SCO103 New Empires Tech-Sector
Question / Premise
You and your group members are part of an elite PR agency. The agency has just been hired by a loose conglomerate of American and Chinese tech giants (the list includes Facebook, Alphabet (Google), Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Baidu, Alibaba, Tencent, Huawei and Xiaomi).
While they may be competitors, they are also seeking to improve their public profile in the wake of societal and political pressure to break the large companies up, or to have them at least severely regulated.
Your group’s task is to research a selected tech giant, analyse the socio-political impact of its products and/or business approach, and decide on at least one major societal concern to address, e.g. privacy, the impact of algorithms on our lives, fake news or employment/future of work. (Refer to Study Unit 3 of the Study Guide for possible topics). The group will then develop and communicate a PR strategy, using relevant digital technology tools and software, to counter negative public perceptions and improve the company’s profile. The group’s task has three
components:
- Summary Report
- Infographic
- Class Presentation
Summary Report (30 Marks)
The summary report presents the group’s research findings in written form. The findings should be based on a detailed evaluation of relationships, patterns and trends from available sources, in order to inform further actions and/or generate wider insights (i.e. arrive at a better understanding of the tech giant’s socio-political impact, identify problems arising from such impact, and then recommend solutions to resolve consequent concerns and improve the
company’s public profile). The report must attempt the following:
- Examine and discuss the tech giant’s background, i.e. origins, and the successful apps / products and business approach that have made it successful and dominant.
- Determine and explain the underlying causes of the societal and political concerns regarding the tech giant, e.g. what are some of the company’s recent and/or current activities that could have raised concerns.
- Develop recommendation(s) to address one or several identified concerns arising from the tech giant’s impact and to improve the tech giant’s public profile, i.e. the PR strategy including how the infographic will be used.
- Consult a diverse range of sources, i.e. bibliography.
Assessment: Summary Report (30 Marks). The report will be assessed on its research depth and breadth, its analysis of the tech giant’s socio-political impact, the feasibility of recommendations to address public concerns, and overall clarity and coherence.
Parameters and Style: The report should not be more than seven pages (excluding the bibliography) and must adhere to the following parameters: Calibri, Arial or Times New Roman font, font size twelve, one-inch page margins, and 1.5 line spacing. Please use APA style for your in-text citations and bibliography. You can find more information here:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/general_format.html.
CO103 Group-based Assignment 1
SINGAPORE UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES (SUSS)
Infographic (40 Marks)
An infographic is a visual illustration of researched information synthesised in an overarching storyline or key message(s) for public consumption by multiple stakeholders. For this assignment, the infographic is an integral component of the group’s proposed PR strategy, i.e. a visual format that addresses one or several identified concerns arising from the socio-political impact of the tech giants. The group must decide how the infographic will be presented to target audience(s), i.e. as part of a broader PR strategy or a display ad on its own. (The group’s
strategy must be developed and included in the relevant section of the Summary Report). This requires planning in conceptualisation and design, an appropriate balance between text and graphics, and suitable graphics that effectively illustrate and convey the group’s primary message(s).
Assessment: Visual Appeal (20 marks). The infographic should be visually striking and appealing in order to attract and hold the attention of the group’s target audience(s), and then communicate the infographic’s primary message(s) to them.
Assessment: Messaging / Public Impact (20 marks). The infographic should be developed and illustrated in a manner that gives due consideration to how its key message(s) can be communicated to target audience(s) with minimal explanation and for maximum public impact.
Parameters and Style: Groups are to free to imagine the style and format of the infographic, bearing in mind the above assessments (i.e. that it must be clear and comprehensible in public settings to target audience(s)). Below are some links that may help in the planning and design of the infographic as well as different types of ads the infographic could be or could be part of.
- Ritchie, Josh (2020, Jul 1). What Is an Infographic? Why They’re Great & How to Create Them. Column Five. Retrieved on Jan 9, 2021 from https://www.columnfivemedia.com/infographic.
- Nediger, Midori (2020. Jun 25). What is an Infographic? Examples, Templates & Design Tips. Venngage. Retrieved on Jan 9, 2021, from https://venngage.com/blog/what-is-an-infographic/
- Goorevich, Emily (2019, Mar 21). 7 Types of Advertising (+How They’re Used). G2. Retrieved on Jan 9, 2021, from https://learn.g2.com/types-of-advertising
- Mahnoor Sheikh (2020, Feb). What is an Infographic? (Examples, Tips and Templates). Visme. Retrieved on Jan 9, 2021, from https://visme.co/blog/what-is-an-infographic/.
Presentation (30 Marks)
The final GBA component is a five-minute presentation, where the group pitches its PR strategy to improve the tech giant’s public profile and fields questions from the instructor. Think of it as a slightly extended elevator pitch – some related info here:
https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/elevator-pitch.htm and here:
https://www.thebalancecareers.com/elevator-speech-examples-and-writing-tips-2061976.
The presentation must be based on the group’s research and infographic. It should inform the class of the tech giant’s socio-political impact and socio-political concerns the group has identified to be significant, and the solution and strategy the group proposes.
SINGAPORE UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES (SUSS)
Assessment: Presentation (20 marks). One to two group members will have five minutes (maximum) to pitch the group’s proposed PR strategy based on its research and infographic.
Assessment: Q&A / Response (10 marks). After the presentation, remaining group members will respond to follow-up questions related to the pitch as well as the infographic and overall research.
Canvas Discussion. For about a day after the presentation (until GBA01 submission deadline),the group can also make use of Canvas Discussion in their respective T-group page to build on their Q&A responses