and has programs that
are meant to benefit the community.(National Railways of Zimbabwe : Historic Milestone)
The development of the Railways in Zimbabwe was directed by several considerations, among
which was the need to serve the towns, mines and farms which were fast being established
before the turn of the century, and to link the landlocked country with sea-ports in Mozambique
and South Africa.(National Railways of Zimbabwe 1997:6) Line construction began from Fontesvilla, 56 km inland from Beira, to Umtali (Mutare) in September 1892, and from Vryburg in the Cape Province to Bulawayo in may 1893. The Bulawayo line was completed in October 1897 and the Mutare line in February 1898. The link between Salisbury (Harare) and Bulawayo was finally completed in October 1902 after initial construction was brought to a halt by the outbreak of the Anglo-Boer War in October 1899,when materials had to be brought in on the Beira line. The next stage was the line northwards from Bulawayo, which began in 1903, crossed the Zambezi River at Victoria Falls in September 1905 and reached the Congo border in December
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1909. For several years this whole system was operated by the Mashonaland Railway Company
under the title Beira and Mashonaland and Rhodesia railways, but on 1 October 1936 Rhodesia
Railways Limited became the owner of the hole railway system in Zimbabwe and Zambia as
well as the Vryburg-Bulawayo section. The line from Vryburg to Ramathlabama on the
Botswana border was acquired by South African Railways in December 1959.
On 1 April 1947 the then Rhodesian Government acquired the assets of Rhodesia Railways
Limited and on 1 November 1949 the undertaking became a statutory body known as Rhodesia
Railways. On 1 July 1967 the system was divided at the Victoria Falls bridge, with Zambia
Railways in the north and Rhodesia railways in the south. (Baxter ad Turner 1967)
Rhodesia Railways was redesigned Zimbabwe Rhodesia Railways on 1 June 1979 and finally
National Railways of Zimbabwe on 1 may 1980 soon after the attainment of national
independency (Bolze 1968).

Therefore ranging from the background of NRZ and Econet it is therefore important to give a
comparative approach in the manner in which they are involved in corporate social
responsibility. This study looked at the social assistance that NRZ and Econet are doing to their
employees and to the ordinary citizens of Zimbabwe. Corporate social responsibility is a
reflection of excellent PR practice by PR departments from big organizations in giving back to
the community. Econet is a wireless communications organization which uses new technology
and has spread to seven countries, while NRZ is an organization that has been operating for more
than a century. It is therefore interesting to inquire how their PR department approach and apply
excellent PR through corporate social responsibility.

1.2 Research Problem

This research seek to study the extent that NRZ and Econet applies and approach the issue of
corporate social responsibility in their PR department to enhance excellent PR. Corporate social
responsibility is one of the key issues that PR departments should fully implement in order to
maintain a good rapport with the employees as internal public and the community as the external
public. The study seeks to assess comparatively how NRZ’s approach to corporate social
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responsibility differs with that of Econet Wireless Holding to create a mutual understanding with
both the internal and external public.

1.3 Research questions
1.Are there any Corporate Social responsibility programs at Econet and NRZ that cater for
the internal and external public?
2.To what extent do PR departments at Econet and NRZ practice excellent PR?
3. How do Public relations departments from Econet and NRZ enhance corporate social
responsibility?
4.Which department at Econet and NRZ is directly responsible for implementing CSR
programs?
5.Do PR departments at Econet and NRZ conduct researches that meet the needs of their
publics? What are the differences of the application of corporate social responsibility by PR departments at Econet and NRZ?

1.4 Objectives of the study

This study undertakes to contribute to the literature on excellent Public relations practice by local corporate organization such as Econet and NRZ that have international recognition by.
Establishing the organizations and functions of PR in meeting the demands of their
internal and external publics.
Assess the programs that capture social responsibility by Econet and NRZ
Establish the objectives and relative importance of PR departments and activities at
Econet and NRZ in maintaining excellent PR
Identify the modern technologies used by the PR department at Econet and NRZ that
fosters reciprocity with their publics
To add to the body of knowledge about the importance of corporate social responsibility
in modern practice of PR for the prosperity of the business.
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To establish the importance of reciprocity with the publics through corporate social
responsibility as excellent PR.
To indicate the importance of PR departments in bigger organization in building the
image and reputation of an organization

1.5 Assumptions

The following basic assumptions have been made;
That respondents from Econet and NRZ PR departments would be without any
reservations, willing to give their opinion and respond effectively to interview questions
when asked to do so
Both organizations under study will give true information about their PR department
operation towards meeting the needs of external and internal public
Econet and NRZ PR departments are in the forefront to foster corporate social
responsibility.

1.6 Justification of the study

Most research conducted has been looking at the role of public relations in big
organizations and how public relations and marketing departments are integrated.
Nothing much from previous studies looked at the implementation of corporate social
responsibility (CSR). It is salient to look at the effort exerted by the local organizational department to assist their publics in order to create mutual understanding and goodwill.
The study of this type is for the first time to be conducted and seek to assess the
performance of NRZ and Econet in taking care of their publics as effective PR practice.
The negative and positive impact of practicing CSR by NRZ and Econet assisted the
study to assess how much ground have been covered in take care of the public. Also to be
noted here are the challenges that the organization encounters to fully implement CSR.
The research can be of utmost importance to highlight the weaknesses of the PR
departments of corporate organization in their attempt to practice effectively to boost the
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image and reputation of the organization. The study indicates the area of concern that
corporate organizations ignore in dealing with their public. Again the study will enable
local corporate organization to improve their service delivery to the publics and to
include them whenever they are making decision. Corporate social responsibility can be
full implement after research. The study will assess as to whether CSR programs done by
NRZ and Econet are derived from the needs of the public. CSR is effective
communication which can maintain lasting relationships with various stakeholders.
Studies conducted by Kotler and Lee (1995) in US are of paramount importance since
they will indicate the areas which PR department from local organizations are lacking.
Therefore the study highlights the roles that corporate organization should play in assist
its public and community to develop. Again the research seeks to create an awareness to
the roles of PR which in most corporate organizations is limited to in house keeping.

1.7 Delimitation of the study

The study focuses on the differences and similarities of the application of corporate social
responsibility in PR practice at Econet and NRZ. Public relations managers and their teams were
approached by the researcher for interviews. The investigation is limited to Econet and NRZ
corporate social responsibility programs. At list eight people from PR departments from Econet
and NRZ are used as a sample to elicit data. However, limiting the interviews to few people from
PR department causes bias. Narrowing the study to NRZ and Econet do not give a true picture to
all corporate organization that operate local since these organizations have different structure and operation. In house publications by NRZ and Econet assisted the researcher to tell how much
ground has been covered by the two organizations in corporate social responsibility issues.

1.8 Limitation of the study

Best and Khan (1993) define limitation as :
Conditions beyond the control of the researcher that may place
restrictions on the conclusions of the study and their application
to other situations
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The most significant challenge of the study was financial constraints. The researcher have
limited money to pay for consumables such as stationary, telephone expenses and lack of the
internet service to access information forwarded to him. The research as a result of financial
constraints had to fit the limited resources without compromising the validity and reliability of
the research findings. Scarcity of time to conduct an in-depth study is another severe constraint
that the project faced and the researcher had to maximize the available time by sending the
questionnaires through emails and to conduct interviews over the phone. Resistance by relevant
authorities from the organizations under study to assist is another serious challenge that the
researcher faced. Corporate organizations sometimes are not friendly and open to discuss
pertinent issues with outsiders in fear that they can expose their weakness. Targeted respondents
had to gate-keep the information to the researcher in fear that the information can be used to
tarnish the image of their organization. The researcher had to free the interviewee through an
assurance that the supplied information will be used strict for academic purposes

1.9 Summary

This chapter sought to give the reader an insight of the body text of this study. The problem
statement of this research is derived from corporate communication which is equal the same with
public relation. Background of CSR, Econet Wireless holding limited and NRZ have been talked
about in this chapter. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is defined for the clarity seeks of the entire study and some of corporate social responsibility programs have been discussed within the introduction. The researcher’s intention to give relevant literature for corporate social
responsibility that touches Econet and NRZ is given in this chapter in passing. However, detailed
literature review and theoretical framework will be explored in the next chapter. It should be
clear in this study that a comparative assessment of the application of CSR approach in PR
practice at Econet and NRZ is discussed in short in this chapter.
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CHAPTER 2: Literature Review and Theoretical Framework

2.0 Introduction

The chapter conceptualizes CSR as modern PR that is used to create mutual understanding and
goodwill between the organization and the publics. Public relations as management function to
addresses the theoretical underpinnings of public relations practices as well as communication,
where public relations is viewed as a system that can be closed or opened. The chapter further
looks into CSR/CSI literature and theoretical framework and how it guides the effective practice
of PR that is reciprocal in communications, with its CSR program research oriented to create
good corporate citizenship. Since the study comparatively assess the approach of corporate social
responsibility by PR department at Econet and NRZ, reviewed literature and theoretical;
framework will be related to the practice of PR at Econet and NRZ. This chapter also reviews
available relevant literature from various works by other researchers, particularly from MSU in
the field of public relations and CSR/CSI.

