2012 PROCEEDINGS - Public Relations Society of America

Specifically, practitioners in the nonprofit sector engaged with the least frequency
(compared to those in corporations and agencies) in account/client management, strategic
planning, public relations programming planning, and stakeholder relations. Nonprofit
practitioners engaged in project management and in social media relations with greater frequency
compared to corporate practitioners, but with less frequency compared to agency practitioners.
For internal/employee communication, the pattern was reversed, with nonprofit practitioners
engaging in this work category with greater frequency compared to agency practitioners, but
with less frequency compared to corporate practitioners. The one work category with which
nonprofit practitioners engaged with greater frequency than either corporate or agency
practitioners was special events, conferences, and meetings. Clearly, these results shed some
light on the ways in which public relations practitioners working for nonprofit employers are
spending their time.
The work categories for which practitioners in nonprofit and for-profit employers did not
differ in the frequency of their engagement were media relations, issues management, crisis
management, and community relations.
Employer Types and KSAs
The last research question asked how practitioners working for nonprofit employer types
differ from the counterparts working for corporations and public relations agencies. Analysis of
variance found that nonprofit practitioners differed significantly from their counterparts in six of
the 10 professional competency areas, as shown in Table 8.
Compared to corporate and agency practitioners, nonprofit practitioners engaged with the
least frequency in the four-step strategic planning of public relations (research, planning,
implementation, and evaluation), in the application of communication models and theories to PR
work projects, in the incorporation of business literacy skills into PR duties, in management
skills and issues, and in the use of advanced communication skills. On the other hand, nonprofit
practitioners were in between agency and corporate practitioners in the frequency of their use of
information technology and new media channels. These findings show several specific areas in
which practitioners working for nonprofit employer types might enhance their professionalism.
The KSAs for which nonprofit practitioners and for-profit practitioners did not differ in
the frequency of their engagement were public relations ethics and legal issues, crisis
communication management, media relations, application of the historical knowledge of the field
of public relations to work projects.
Discussion, Implications, and Recommendations
Nonprofit organizations continue to be a major sector in public relations practice. As
demonstrated in this study, only corporations and agencies had higher percentages of
practitioners. Additionally, professionals do often transition from one category of employer type
to others. This shifting from sector to sector suggests that all practitioners should be cognizant of
a multitude of knowledge, skills, and abilities that can lead to long-term career success. Working
in one sector does not preclude one from changing into a different type of public relations work
that may often incorporate a different priority of focus areas. Nonprofits are also, out of necessity,
partnering with increasing frequency with corporations and public relations firms, and these
entities are now frequently seeking out nonprofits to enhance their corporate social responsibility
efforts. This linking of sectors further necessitates a broadness of perspectives and public
relations expertise for nonprofit leaders.
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