Corporate Communications and Public Relations Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Corporate Communications Officers, Public Relations Officers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 9 Nov 2026 Course code SD-PRC-028

Before you join: Participants should have some prior experience contributing to communication, public relations, marketing, stakeholder engagement, media liaison or internal communication work.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Corporate communications officers must protect and build trust while handling competing demands from leaders, employees, media, regulators, customers and communities. Their work often involves translating complex strategy into credible messages, responding to scrutiny before it becomes a reputational issue, and ensuring public statements match operational reality. Poorly framed announcements, inconsistent spokesperson responses, weak stakeholder intelligence and slow approvals can damage confidence long after an incident or campaign ends.

This course develops the practical public relations and corporate communications skills needed to plan, write, coordinate and evaluate communications programmes. Participants work with stakeholder maps, message houses, media relations methods, editorial calendars, internal communication plans, issues-management processes and communication measurement frameworks. They learn to assess news value, brief spokespeople, prepare media materials, manage difficult questions, organise response protocols and report communication results in terms leaders can use for decisions.

Teaching combines short instructor briefings with sector-based cases, group analysis, writing tasks, media interview simulations, issue-response scenarios and application planning. Cases can reflect the realities of government agencies, banks, NGOs, regulated industries, infrastructure providers and multinational employers. Participants leave with a practical set of reusable planning and communication tools, including a stakeholder map, message house, media briefing pack, issues-response checklist and 90-day application plan.

The course is suited to professionals who already contribute to communication activities and now need greater responsibility for corporate messaging, stakeholder relationships, media engagement or reputation management. It is particularly useful where communications work requires sound judgement, clear approval processes and disciplined handling of sensitive information.

What you will be able to do

  • Build a stakeholder map using power-interest analysis and relationship priorities
  • Develop a message house with evidence-based pillars and audience-specific proof points
  • Write press releases, media pitches and briefing packs to professional editorial standards
  • Prepare spokespeople for interviews using message discipline, bridging and difficult-question techniques
  • Create channel plans using the PESO model, editorial calendars and approval workflows
  • Design internal communication plans for organisational change, sensitive announcements and employee feedback
  • Apply issues-management and crisis communication procedures using holding statements and decision logs
  • Evaluate communication programmes using AMEC measures, media analysis and performance dashboards

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Produce stronger corporate messages supported by credible evidence and clear proof points
  • Handle media enquiries and difficult stakeholder questions with greater confidence
  • Plan communication activity with clearer objectives, ownership, timing and measurement
  • Build a portfolio of reusable templates for daily corporate communications work
  • Present communication recommendations to senior colleagues using structured rationale and evidence

For your organisation

  • More consistent corporate messages across leaders, channels, media materials and employee communications
  • Faster, better-controlled responses to issues, criticism, misinformation and emerging reputational risks
  • Improved media engagement through relevant pitches, prepared spokespeople and professional briefing materials
  • Clearer accountability for communication approvals, escalation routes and stakeholder relationships
  • More useful reporting on communication results, audience response and required corrective action

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can define the corporate communications remit and position it within organisational governance.

  • Corporate affairs mandate, stakeholder expectations and communications governance boundaries
  • Reputation drivers mapped through performance, behaviour, leadership and stakeholder experience
  • Corporate narrative architecture: purpose, strategy, proof points and narrative tension
  • Distinguishing corporate communications, public affairs, marketing communications and investor relations
  • Using the RACE framework to structure communications programmes
  • Editorial judgement: materiality, relevance, timing, audience need and organisational risk

Participants can identify priority stakeholders and plan communication approaches for each group.

  • Stakeholder mapping with power-interest grids and influence pathways
  • Segmenting priority publics by information needs, attitudes and behaviours
  • Persona cards built from interviews, service data and media habits
  • Message testing against stakeholder concerns, objections and desired actions
  • Listening plans combining media monitoring, employee feedback and community intelligence
  • Contact strategies assigning relationship owners, cadence and escalation routes

Participants can build clear, evidence-based messages for corporate audiences and channels.

  • Message house construction: umbrella statement, pillars, evidence and calls to action
  • Proof-point banks sourced from audited data, policies and operational records
  • Plain-language editing using active voice, concrete nouns and short sentences
  • Bridging techniques for difficult questions without evasion or speculation
  • Spokesperson Q&A developed from hostile, technical and emotional questions
  • Consistency checks across executive speeches, web copy, media materials and employee messages

Participants can identify media opportunities, prepare materials and support effective interviews.

  • News-value assessment using timeliness, impact, conflict, novelty and human interest
  • Media lists segmented by beat, outlet, geography, audience and relationship status
  • Press release structure: headline, lead, facts, quotation, boilerplate and contacts
  • Pitch emails tailored to editorial calendars, reporter interests and publication formats
  • Media briefing packs containing key messages, evidence, biographies and logistics
  • Interview preparation through message discipline, bridging, flagging and concise answers

Participants can select communication channels and govern corporate content publication.

  • PESO model roles for paid, earned, shared and owned channels
  • Channel selection based on audience behaviour, content format and response requirements
  • Editorial calendars balancing corporate news, leadership content and stakeholder questions
  • Social media response protocols for enquiries, criticism, misinformation and abuse
  • Content approval workflows defining owners, turnaround times, legal review and archives
  • Executive LinkedIn posts shaped around insight, evidence and professional relevance

Participants can plan employee communication that supports understanding, dialogue and change adoption.