2.1 Literature review

Literature review is an essential test of the research question against that which is already known about the subject. Various journal articles, public relations books, corporate reports, thesis /dissertations and Internet articles have been published, which will enrich the research. Traverse- Healy (1959) reiterated his belief, which was substantially the same as that of 40 years earlier that the public relations function was essentially to do with achieving mutual understanding and trust between the organization and its publics. However, the researcher noticed that so far most scholars who conducted research on CSR generalized their study to a broader view and not to a
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specific organization. Hence CSR or CSI is a new dimension of PR that is used to reduce the
corporate functions from being generating profit to that of caring for the community's.
Investments made by corporate organizations are there to fight for talent and for financial returns therefore Econet CSI programs such as Capernaum Trust, Joshua Nkomo Scholarships (JNSF),
and NRZ donations to Maphisa Primary School in 2005 and HIV and AIDS Capacity Building
program are there to develop their publics. Leedy (1997) states that, the purpose of a literature review is to “look again” at the literature compiled by others in a related area not necessarily identical but collateral to your own area of study. In the study various public relations, online publications and journals will be reviewed. Knowledge obtained from the already existing literature will broaden the scope of the problem under study. However, in this research project relevant literature about Corporate Social responsibility and public relations models will be reviewed to broaden the scope of excellent public relations through application of corporate social responsibility.

Puth and Lubbe (1994:179-180) define corporate social responsibility as ‘generic concept
referring to the business organization’s concern and active two-way involvement with the social,
economic and political force which influence the environment within which it exist”. Skinner et
al (2007) argues that “around the world, the phrase “corporate social responsibility” (CSR) or
“corporate social investment” (CSI) commonly used to describe the practice of good corporate
citizenship”. Prior to democratic change in the early nineties big business argued that CSR was
neither an admission of guilt for their share of the agony of the deprived, nor is it implying
responsibility for the socio-economic welfare of the country (Mersham et al 1995:79)
Nevertheless, Peter Frankenthaler a member of Amnesty International in an article entitled
“Corporate Social Responsibility-a PR Invention” believes that CSR can only have real
substance: if it embraces all the stakeholders of a company, if it is reinforced by changes in
company law relating to governance, if it is rewarded by financial markets, if its definition
relates to the goals of social and ecological sustainability, if its implementation is benchmarked
and audited, if it is open to public scrutiny, if the compliance mechanism are in place, and if it is
embedded across the organization horizontally and vertically. Strategic CSR is the point of
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balance where benefits are maximized for both the business and the development cause. For the
CSI to be strategic, interventions should be at an investment or social change level, as indicated
by the shaded area in the diagram below. It is therefore the intention of this stud to comparatively assess whether Econet and NRZ’s corporate social responsibility intervenes on investments or on social change to assist their publics.

Kotler and Lee (2005:5) state that according to KPMG US Professionals Services firm, a 2002
survey of the Global Fortune Top 2005 companies indicated a continued increase in a number of
American companies reporting on corporate responsibility. In 2002, 45 percent of these
companies issue environmental, social, or sustainability reports compared with 35 percent in
their 1999 survey. Major avenues for this reporting include corporate giving and, increasingly,
the publication of a separate annual community giving reports. In the study Econet and NRZ are
the two corporate organization based in Zimbabwe that practices CSR or CSI. Econet, just like
NRZ gives to the publics through donations and charity.

Therefore, Econet programs such as Joshua Nkomo scholarship (JNSF), Capernaum Trust and
sport sponsorship are some among the CSR programs to be mentioned that the company run to
assist its public. NRZ like Econet also practices CSR by donating to the community and Capacity
Building for HIV and AIDS awareness campaign to their publics. However, the CSR programs
run by Econet and NRZ are linked with two-way-symmetrical model and functions as
interpersonal communication that enables diverse opinions to the publics about their education
and health issues. CSR or CSI as a modern form of PR is used by Econet and NRZ as an
investment to the society to improve and fight for talent among the community that they serve.
Investing in education and health issues creates strong relationship and goodwill that is
reciprocal and that brings positive returns to the company One milestone Smith identified that contributed to the evolution of “New corporate philanthropy was a Supreme Court decision in the 1950s that removed legal restrictions and unwritten codes which up to that time had restricted, or at least limited, corporate contributions and involvement in social issues. Subsequently, by the 1960's most US Companies began to feel pressures to demonstrate to their social responsibility and established in-house foundations and giving
12
programs (Kotler and Lee 2005:7). The next milestone Smith cited in Kotler and Lee (2005), was
the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill in 1989, which brought into serious question the philanthropy of the
1970s and 1980's, where corporations tended to support social issues least associated with their
line of business, give to a variety of causes, and in turn over management of their giving to
separate foundations. Zimbabwe as a developing nation depends heavily from the western
countries to improve their service delivery. South Africa in Southern region as a neighboring
country influences heavily the Zimbabwe's economy and professionalism. Corporate
Organizations such as De Beers, Eskom, and Econet that operate in South Africa influence most
of the local companies to practice corporate social responsibility to their publics. NRZ one of the longest serving rail transport organization in Zimbabwe has its offshoot from South Africa,
which was originally formed by the British South Africa Company in October 29 1889. Econet a
privately owned company that was founded by Strive Masiyiwa in 1993 is currently operating in
seven countries and has gain the global status. The new developments about CSR discussed by
Kotler and Lee (2005) in US may have spilled from US to South Africa, and then from South
Africa to Zimbabwe. The new development in PR enhances public sphere and public opinion in
that corporate organization can enjoy mutual benefits with its community and publics to meet the
objectives of the company and its publics. Econet like NRZ meet their objectives through giving
to the society the profits they generate as organizations. These organizations’s has created a
strong reputation and image for themselves as corporate organizations.

2.2 Five C's in Corporate Social Responsibility

Kotler and Lee (2005) assert that there are five C’s in CSR/CSI that corporations must fulfill.
The first C stands for “conviction” this a about real improvement in business performance, not
PR. The second C means Commitment, which means “when we commit, we deliver”,
Communication means “we have committed to open, honest, and direct communication with all
the stakeholders. This integrates new tools of communication that are used by corporations that
reinforce reciprocity in communication. The communication discussed by Kotler and Lee is a
two way process of communication and all stakeholders are respected and addressed.
Consistency is a process of continuous improvement. For instance CSR programs at Econet and
NRZ should be continuously implemented. The fifth “C” stands for credibility; it should be
known that the corporation ability to trust their performance depends on the credibility of their
13
effort. Corporation should regularly review and consider new or modified business practices to
will improve the quality of life and, at the same time, provide some net benefit to the
corporation, ideally financial, operational relation-ship-building, or marketing in nature. This
capture the open system concept, that asserts that corporations should interact with the
environment in order for it to survive. Econet and NRZ survives under economically constraints
because there have been taking care of their public who even things were tough could
sympathize with them. However, in the study application of five C's by Econet and NRZ in their
approach to CSR by PR department is one salient issue that the study assesses.

2.3 Corporate Philanthropy
Corporate philanthropy is a direct contribution by corporation to a charity or causes, most often
in the form of cash, grants, and donations and or in kind services. Philanthropy is the traditional of all corporate social initiatives and has historically been a major source of support for community health and human service agencies, education, and the arts, as well as organization with mission to protect the environment. (Kotler and Lee 2005). Other terms closely associated with this initiative includes community giving, community relations, and corporate citizenship and community affairs. Philanthropic efforts commonly involve selecting a cause that reflects a priority area for the corporation, determining the type of contribution to be made, and identifying a recipient for contributions, most often an existing nonprofit organizations, foundations, or public agency such as a school. Philanthropic efforts commonly involve selecting a cause that reflects a priority area for the corporation, determining the type of contribution to be made, and identifying a recipient for contribution, most often an existing nonprofit organization, foundation, or public agency such as a school. In the study NRZ, s donations to schools in Bulawayo and HIV and AIDS awareness compaign to the peers is a good example of
philanthropy which is reciprocal with the publics. Just like NRZ , Econet's HIV and AIDS
company policy that provides anti-retroviral drugs for the infected employee and other members
of their immediate family and encouragement to members of the society to avoid discrimination
and stigmatization of fellow citizens create community relations that is based on mutual
understanding and goodwill. Take care of the public health issues fulfills the “Public Opinion”
theory in PR. Public Opinion as an approach holds that individuals make up the publics of an
14
organization or of any particular issue for instance HIV and AIDS, Education, the environment
and so forth. The publics for the Econet and NRZ as individuals have certain opinions regarding
their organizations or issue. The opinion held by the publics for both companies studied can
reflect goodwill or ill will towards the organization issue.
In addition, Kotler (2004) says that there are ranges of options for giving by corporate
organizations to their publics as follows;
I) Providing cash donations
II) Offering grants
III) Awarding scholarships
IV) Donating products
V) Donating services
VI) Providing expertise
VII) Allowing use of facilities and distribution of channels
VIII) Offering the use of equipment

The above forms can be set as an “Agenda” by corporate organization which should be fulfilled.
This agenda can be capture in “mission statement “of corporation. For example, Econet in their
mission statement says that,
They want to serve Zimbabwe by pioneering, developing and
sustaining, reliable, efficient and high-quality telecommunications
of uncompromising world-class standards and ethics
Econet as an organization fulfills its organization ethics by developing the community
academically through giving grants, donations like Capernaum, JNSF and so forth. Similarly,
NRZ fulfills its ethics by donating to schools and to the community. This also supports Carroll
(2003)'s 3C-SR model of corporate social investment which includes Commitments, connection
and consistency. Econet and NRZ as corporate organizations express their “social commitments”
by representing the value elements of their social resources.
15
Econet and NRZ both fulfill their organizational policies by donating to the community to build
talent and assisting in health issues such as HIV/AIDS and Cholera. Econet had to send messages
for free to all their customers about cholera and HIV/AIDS. Equal the same, NRZ educate the
peers in schools about the dangers of HIV/AIDS and educate their passages through posters
stacked to the passenger train. Connection as the second “C” by Carroll (2003)'s model initiate
the forum for the publics to be linked. Econet links its publics by giving them donations and
create employment through pay-phones and phone shops. It also empowers the community by
giving them the chance to be entrepreneurs. The third “C” for consistency refers to the behavior
element which makes the corporations to “walk their talk”. Econet and NRZ walk their talk by
fulfilling their mission, vision and values by giving to their publics to create community relations or community citizenship.

