Course Code: BUS 3510
Academic Year: 2024-2025
Public affairs, a communication management function, helps organizations develop effective involvement in public policy and influence regulations and legislation. It is a way corporations, politicians and public interest groups participate in democracy. This course introduces students to political structure terms in order to communicate effectively in the public arena. The course will explore the essentials of Canadian municipal, provincial and federal government along with a comparison to the U.S. and, to a lesser extent, other major world governments. The course will then examine major aspects of public affairs, including understanding public policy and its development, government relations, lobbying, special interest groups and public opinion research. It will explain how issues management, media relations, employee communications and other public relations strategies and tactics support public affairs. It will also cover how legislation and regulations that govern business and society are introduced and become law. A series of guest speakers and case studies will demonstrate how public affairs professionals work. They might be consultants, political aides, special interest group representatives or staff members of corporate or non-profit organizations, participating in policy, legislative or regulatory change, government procurement, funding and other scenarios.