  • Employee audiences segmented by role, location, manager access and change impact
  • Change communication mapped through awareness, understanding, commitment and reinforcement
  • Manager communication packs providing messages, FAQs, briefing notes and escalation guidance
  • Town hall design balancing leadership visibility, questions, listening and follow-up
  • Two-way channels capturing employee sentiment, concerns, ideas and unanswered questions
  • Sensitive announcements sequenced across leaders, employees, unions, customers and media

Participants can assess communication risks and coordinate an initial issue or crisis response.

  • Issue sensing using risk registers, media alerts, complaints and stakeholder signals
  • Risk assessment scoring likelihood, impact, velocity, visibility and stakeholder concern
  • Crisis communication plan roles: incident lead, spokesperson, approver and monitor
  • Holding statements prepared with known facts, empathy, action and update commitments
  • Decision logs recording facts, assumptions, approvals, actions and outstanding questions
  • Post-incident reviews converting findings into revised controls, messages and procedures

Participants can communicate policy positions and engage affected communities with discipline and transparency.

  • Public policy positions aligned with organisational purpose, evidence and stakeholder impacts
  • Consultation responses structured around questions, evidence, recommendations and implementation implications
  • Community engagement plans identifying affected groups, concerns, channels and commitments
  • Coalition mapping distinguishes allies, neutrals, opponents, influencers and decision-makers
  • Ethical lobbying boundaries, gift rules, transparency requirements and record keeping
  • Briefing notes framing policy asks, supporting evidence, risks and counterarguments

Participants can measure communication performance and present findings for management action.

  • Objectives written as output, outtake and outcome measures
  • AMEC Integrated Evaluation Framework links activities, audiences, effects and organisational value
  • Barcelona Principles 3.0 guide valid, transparent communication measurement
  • Media analysis codes prominence, message pull-through, tone, reach and credibility
  • Dashboard metrics distinguish volume, quality, engagement, perception and behavioural response
  • Evaluation reports connect findings, decisions, corrective action and future investment

Participants can assemble a governed communication strategy and prioritised implementation plan.

  • Communications strategy template links diagnosis, objectives, publics, messages, channels and measures
  • SMART objectives calibrated to realistic communication influence and accountability
  • Budget assumptions cover production, distribution, monitoring, agency support and contingencies
  • RACI matrices clarify accountable owners, approvers, contributors and informed stakeholders
  • Approval governance addresses legal, regulatory, privacy, accessibility and brand requirements
  • 90-day application plan prioritises actions, milestones, dependencies and review dates

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Power-interest stakeholder mapping template
  2. Corporate message house model
  3. Media briefing pack template
  4. Editorial calendar and content approval workflow
  5. Issues and crisis communication checklist
  6. 90-day corporate communications application plan

Who should attend

  • Corporate Communications Officers — responsible for planned communications, media materials and stakeholder messaging
  • Public Relations Officers — seeking stronger methods for media engagement and reputation management
  • Communications Managers — coordinating campaigns, approvals, spokespeople and communication teams
  • Public Affairs Officers — communicating policy positions and building relationships with external stakeholders
  • Internal Communications Specialists — supporting change announcements, leadership communication and employee dialogue
  • Marketing Communications Executives — needing clearer separation and coordination between brand and corporate communications

Skills and tools covered

Stakeholder mappingCorporate messagingMedia relationsCrisis communicationInternal communicationCommunication measurement

Tools and standards

RACE framework, PESO model, AMEC Integrated Evaluation Framework, Barcelona Principles 3.0

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to introduce methods, followed by case work, group analysis, writing tasks and facilitated discussion. Participants assess realistic communication scenarios, build stakeholder and message frameworks, review media materials and prepare responses to difficult questions. Simulations cover spokesperson interviews, issue escalation and sensitive announcements. Peer feedback and instructor coaching focus on clarity, judgement, evidence and audience needs. Each participant concludes with an application plan based on a current or anticipated communications priority.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have some prior experience contributing to communication, public relations, marketing, stakeholder engagement, media liaison or internal communication work. They should be comfortable writing professional emails, short briefing notes and basic communication materials. Familiarity with their employer's products, services, audiences and approval processes will help them apply the methods quickly. No formal public relations qualification is required. The course does not require prior media interview experience, crisis-management responsibility, specialist design skills, social media advertising knowledge or advanced data-analysis capability.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

You should have some exposure to communication, public relations, marketing, stakeholder engagement or internal communication work. You do not need a formal PR qualification or previous responsibility for media interviews or crisis response.

Bring a laptop or tablet if possible, plus examples of communication challenges you face at work. Participants may use an existing announcement, stakeholder issue, campaign brief or communication plan as the basis for application planning.

It is designed for corporate communications officers, PR officers, communications managers, public affairs staff and internal communications specialists. It also suits marketing communications professionals moving into corporate reputation and stakeholder communication responsibilities.

Marketing courses focus primarily on customer demand, brand promotion and campaign conversion. This course focuses on organisational reputation, stakeholder confidence, media relations, employee communication, issues management and corporate accountability.

You can use the templates to improve a current communication plan, prepare a leadership announcement, organise a media briefing or update an issues-response process. The final 90-day application plan helps identify immediate actions, owners and review dates.

Each day runs from 08:30 to 16:30, providing about 6.5 contact hours. Time is divided between instructor input, case analysis, structured group work, writing and response simulations, peer review and individual application planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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