In CSR or CSI out of twenty-five best practices for doing good by corporations quoted from ,
Kotler and Lee (2005:236),only ten are presented as follows;
CSR enhances public awareness and concern for the cause through support of promotional
communication. Support fundraising by encouraging customers and others in the community to
contribute the cause. Increasing communication participation in cause-related activities by
providing promotional support and use of distribution channels. Support efforts to influence
individual behavior change and industry business practices that improve public health. For
instance awareness campaign about HIV/AIDS at workplace and safety and protect environment.
Provide increased funds and other resources that help charities and cause efforts make ends meet
and or expand efforts. Increase the number of volunteers donating their expertise, ideas and
physical labor to a cause by promoting voluntarism in the community and supporting employee
volunteer efforts. Build a strong corporate reputation, as key constituents observe action that
supports promises of good corporate citizenship and responsibility. Building strong community
relationships with organizations and agencies that can provide technical expertise extend
campaign reach by providing access to members and donors also supporting the cause, and offer
credible endorsement for the corporation’s effort and commitments. The study focuses The CSR
programs from Econet and NRZ and how the captures the essence raised by Kotler and Lee
(2005). Econet through its web site has a number of CSI activities that fulfills the mentioned
above ideas. Similarly with NRZ, through its website the have health safety for their workers and
16
all stakeholders and NRZ have pledged more donations to the public. Both corporations in the
study seem to be conscious of the CSR/CSI and they practice it through their PR departments.
Cutlip et al (2003 says the major tactics for expressing and demonstrating corporative social
responsibility include mission and value statements, speeches, advertising, and philanthropy-
contributing to education, health care, welfare and the arts. In addition, Cutlip (2003:472) argue
that often the PR practitioners play a key role in corporate philanthropy, sometimes serving as
the officer responsible for the function. The PR role typically includes the following;
a) Staging appropriate events for making a decisive contribution, as in a welfare fund drive
or the creation of a scholarship fund.
b) Assisting in a charitable campaign or endeavor, with communication strategy counsel,
preparing printed or audiovisual materials, and advertising support or publicity
placement.
c) Heading a project or campaign or service as the alternate for a corporate senior official.
Therefore, in this study the researcher will comparatively assess whether the role mentioned by
Lubbe and Puth (1994) tallies with what PR departments at Econet and NRZ applies when
dealing with CSR programs.
2.4 The corporate giving spectrum
Fig 1
17

2.5 Public Relations Management:
Companies undertake CSI opportunistically with the emphasis on the publicity generated rather
than on the social cause. These initiatives are seen primarily as marketing exercise and should be
funded according from the PR/marketing budget. Hence this study will comparatively assess the
application of CSR approach in PR department at Econet and NRZ to see whether it fulfils the
PR management philosophy as asserted by Mersham et al 1995

2.6 Reputation Focus
These programs are seen as genuine efforts to make a development difference. Companies like to
be seen to be “doing good” and often derive short term goodwill or license to operate benefits
Companies undertake CSI opportunistically with the emphasis on the publicity generated rather
than on the social cause. The study comparatively assessed as to whether the same is done by
Econet and NRZ PR departments when dealing with CSR issues.

2.7 Charitable giving

Here, companies make cheque book style donations to an adhoc range of causes. This method is
not easy to track either for its overall impact or its effectiveness as part of CSR. Dell's “direct giving” program gives employees a chance to contribute to the nonprofit of their choice through payroll deduction. One of the key beneficiaries of employee’s generosity over the past few years in Earth share of Texas. Earth share in turn is a funding source for a variety of environment projects and organization (Kotler and Lee 2005). In a research that was conducted by
Kotler(2005), it was concluded that companies through CSR has experienced a range of bottom
line benefits, including reference to ; increased sales and market share, strengthened brand
positioning, enhanced corporate image and clout, Increased ability to attract, motivate, and retain employees, decreased operating cost, increased appeal to investors and financial analysts. (Kotler and Lee 2005). In the study it was assessed comparatively whether Econet and NRZ achieves the mentioned above goals after implementing CSR It is the intention of this study to comparatively assess how Econet and NRZ apply this approach when addressing CSR issues to meet the needs of their public. Dilenschnerider (2000:157) says that companies that are effective in their
18
community relations use their human touch. Their topic executives are available, accessible and
visible in the community.

2.8 Grant making

Here, companies award funds according to predefined criteria. This involves keeping records of
basic projects inputs and outputs such as materials supplied and the number of workshops held
and the like, but seldom evaluates project impact over time. Contribution made to scholarships
for academic purposes are in the form of grants to universities, colleges, salaries, scholarships or bursaries, and loans. For instance, in the mid-1990s, the Graduate School of Business at UZ
received a grant of Z$1 million from Barclay's bank. National Breweries offer bursaries and
scholarships to several faculties at the University of Zimbabwe. Econet has sponsored numerous
students from higher learning institutions for academic pursuance. Econet started this in 1993 up
to date hence consistency as one of the C's in Carroll's model is enhanced. Donations made by
Econet nation wide as CSI is two way forms of communication which seek to uphold corporate
citizenship. As a point of departure this study focuses on comparative assessment of the
approach to CSR by PR departments at Econet and NRZ. This seeks to indicate the modern form
of PR which is part of management and meant to exchange the profits made by corporations with
the public. Hart Jr (1996) in an interview says that, “Good Corporate Citizen” quite often means
that the organization discharges a certain amount of responsibility that goes hand in hand with
the privilege of franchise in a public market place.

2.9 Sponsorship

Sponsorship is the:
Provision of financial or material support by a company of some
independent activity usually related to the sports or the arts, not
usually linked to the company’s business but support from which
the sponsorship company would hope to benefit(Wilmshurst, 1995)
Sports: A fairly immediate return may be observed if the sponsor’s name is televised by being
displayed on the periphery of sports arena, clothing, vehicles or kit bags. Sports appeal to all
19
classes and sexes and have mass audiences; therefore they are attractive to manufacturers of
consumer goods. The study assesses comparatively the approach of CSR by Econet and NRZ if
at all they sponsor sports. NRZ through CSR sponsors the company club Rail Stars “Njanji
Boys” and Econet sponsors Harare Athletic Club (HAC) and their soccer team, the “Buddie
Boys”, which takes part in the country’s Communication League.

The practice of CSI at Econet and NRZ is a good example of two way symmetrical
communication, which is dialogical. CSI has enabled Econet and NRZ to take care of their
publics through sponsoring them in sports and that create mutual understanding and goodwill
that benefit both the corporation and the publics. In other words, all major stakeholders are at the core of benefiting from sporting since this investment by corporations to the publics can improve and fight for talent. Again sponsorship by Econet and NRZ in sports enhances the 5C’s discussed by Kotler and Lee (2005:230), that CSI is based on conviction, commitment, communication, consistency and credibility. The two corporations are responsible for the sport and committed to assist. Again communication is achieved through the soccer jersey with brands that their soccer teams wear and this perpetuate awareness.

2.10 Social Investment

Corporate Social investment (CSI) in this form implies a long-term commitment in a project,
with a stronger focus on returns. Social returns are defined from the outset and measuring
outputs and evaluating impact are important project components. Processes are adjusted based on
interim indicators, which show whether the project is on track to deliver the anticipated social
return. Walt Disney for example, knew what to do when building celebration, a twenty-thousand
resident community in Florida that entailed destroying five hundred acres of wetlands: The
Company worked on its relations hips so that they can obtain what they want. There is usually an
exit plan once success and project continuity are reasonably assured. It is important however, in
this research to assess the application of CSR by Econet and NRZ to create a mutual
understanding.

2.11 Social change approach

Those companies address system wide imbalances rather than isolated “causes” so striving to
alter the structural causes of social ills. A social change approach requires developmental
20
expertise and the ability to influence developmental expertise and the ability to influence
developmental practices at policy or national government level striving to improve social
conditions is likely to build long-term business benefits in the form of better operating
environment but the social change approach does not priorities benefits for the business.
The two-way symmetrical model in public relations is hailed by many scholars, who include
Grunig (2001:14) who asserts that, the principle of symmetrical communication describes the
communication strategy that is most effective in building a long term relationship that satisfies
both the organization and its public.

