Public Affairs is the field that deals with managing an organization’s relationships with its stakeholders. These include groups with an interest in the organization’s affairs, including politicians, government officials, customers and local communities, suppliers, shareholders, trade associations, think tanks, charities, labor unions or the media.
Public affairs practitioners engage stakeholders to clarify organizational policies and views on issues on various issues in the public sphere. They help policymakers and legislators to change or establish new policies and legislation that are more appropriate from a business perspective. The goal of Public Affairs professionals is to influence public policy, build and maintain strong relationships with legislators, and engage and monitor stakeholders. It’s also to build and maintain a strong reputation for the organization and find common ground with stakeholders.
Public Affairs can be understood as a set of activities by an organization that wants to follow, engage and organize its external business processes properly through them. It is an interdisciplinary field that combines strategies from different industries, starting with government relations, crisis communication, PR and social responsibility. In their strategies, consultants focus on providing statistical and factual information according to the facts. They often lobby on issues that can affect an organization’s ability to operate and function effectively in the marketplace.