However, Grunig (2001) claims that about 25 years ago, he began a program of research to
identify the most typical ways that organizations practice public relations. Grunig (2001) looked
at the four “models” of public relations. His extensive research shows that one of these models,
the two-way symmetrical is more effective than the other either when used alone or in
combination with the two-way asymmetrical model.

Furthermore, public relations are associated with identifying an organization projects towards its
key target groups and its interrelationships with them. Rogers Haywood (1984/1991), a well
respected public relations practitioner and author, has described public relations as; “The
projection of the personality of the organization and the management of corporate reputation”.
Hence in achieving this, the organization seeks to shape the attitude and opinions of the interest
and stakeholder groups with which it is involved. In this process, the organization is beholden to
its public to keep them well informed if it is to be perceived in a favorable light over the long
term. Public relations then is very much a proactive, not just a reactive, discipline (Pickton and
Broderick 2005:549)

Cutlip et al (2000:1) say that “public relations are the management function that establishes and
maintains mutually beneficial relationships between an organization and the publics on whom its
success or failure depends”. In addition, Cutlip et al (2000:50 assert that as a management
function public relations encompasses the following;
21
Anticipate, analyzing, and interpreting public opinion, attitudes, and issues that might
impact, for good or ill, the operations and plans of the organization.
Counseling management at all levels in the organization with regard to policy decisions,
courses of action, and communication, taking into account the public ramifications and
the organizations social or citizenship responsibilities.
Researching, conducting, and evaluating on a continuing basis, programs of action and
communications to achieve the informed public understanding necessary to the success of
an organization's aims. These may include marketing, financial, community and so forth.
Public relations practitioners are also involved in planning and implementing the
organization's effort to influence or change public policy. Again public relations
practitioners are required to produce specific changes in awareness, opinion, attitudes,
and behaviors inside and outside the organization's. Therefore, it is important in this
study to explore how some of the issues mentioned here by Cutlip et al (2000) are
practiced through reciprocal communication.

Seital (1995:4) suggests that “public relations can be defined in terms of four specific functions
namely a) Research, b) Action, C) Communication and d) Evaluation. Public relations therefore
applies the R-A-C-E approach that involves researching attitudes on a particular issue,
identifying action programs of the organization that speaks to that issue, communicating those
programs to gain understanding and acceptance, and evaluating the effects of the communication
efforts on the public.

However, Sharp cited by Sietal (1995:7) notes that excellent public relations applies five
principles in maintaining long-term relationships among individuals and organizations in society;

Honest communication for credibility
Openness and consistency of actions for confidence
Fairness of actions for reciprocity and goodwill
Continuous two-way communication to prevent alienation and build relationships.
Environmental research and evaluation to determine the actions or adjustments needed
for social harmony.
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Hence the study looked comparatively the CSR approach by PR practitioners at Econet and NRZ
as practice of excellent public relations by local organizations to assist their publics.
In addition, several researches have been conducted about excellent public relations by Grunig
(2000), Healy Traverse (1959) and so forth. Several under graduate students from the department
have conducted several researches about the impact of integrating public relations and
marketing, (Patience Hore 2009), “Strategies in addressing employee’s communication needs at
Shabani” (Molly Chimhanda 2006) and “Effective Public Relations as a communication tool
with internal publics at Chinhoyi University of Technology” (Patience Munyoro 2000). As a
point of departure in this study the researcher examined the application of corporate social
responsibility (CSR) by Econet and NRZ relations departments in communicating with their
community. A research of this nature could have been conducted elsewhere without the
researcher’s knowledge. As asserted by Puth and Lubbe (1994) CSR is excellent PR practices
that can enhance the organization image and reputation.
Conclusively, this chapter included the summary of literature on CSR and PR and its impact to
corporate organizations such as Econet and NRZ as active two-way involvement with the social,
economic and political forces which influences the environment within which they exist.
However, literature review for corporate social responsibility is discussed in relation to the CSR
theories and PR theories that support the activities implemented by Econet and NRZ.
This literature review broadened the scope of the study that seeks to comparatively assess the
approach of CSR by PR department at Econet and NRZ for mutual understanding and good will.

2.2 Theoretical Framework

Theoretical framework is a contested terrain. Marx (1963) defines the term ‘theory’ as
“a group of logically organized and deductively related laws” He asserts that a theory can be
perceived as both a tool and a goal. Tuckman (1996) says that researchers may conduct a
theoretical framework for the following reasons;
a) Testing a theory, by assessing the validity of a theory prepositions in the study being
undertaken or explain the explanatory power of two rival theories.
b) Locating the research, in order to signal where the research is coming from.
23
Public relations are rapidly developed within the realm of the social science. The development of
a body of theoretical knowledge is central to this development and is essential for
acknowledgement as a profession. As a social science the theories of public relations are
grounded on the theories and research methodology of other social sciences (Danie du Plessis
2000:20). In this study however, Grunig four model’s of excellent public relations was largely
explored. The Press agentry model’s purpose is that of propaganda and the communication
process is one way, with the truth not being essential. Secondly, public information model in
Grunig’s four models of public relation practice disseminate information by means of one-way
and Ivy Lee is given as a historical example of this model. Thirdly, the two-way asymmetrical
model has persuasion as its purpose by way of two-way imbalanced communication (Grunig and
Hunt 1984:22). Fourthly and lastly, the two-way symmetrical model which is an ideal model is
the most important model that this study was deeply embedded on. Reciprocity, ethical public
relations, research and social responsibility are among issues that was explored under this model.

2.2.1 Overlap of theoretical framework
All theories to be discussed about PR and CSR/CSI are intertwined and overlap in explaining the
practice of PR in the modern world. CSI empowers the publics with public opinion and can be
viewed as modern PR which is reciprocal. Dilenschneider (2000:143) say that;“You have to be
very savvy about your relationship with the stakeholders, whether they are the local community,
the state or the foreign government”.Again corporations should set an agenda or issues that need
to be given prominence. Hence education, health, employment and sports are some that need to
be considered in CSR practices. Agenda setting assist in shaping the public opinion of
stakeholders and through dialogical communication the corporations can understand the needs of
their publics and communicate through addressing the public needs. In addition, CSR
understanding who says what, to whom and with what effects is good in the implementation of
CSR programs. Metatheoretical framework theory assists in explaining how corporations handle
and implement CSI programs as their ethics, responsibility, performance and approach to assist
the public. Metatheoretical model relate well with an open system model which allows an
organization to communicate with the environment Econet and NRZ are corporations that applies
the mentioned above theoretical framework in their practice of CSR to maintain community
relations.
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2.2.3 Corporate charity or altruism

This school of thought argues that there is no need to support the local community from
company resources because shareholders would not tolerate non-profit oriented activities for
very long. Corporate donations to charities or more active involvement in social issues like
education, research grants or slum clearance is largely self interested involvement. It is usually
done to carry favor with individuals or pressure groups important to the company’s causes,
including government. CSR is at best enlightened involvement of material benefit to both the
company and community. The company is repaid in term of goodwill and social support from the
community, or from certain sectors of the community, which are important to the company.
Supporters of this school of thought have an apparent tendency to follow trends or the current ‘in
issues’ for example, subscribing to feminism and environmentalism, as the issues of the day.
This they do at the expense of other equally important matters like urban renewal, or education.
This study comparatively assessed as to whether the PR departments and practitioners at Econet
and NRZ employs this approach when dealing with their publics.

2.2.4 The 3C-SR Model of Corporate Social responsibility
Social resources are made up of three inter-related components whose simultaneous presence
underwrites the credibility of a product/service offer targeted Corporate social responsibility
The model is shown below in Figure 1 and explained in detail below. Components of the model
are:
• . Ethical and social commitments;
• . Connections with partners in the value network; and
• . Consistency of behaviour over time to build trust.
25
Fig 2
These latter two elements refer to the space and time dimensions of the model and are very
closely inter-related. In practice, it is impossible to separate the three elements of the 3C-SR
model and claim to be a “good corporate citizen”.

2.2.4.1 Commitments:
Social commitment represents the value element of social resources. They comprise the ethical
standards and social objectives, strategy programs, organizational policies and corporate culture.
These commitments should be broadly based to encompass the legal, economic and ethical
dimension of Schwaz and Carroll (2003) as well as the rights associated with citizenship
suggested by Carroll (1991).Both companies that recognizes the damage to their businesses of
failing to embrace externally agreed social commitments and hope for greater credibility from
their acceptance of the code of practicing CSR to their publics. These commitments should be
broadly based to encompass the legal, economic and ethical dimension as well as the rights
26
associated with citizenship suggested by Matten and Crane (2005). The societal validity of such
commitments is great where they align with emerging external frameworks for ethical and social
values

2.2.4.2 Connection:

Norman and Ramirez (1993) argue that value occurs not in sequential chains but in complex
constellations. They Point out “value” in a business network results from a value creating
system, within which different economic actors suppliers, business partners, allies, customers-
work together for corporate value. The structure of relationships within the value network is the
means through which a joint implementation of a socially oriented value network is achieved.
This implies a stakeholder approach to ensure mutuality of interest and uniform commitment to
shared values across the value network.

2.2.2.3 Consistency of behaviour

Consistency refers to the behavioral element of social resources overtime and across all facets of
an organization operation. Adherence to state values and careful selection and development of
business partners, who have matched social commitments, is the litmus test of an organization
own credibility. Failure to ‘walk the talk” is a common source of criticism on many companies
claiming to be socially responsible. Consumer is adept at seeing through a veneer of credibility
and demand long-term consistency of behavior from organizations purporting to be socially
responsible. Lafferty et al (2002) point to a growing body of evidence strongly supporting the
view that positive corporate image is positively correlated to purchase intention and that
consumers discriminate between firms and their products/ service offerings. This study will
therefore comparatively assess the CSR approach at Econet and NRZ by PR practitioners to meet
Carroll’s 3C-SR model as suggested as effective practice of CSR.

2.2.5 The social responsibility/ethical approach
The social responsibility approach to management prevalent in the neo-industrial age was
introduced in the 1960s. Business was seen to be an actor in the environment that should respond
for social pressures and demands, and stakeholders were increasingly thought of in terms of
morality, ethics and social responsibility. Carroll’s (1979) four-part corporate social
responsibility model focuses on the type of social responsibility businesses have, namely
27
economic, legal, ethical and voluntary discretionary responsibilities. It is also crucial in this
study to view how Econet and NRZ thought of their publics in terms of morality, ethics and
social responsibility.

2.2.6 The corporate social responsiveness approach
By early 1980s there was a shift from the idea that organizations should be socially responsible
to what ethical behavior actually entailed and how companies should respond to business related
to social issues. Responsiveness thus refers to how organizations operationalised their social
responsibilities. The distinguished features of the CSR and responsiveness approaches is that
they apply the stakeholders concept to non-traditional stakeholder groups, usually thought of as
having adversarial relationships with the organization. It is the intention of this study to assess empirically how Econet and NRZ operationalise their social responsibilities in assisting their publics.

2.2.7 The corporate social performance approach

The trend throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s to make concerns for social and ethical issues
more pragmatic led to the corporate social performance (CSP) approach. According to this
approach what is really important is what organizations are able to accomplish with regard to
specifying the nature of their responsibilities, adopting a particular philosophy of responsiveness and identifying the stakeholder issues to which these responsibilities are. The good example at Econet is through their HIV/AIDS program that is meant to take care of internal publics together with their families. In addition, it is salient for corporations to look at what they have been doing for the publics and how the activities have been contributing positively to the objectives and goals of the corporation and its publics. The researcher in the study assesses the approach used by Econet and NRZ PR department in attempt to practice social responsibility to their publics who are either internal or external. A comparative assessment was drawn from the CSR
programs that the two organizations did to help the community and their employees per se.

2.2.8 Corporate community and stakeholders approach

The corporate community approach to strategic management became prevalent during the 1990s
and onwards. In the information age, wealth is regarded as a function of information, vision and
properties of the mind. In a new economic theory of the firm proposed by Halal (2000), the
28
organization is viewed as a socioeconomic system where stakeholders are recognized as partners
who create value through collaborative problem solving. It is the role of the organization to
integrate the economic resources, political support, and special knowledge each stakeholder
offers “not to do well”, but because it provides a competitive advantage. On the other hand, the
stakeholder view of the firm, managers have to undergo a major conceptual shift in how they see
the organization and its multilateral relationships with stakeholders not only as those groups that management thinks have some stake in the firm, but also those group that themselves think they have a stake. The study investigated how Econet and NRZ engage themselves in corporate
community and how they enhance stakeholder approach when addressing these issues.

2.2.9 The strategic management of issues

From a strategic management perspective, issue management could be seen as the process used
to close the gap between the expectations of the stakeholders group and corporate performance.
In a turbulent environment, the list of issues facing organizations is vast. Issues could be
perceptual, political, moral, ethical or a mixture of all of those. Organizations cannot, however,
attend to all issues and all stakeholders do not care equally about specific issues. Issues therefore must be prioritized to make them more manageable and to be able to evaluate performance in this regard. The strategic management literature indicates that managers are not equipped to
identify and manage stakeholders and issues emanating from an increasingly complex socio
political environment. There is a need for ‘external’ or stakeholder managers who can take part
in strategy formulation and develop integrated processes for dealing with stakeholders, issues
and the publics that arise around them. However, Econet and NRZ are corporate organizations that can use a similar model to approach corporate social responsibility issues that enable a mutual strong relationship with their publics. SWOT analysis is one of the important aspects that corporate organization should apply when assisting the communities and other publics.

2.2.10 Two-way symmetrical model
Two-way symmetrical model is based on research and uses interpersonal communication to
manage conflict and collaborate with strategic public. Because the two-way symmetrical model
29
bases public relations on negotiation and compromise, it does not force the organization to make
the choice of whether it is right on particular issues. Rather, two-way symmetrical public
relations allows the question of what is right to be settled by negotiation since nearly every side to a conflict such as strike, environment degradation and pollution can be addressed not to affect the community. It is therefore important in this study to comparatively assess the implementation of CSR by Econet and NRZ interpersonal communication the community for corporate image and corporate reputation.

Furthermore, the excellent project and Grunigs (2001)’s research proceeded to provide evidence
that the two way symmetrical model makes organizations more effective in building
relationships with publics. Two-way symmetrical communication makes it easier for two types
of research on the ethics of public relations and on the effectiveness of the models in achieving
public relations objectives. Essentially, research conducted shows that the two-way symmetrical
model is the most ethical approach to public relations and those ethical public relations also is
the model most effective in meeting organizational goals. The two-way symmetrical model
clarifies the problem of how to make public relations ethical because it defines ethics as a
process of public relations rather than an agreement on a specific decision. As a process,
symmetrical public relations provides a forum for dialogue and discussion on issues for which
people with different values generally come to different conclusions. As long as the dialogue is
structured according to ethical rules, the outcome should be ethical although not usually one that
fits the value system of any competing party perfectly.

Again the principle of symmetry means that the values and problems of both organizations and
publics are equally important. Two-way dialogue therefore, makes public relations inherently
ethical and helps to make the organization more socially responsible. An excellent example of
the two-way symmetrical model according to Grunig (2001:16) can be found in public relations
program of the Chemical Manufacturers Association in the United States called Responsible
Care. After the accident at an insecticide plant in Bhopal, India, the United State Chemical
Industry had great difficulty assuring communities around Chemical plant that these plants were
safe. Environmental and health groups also were concerned about the danger of chemical waste
and the effects of chemicals on workers and consumers. Activist groups also attacked Chemical
30
Companies because they produced such military products as Napalm and Agent Orange. Here
the researcher assessed comparatively between Econet and NRZ two-way symmetrical
communication through giving to the community.
Fig 3

2.2.11 Press agentry Model and Public Information model
Press agentry model describes public relations programs whose sole purpose is getting favorable
publicity for an organization in the mass media (Grunig 2001:15). In addition, press agentry is
common in the work of publicists who promote sports, movies stars, products, politicians, or
senior managers. The Public information model is similar to press agentry because it too is a one
way model that sees public relations only as the dissemination of information. With the public
information model, an organization uses “journalist-in-residence”. Although information
communicated through this model is truthful, it usually does not reveal the whole truth, only
“facts” that the organization chooses to release. Press agentry and public information model; are
“asymmetrical” or imbalanced model that is they try to change the behavior of publics but not of
the organization. They try to make the organization look good either through promotional hype
(press agentry) or by disseminating only favorable information (public information). This study
assessed the effort made by Econet and NRZ to communicate with their public through the press
about their CSR practices.

2.2.12 Model of Strategic Management of Public Relations
The strategic management of public relations model defines stakeholders as broad categories of
people who might be affected by management decisions or affect those decision such as
employees or community residents. Grunig (2001) argues that
When a strategic PR manager scans the environment, therefore, the first step should be
31
to think broadly in terms of stakeholders categories. Then the manager should use a
theory of publics to identify and segment active, passive, and latent publics from the
non public that might also be present in the stakeholder’s category

It is important to segment active publics, because active publics typical make issues out of the
consequences of organizational decision. Sometimes public react negatively to harmful
consequences of an organization’s behaviors such as pollution or discrimination (Grunig
2001:11). The model below by Grunig (2001) is an oval representing communication programs,
that is build and maintain relationships with publics and to manage conflict with publics. It is
important to assess comparatively how PR departments at Econet and NRZ are responsible for
their publics and how they solve negative and harmful consequences that can impact the
organization negatively. This model represents excellent PR which takes into recognition
reciprocity in communication, ethical PR, social responsibility, research and so forth to create a
mutually understanding that benefits the corporate organizations and their publics.
The model above indicates that communication with the public before decision are made is most
effective in resolving issues and crises because it helps managers to make decision that are less
likely to produce consequences that publics makes into issues and crisis. If a public relations
staff does not communicate with publics until an issue or crisis occurs, the chances of resolving
the conflict is slim. Grunig (2001:14) states in summary that PR managers who participate in
strategic management are located in a position where they can help the organization identify the
strategic public with which it needs to build a relationship. The principle of symmetrical
communication describes the communication strategy that is most effective in building a long
term relationship that satisfies both the organization and its public. Therefore this study will
investigate how Econet and NRZ apply two way symmetrical communications that benefit both
the organization and the community through take care of their publics.

2.2.13 Lasswell’s view of communication
Harold Lasswell is an American political scientist whose main interest is the area of propaganda.
In 1948, he described a view of communication that emphasizes the effect of a message on the
recipients. He said that the communication process could best be explained by asking the
following questions: WHO? SAY WHAT? TO WHOM? IN WHICH CHANNEL? WITH WHAT
EFFECT? (1949) model of communication theory which defines communication as:
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Fig 4
In the model, WHO refers to the communicator who formulate the message; WHAT is the content
of the message, CHANNEL indicates the medium of transmission; and WHOM describes either
an individual recipient or the audience of mass communication. EFFECTS are the outcome of
the message which for Lasswell, should be that the recipient will be persuaded to adopt a
particular point of view. The model focuses our attention on the individual components of the
communication process and emphasizes that the components occur in a sequence that begins
with the communicator and ends with the recipients. This communication model assisted in the
study to assess comparatively how Econet and NRZ exchange ideas with their publics for the
community developments.Lasswell’s view of communication is similar to the way Aristotle depicted communication some two thousand years earlier. Ruben (1984) points out that both theorist focus primarily on verbal messages and emphasizes the relationship between communicator, message and recipient. For both Lasswell and Aristotle, communication is a one way process in which the communicator influences others through the content of the message. Hence the study looks at how Econet and NRZ communicate with their communities dialogical to address public needs and to reach
mutual exclusive agreements.

2.2.14 Schramm's transactional model
Sheila Steinberg (1995:32) asserts that the communication interaction process becomes a
transaction during which meaning of a message is negotiated. At the same time, the transactional
model overcomes the major limitation in Schramm’s model that is, the suggestion that
communication and recipient take turn to express and interpret messages. Transactional model is
not substantially different from the circular model. It also depicts communication as a dynamic
33
process in which both participants are actively engaged in encoding, transmitting, receiving a
decoding message. The main difference is that communication is seen within the context of a
relationship between two participants who are simultaneously involved in the negotiation of
meaning. Simultaneously implies that, instead of a two way flow, both people are constantly
encoding and decoding the message. Schramm’s model describes communication as a dynamic
interaction in which meaningful message are exchanged by two activate participants.
Communicator and recipient encode, transmit, receive decode and interpret message, that is both
play the role of communicator and recipient. It is salient to comparatively assess Econet and
NRZ approach to CSR issues through their PR departments to assist the needs of their publics.
Fig 5

Steinberg (1995) in his book entitled; Communication studies, says that Schramm's model is
transactional and that the communication interaction process become transactional during which
the meaning of a message is negotiated. In addition, transactional model is not substantially
different from the circular model. It also depicts communication as a dynamic process in which
both participants are actively engaged in encoding and decoding messages. The main difference
is that communication is seen within the context of a relationship between two participants who
are simultaneously involved in the negotiation of meaning. Simultaneous implies that, instead of
a two-way flow, both people are constantly encoding and decoding of the messages. It is
therefore important in this study to view how transactional communication through two-way
symmetrical model of public relations is applied at Econet and NRZ for excellent public
relations.
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2.2.15 Open System model of public relations

Output of a steady stream of press releases and other traditional reacti8ve public relations
responses is suggestive of closed system thinking. This all too-common approach to the function
is apparently based on two assumptions: 1) that the purpose of public relations is limited to
affecting changes in the environment, and more mistakenly, 2) that organizations have the power
to change their environments, thereby eliminating the need to change them. Open system
approach cast public relations in the role of bringing about changes in both environments and
organizations as a result of environmental inputs. Public relations functionaries attempt to
preserve and promote a favorable image of the organization in the community on the hypothesis
that if the organization is “liked” the public will continue to absorb the organization’s outputs.
Such functionaries are only concerned with supplying information about the organization to the
environment and not with supplying information to the organization about the environment...”
(Cutlip et al 2000:240).

In addition, a functional view of public relation calls for an open systems approach, changing
both the organization and the environment. Relations between the organization and its public are
maintained or changed on the basis of reciprocal output-feedback adjustment;
Public relation has the potential to act in an advisory capacity and
to have impact on decision making. The potential in turn leads to some
control over its own domain in times of crisis and, as a sensing device;
public relation can be effective in preventing many potential crisis
situations. Management properly remains the “large wheel” but the small
wheel that is public relations may occasionally be capable of influencing the
large one... (Cutlip et al 2000:243)
Two way-symmetrical communications in public relations calls for an open system approach,
changing both the organization and the environment. Relations between the organization and its
public are maintained or changed on the basis of reciprocal output-feedback adjustment:
“Public relation has the potential to act in an advisory capacity and to have impact on decision
making. The potential in turn leads to some control over its own domain in time of crisis and, as
a sensing device; public relation can be affective in preventing many potential crisis situations.
35
Management properly remains the “large wheel”, but the small wheel that is public relations may
occasionally be capable of influencing the large one...” (Cutlip et al 2000:243)
The open system model uses “two way communication” approach, meaning that communication
is reciprocal. The different between one-way and two way communication led Grunig’s to
propose yet another way to describe closed and open system’s public relations “craft public
relations versus professional public relation”. Therefore in this study the researcher will
comparatively assess and evaluate how Econet and NRZ apply an open system in practicing
excellent PR through CSR to help their publics. Cutlip et al (2000) state that open system public
relations has the capacity to initiate corrective actions within organizations and direct programs
to affect knowledge, predispositions, and behavior of both internal and external publics.

2.2.16 Propaganda Model
The word propaganda originated in the seventeenth Century when the Catholic Church set up a
congregation for propagating the faith (du Plessis 2000). Propaganda was aimed at facilitating
communication between the church and its congregation. Individuals such as Clair, Ivy Lee,
Bamum and others to whom the early development of public relations is ascribed used
manipulative techniques to a greater or lesser degree to influence public opinion, or propaganda,
came to be distrusted by the public who regarded it as being manipulative and dishonest. Moore
and Kalupa (1985:65) describe the extreme form of propaganda as subversive propaganda which
is fundamentally the evasion of the truth. Deliberate falsehoods are fabricated with the intention
of deceiving the public. Propagandists use different forms of falsehood, including evasion of the
truth, omitting significant facts, gross exaggerations and presentation of only those arguments
that support the view point of propagandist. Although these practices still exist, the ethical
principles on which public relations are based, as well as the professionalism with which it
strives to attain its objectives, are contrary to such practices. du Plessis (2000:57) hold the
opinion that the difference between propaganda and public relations is that propaganda present
an issue by focusing only on the good and its success depends on a biased view of the issue.
Public relations on the other hand, strive to present on unbiased view and, in so doing, seek to
achieve mutual understanding between an institution or organization and its public. Propaganda
is generally no longer recognized as a communication technique to be used in public relations.The study will comparatively assess Econet and NRZ’s approach to CSR and evaluate whether this model is not used by its PR practitioners when dealing with their publics.

2.2.17 Public Opinion
The concept of public opinion is fundamental to public relations as it is often seen as a means of
influencing public opinion through information, instruction or persuasion (du Plessis 2000).
Public opinion is traditional defined as the sum total of individual opinion concerning a matter of common interest. This approach holds that individuals make up the publics of an organization or
of any particular issue for instance pollution, the environment and so forth and these individuals
have certain opinions regarding that organization or issue. The opinion can reflect goodwill or ill will towards the organization issue. From this viewpoint the collective opinion of the majority of these individuals is described as public opinion .According to Baskin and Aronoff (1992:120), public relations practitioners rely on the so called public opinion polls to provide insight into the characteristics of their potential audience may be operating with erroneous data

2.2.18 Summary.
This chapter provided an understanding of CSR and PR departments operation at Econet and
NRZ and how their publics are dialogical communicated with, especially with regard to
corporate social investment and corporate philanthropy issues. The researcher therefore is using
this information to reveal whether strategies used by the PR department at Econet and NRZ are
effective in addressing the community needs. Various theoretical frameworks drawn from CSR,
PR and communications have been extensively explored to indicate the importance of dialogue
in communication and PR departments by corporate organizations when dealing with the publics.
PR models that reveal excellent PR practice, CSR model and communication model that
enhances reciprocity have been largely discussed
37
Chapter 3: RESEARCH METHODS

3.0 Introduction

This chapter focuses on how the research was conducted. The research methodology is a
description of all activities or procedures the researcher undertook when carrying out this study.
McLeod (1994:5) defines research as; “Systematic process of critical enquiry leading to valid
proposition and conclusions that are communicated to others” He looks at research as a concept
of critical enquiry assuming that research as a concept of critical enquiry assuming that research
stems from the human need to learn, know and to solve problems. Howards and Sharps (1983)
see research as “seeking through methodical process to add to ones body of knowledge and
hopefully to that of others by the discovery of non trivial facts and insights. Nunan (1992) asserts that “research”, involves application of specialist knowledge and skills”. In this study research
will be defined as a systematic inquiry on investigation to answer the question, to solve problems
and expand on the existing knowledge of corporate social responsibility in PR.

3:1 The research design

A research design is the basic plan that guides the data collection and analysis phases of the
research project. Borg and Gaul (1989:20) defines research design as “The procedures used to
explore the relationship between variables to form subjects in group administer measures, apply
treatment conditions and analyze data. Mc Millan (1989:158) asserts that;
a research design is a plan for selecting subjects, research
site, data collection procedures and data collection analysis
to answer the research question
Four basic research methods have been used as data collection methods, namely questionnaires,
interviews, content analysis and document analysis, as the researcher sought to gather
information in a flexible and versatile manner. These methods were chosen because they provide
an insight and ideas into the problem.
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3.2 Research Universe
The research universe is a comparative assessment of CSR programs by PR department between
Econet and NRZ. This assesses the effectiveness of PR department from the two mentioned
above organization in building social relations with their publics and achieving the organization
and public goals and objectives

3.3 Unit of analysis
The focus of this study is to comparatively assess CSR programs implemented by Econet and
NRZ PR department to assist their publics. The study mainly focuses on CSR programs
implemented by Econet and NRZ as part of effective public relations. CSR programs are used in
the study to assess how excellent the PR departments at Econet and NRZ are in communicating
and assisting their publics. Organisation website, financial statements, published articles on the
media through radio or newspapers were used in the study to assess the effectiveness of PR
department in their service delivery to the publics.

3:4 Research Methodologies
There are basically two broad categories of research methodologies that is qualitative and
quantitative research. Potter (1996) states that there are two key differences between the research perspectives. Quantitative research uses numbers to represent and summary’s data, while
qualitative research uses words only as descriptive property. The second key difference revolves
around how participants are selected to be studied. While quantitative studies can use individuals
who are convenient to the researcher alternately, qualitative research studies use individuals who
are selected purposive. The third key difference is the issue of contextuality. While quantitative
research removes some level of contextuality from the study on the other hand, qualitative
research is deeply contextualized. The fourth key difference is that while quantitative research
relies on formal logic as established in the tradition of statistical analysis. On the other hand,
qualitative research relies on the interpretation of the researcher; an interpretation that is much closer to the actual communication events. Keyton (2001:74) concluded that;
Although quantitative and qualitative research methods are inherently
different, they have similarities. Both types of research rely on empirical
evidence, that is, evidence that is external to the research.
39
Realizing the strengths of both approaches and with the intention of enriching the research by
striking a counter-balance, the researcher made use of both qualitative and quantitative research
methodologies.

3.5 Qualitative Research
“Qualitative research involves an in-depth understanding of human behavior and the reasons that
govern human behavior. It analyses and interprets reasons behind various aspects of behavior,
using open-ended questions and discussions to gather respondents perceptions, attitudes and
behavior”(Lindeman 1992). In employing the qualitative research methodology, the researcher
made use of open-ended questions in questionnaires and interviews. These methods were
selected as they allow for a qualitative accumulation of data and a discursive analysis of research findings since the research is based on comparative assessment of CSR approach and its
application by PR departments at Econet and NRZ in assisting their publics.

3.6 Quantitative research
Quantitative research is the systematic scientific investigation of quantitative properties and
phenomena and their relationships. Quantitative researchers accept that the goal of science is to
discover the truths that exist in the world and to use the scientific method as a way to build a
more complete understanding of reality. Its objective therefore is to develop and employ
mathematical models, theories and hypothesis pertaining to natural phenomena, and in this
regard, the process of measurement is central because it provides the fundamental connections
between empirical observations and mathematical expression of quantitative relationships. In
employing this research approach, the researcher incorporated closed-ended questions in the
questionnaires that required responses that can be quantified and tabulated. Furthermore, the
researcher looked at programs conducted and their publication that enhances CSR at Econet and
NRZ. In addition, Econet and NRZ are two organizations that the researcher will analyze their
CSR programs that sought to help their publics to foster community relations and corporate
image.

3.7 Sampling technique
Sampling is the process of selecting individuals to participate, observed or questioned in a
research. Gray (2005:100) states that “sampling” are those people whom we hope to involve in
our study. Keyton (2001) states that by studying the sample, we may fairly generalize our results
back to the population from which they were chosen. The importance of sampling for researchers
lies in its strength in describing the population and the sample in sufficient detail so that
interested individuals can determine the application of the findings in their own situation. The
basic idea is that individuals selected represent the whole population. Therefore in the study non
probability sampling as compared to probability sampling was used. In applied social sciences
research however, there may be circumstances where it is not feasible, practical or theoretically
sensible to random sampling. Hence purposive sampling is used in the study since the researcher
is dealing with two corporate organizations that are Econet and NRZ.

3.8 Targeted population
The targeted populations of the study are the PR department employees at Econet and NRZ and
few general publics who are the clients of the two mentioned above organizations. The reasons
for choosing the mentioned population are that those are core of the study. PR department at
Econet and NRZ are the ones who should implement CSR program to benefit their publics. The
few general publics are the ordinary people who are clients and at the same time external publics
of the two organizations. People holding Econet lines and those who uses NRZ rail transport as
passengers and transporters of goods, which among includes companies are part of the targeted
population of the study. In picking the population that depends with the proximity the public
have to the researcher

3.9 Known group sampling
In this study a purposive sampling technique is used. Du Ploy (1995:62) argues that previous
knowledge of the population, and or the aim of the study, can result in a researcher using his or
her judgment to select a sample, which is then called a purposive, or a known group sample. Du
Ploy pointed that purposive sample can also be called a judgment sample. Purposive sampling
was used based on the researcher’s personal judgment to select a sample based on knowledge of
the population emanating from evidence of representatives. The advantage of purposive sampling in the study is that the units selected are specially qualified to assist the investigations. A disadvantage is that the belief and prior knowledge in terms of which we select a purposive sample may be in error. The study comparatively assesses the
approach of CSR by PR departments at Econet and NRZ. Purposive analysis is used because the
aim of this study is to assess the effectiveness of PR departments and their implementation of
41
CSR programs that can improve the corporate image, reputation and relationship with their
publics. Collecting data is time consuming and expensive, even the relatively small amounts of data. Due to limited time and cost elements the amount of data to this study is narrowed to few. Sampling theory says a correctly taken sample of an appropriate size yields results that can be applied to the population as a whole. The researcher emailed the PR managers at Econet and NRZ and
together with their subordinates. Published articles about CSR from the website and weblogs of
the Econet and NRZ were part of the sampling method. The few publics member who consumes
the messages from the website of Econet and NRZ were telephone interviewed by the researcher.

3.10 Methods of Data Gathering
The research is company based and the data was collected through questionnaires, Interviews,
observation and documentary analysis. These research methods assisted in collecting data
effective to tackle the problem at hand.

3.11 Questionnaires
A questionnaire is a printed document that contains instructions, questions and statements that
are compiled to obtain answers from respondents (Borg and Gall 1974). Lindenmann (2006)
defined the term “questionnaire as “a measurement instrument that contains exact questions and
measures an interviewer or survey researcher uses to survey through the mail, internet, in prison
or via the telephone. The questionnaire differs from the interview schedules in that respondents
fill in the questionnaire without the assistance of the researcher (self administered). This research tool was chosen because there can reach a larger population of people in a short space of time and in an inexpensive manner. Questionnaires avoid interviewer bias, although these biases can be minimized in interviews, they can be completely eliminated only with written questionnaires.

In addition, questionnaires place less pressure for immediate response on the subject. It gives
respondent a greater feeling of anonymity and therefore encourages open responses to sensitive
questions. It is less time consuming, and more data can be collected over a short period of time
and respondents can express themselves without fear or embarrassment.
In this study, the researcher made use of electronic questionnaires that were transmitted to the
sample elements to elicit data. The questionnaires incorporated both open-ended and close ended
42
questions that both probe the attitudes and behavior of respondents and seek to quantify the
results. E-mail surveys have an advantage of high speed and since email questionnaires are sent
to the potential respondents electronic mailboxes, they get immediate attention. However, their
major shortcoming is that the questionnaires are sent back with incomplete or missing data. Lack
of control over the nature of respondents causes respondents to email back inaccurate
information to PR department at Econet and NRZ for eliciting information.
Again twenty employees from the PR department at Econet and NRZ were emailed
questionnaires to respond about their role in implementing CSR programs. The researcher visited
Econet and NRZ and managed to discuss issues related to CSR to assess how effective and
dialogical the PR departments are in communicating with their publics.

3.12 Interviews
An interview involves direct personal contact with the participant who is asked to answer
questions (Bless and Higson 1995). An interview can be defined as a two-person conversation
initiated by the interviewer for the specific purpose of obtaining research relevant information.
Itis a research technique that involves the gathering of data through direct verbal interaction
between individuals. Gray (2005:95) assert that the respondent is seen as an active producer of
meaning, not as in more traditional models, as well spring of information, material or emotions.
Holstein and Gubrium (1997:121) argue that the interview as such is a concerted project for
producing meanings. Through interviews process itself the respondent construct their
subjectivity build character, stories, emotions and so forth. Best and Kahn (1995:251) states that,the interview is in a sense an oral questionnaire. Instead of writing the response, the subject or interviewee gives the needed information orally and face-to-face. One reason of using interviews is that people are usually more willing to talk than to write. After the interviewer gains rapport or establishes a friendly, secure relationship with the subject, certain types of confidential information may be obtained that an individual might be reluctant to put in writing (Best and Kahn 1995:251) It allow for greater depth than is the case with the methods of data collection but is prone to subjectivity and bias on the part of the interviewer (Collins et al 2000). Keyton (2001:294) asserts that “interviews are a practical qualitative method for discovery how people think and feel about their communication practice. Telephone interview was used in this study to elicit data about Econet and NRZ CSR approach to meet their public needs. Interviews provide a researcher with detailed and fresh information the researcher may not have predicted or
43
anticipated. In addition, respondents do not have to be literate. The way in which questions are
asked can be standardized. Telephone interviews have the following advantage; there is no
expense in traveling and accommodation and data can be collected quickly (Magwa 2006) In this
study telephone interviews were conducted with Econet Corporate Communication Manager Mr Mberi and NRZ PR Manager Mr Masikati.

In this study informal conversational interviews were used with PR employees at Econet and
NRZ about CSR programs. The study also assessed whether the CSR programs were
implemented by the PR department without the interference of the Chief Executive Director.
Questions emerged from immediate context and were asked in the natural course of things
without predetermination of question topics or wording when the researcher visited Econet and
NRZ. From the informal conversational interviews held with the PR departments at Econet and
NRZ the researcher managed to elicit information that could have not been gathered if the
researcher has used questionnaires or other methods of data collection.
Again in eliciting information about CSR programs at Econet and NRZ, few clients from both
organisations who are also their publics were approached. Informal conversational interviews,
standardized open-ended and closed, fixed response interviews were used to assess the
effectiveness of the content of CSR programs at Econet and NRZ, and the effects that it has
about the image and reputation of the two organization. In standard open-ended interviews the
exact wording and sequence of questions were asked. All the targeted interviewees were asked
the same basic questions in the same order. A questionnaire that was designed by the researcher
was administered through interviews and was asked to the PR manager as well as to their
subordinates and the publics.

3.13 Content analysis
Pfukwa (2001:22) states that content can be classified and analyzed from a variety of
perspectives. Severin and Tankard (1998) suggest that content analysis is a systematic method of
analyzing message content. Grossberg et al (1998) defined content analysis as a systematic and
objective method of describing the manifest or surface content of a text. The above definitions
reflect that content analysis is systematic, objective and focuses on the message written down.
Researchers have used content analysis not only to study the characteristic of communication
44
content, but also to draw inferences about the nature of the communicator, the audience and also
the effects. In addition, sometimes content is analyzed to provide insights into its producers, their intentions and psychological state (Pfukwa 2001:22) In this study the researcher used content
analysis to examine the articles about CSR programs that have been published through the
organization websites, weblogs, in-house publication and newspapers. Financial statements that
were published on local newspapers or web site were analyzed to assess comparatively how
much the two organisations spend in assisting their publics for mutual relationship and goodwill.

3.14 Documentary analysis
Best and Khan (1995:191) state that documents are important source of data in many areas of
investigation. When document analysis is used as descriptive research, current documents and
issues are the foci. The analysis is concerned with the explanation of the status of some
phenomenon at a particular time or its development over a period of time. It serves a useful
purpose in adding knowledge to fields of inquiry and in explaining certain social events. In
documentary analysis, the following may be used as sources of data: records, reports, printed
forms, letters, autobiographies, diaries, composition, books, periodicals bulletins, pictures, films,magazines and so forth. When using documentary sources, one must bear in mind that data
appearing in print are not necessarily trust worthy because corporations can exaggerate their
activities that are never implement but are written in their documents or policies. Best and Khan
(1995:191) states that not only is the authenticity of the document important, but the validity of
its contents is crucial. It is therefore the researchers’ obligation to establish the trustworthiness of all data that he draws from documentary sources. In the study document analysis was used to comparatively assess the application of CSR programs at Econet and NRZ. Electronic websites and in-house publications such as newsletters and company magazines with other relevant documents were used. In addition, newspaper cuttings with CSR programs about Econet and NRZ were used as part of the research technique. In this study Econet supplement for CSR in “The Financial Gazette”, dated April 26-May 2007, articles again from The Financial Gazette, dated September 1-7 2005, Financial Gazette May17-25 2007, Financial Gazette April 21-26
2006, Financial Gazette dated September 21-27 2006 and together with The NRZ magazine
“Railroaders” The railway in Zimbabwe 1897 -1997 publication together with websites were
used to assess the effectiveness of PR employees at Econet and NRZ in assisting their publics.
45
3.15 Measuring PR outputs, outtakes and outcomes

Grunig (1997) defines PR outputs as “specific tactics that are used in a PR campaign”, and these
are usually short-term results of a PR campaign. In the study, the researcher looks at the amount
of press coverage and exposure given to Econet and NRZ activities of CSR. In assessing these,
the researcher made use of content analysis and document analysis, which allowed for clip
counting and clip analysis on the publicity articles Grunig (1997) state that some of the tools and techniques that PR practitioners can utilize to begin to measure PR activities are as follows; PR
Outtakes -- surveys, focus groups, before-and-after polls and ethnographic studies -- also can be
used to measure PR Outcomes. In addition, researchers designing and carrying out projects
aimed at measuring changes in people’s opinions, attitudes and behavior patterns also often rely
on experimental and quasi-experimental designs, on multi-variety analysis projects, and on
model building. In addition, to those works previously cited, two useful resources for qualitative
and quantitative research techniques that can be used at the PR Outcome level are the
Advertising .Two different types of research are usually called for, when conducting public
relations measurement and evaluation research at the outcome level: Attitude and Preference
Measurements and Behavior Measurements. However, in the study CSR programs at Econet and
NRZ will be used as outcomes to measure the performance of the two organizations through
their PR departments.

Attitude and Preference Measurements: According to the IPR Dictionary of Measurement term
(1999) outtakes are “a measurement of what the audience have understood or responded to a
communication programs call to seek more information from PR messages prior to measuring a
PR outcome. When it comes to seeking to measure the overall impact or effectiveness of a
particular public relations program or activity, assessing individuals' opinions, attitudes, and
preferences become extremely important measures of possible outcomes. It needs to be kept in
mind that "opinion research" generally measures what people say about something; that is, their
verbal expressions or spoken or written points of view. Hence it is important know whether the
CSR programs conducted at Econet and NRZ are public oriented. Attitude research," on the
other hand, is far deeper and more complex. Usually, "attitude research" measures not only what
46
people say about something, but also what they know and think (their mental or cognitive
predispositions), what they feel (their emotions), and how they're inclined to act (their
Motivational or drive tendencies). The study could have checked this idea if it was looking at the
effectiveness of CSR programs at Econet and NRZ. "Opinion research" is easier to do because
one can usually obtain the information desired in a very direct fashion just by asking a few
questions.

utcomes are the visible results of the PR activity, that is, the behavioral and business result of your efforts. In an organization set up like Econet and NRZ , these would include changes in
sales, an increase in market share, attendance at an event, increased efficiency, or click through
and downloads from your web site and increase in the organization’s clients. To determine the
impact of public relations preference outcomes usually necessitates some type of audience
exposure to specific public relations outputs (such as an article, a white paper, a speech, or
participation in an activity or vent),with research then carried out to determine the overall
likelihood of people preferring one product, service, or organization to another. Opinion, attitude and preference measurement research can be carried out many different ways, through focus
groups, through qualitative and quantitative surveys, and even through panels. Hence the study
could not assess that since it is mainly concerned about a comparative assessment of Econet and
NRZ in their CSR programs and how the PR approach CSR in their practices.

3.16 Instrumentation
The research made use of the following instruments:
An electronic questionnaire was emailed to a sample of Econet and NRZ PR departments
who are on the company’s mailing list.
Evaluations forms were also used for exploratory purpose. These were readily available
since the organization keeps a record of ISO purpose.
Electronic web sites for Econet and NRZ were surfed to assess and used for content
analysis and media monitoring
Published material in the form of company magazines, brochure and pamphlets were
readily available as the organizations keeps a record of all publicity press articles on the organization and any other articles on trade.
47
3.17 Reliability and validity of data
A pilot study was done on questionnaires to see whether the respondents were going to be able to
understand and answer the questions. Questionnaires were largely used because they are less
expensive; respondents can complete in a time to suit them and are easy to compute for data
coding and analysis. However, since the researcher is an outsider and never had any relationships
with Econet and NRZ before the research, the research findings can be biased because of the
distance between the companies and the researcher

3.18 Conclusion
This chapter explored various research methods that were used in this research intended to bring
out reliable findings and reduced chances if bias and subjectivity. The combination of both
qualitative and quantitative research methods was meant to reduce bias on the research and
increase objectivity, while at the same time giving respondents a chance to explain their views
and perception. Interview, questionnaires and documentary analysis is used in this study to elicit
information that seeks to address the problem at hand. This, therefore, is meant to produce
balanced and detailed research findings from which substantial conclusions can be drawn and
informed recommendations made.
48