Eye On PR

Eye On PR

MAYO kicks off Year 2001 with a new feature on its website "Eye On PR" Everything from tricks of the trade to getting on the radar of high-tech editors and industry analysts to making your company newsworthy. Nationally recognized and award-winning writer George S. McQuade III reports on the PR industry.

Week of April 9, 2001

(L-R) Richard Terrell, Casey & Sayre, Chairman Joseph R. Cerrell, Cerrell Associates
Inc., Steven J. Harris, vice president Communications,and Donn Walker, western
regional communications manager, General Motors Corporations at USC KOS event.

Taken For a Ride: Lessons Learned From 35 Years in Automotive Communications

By George S. Mc Quade III

“Attitude is key to a successful career in public relations,” Steven J. Harris, vice president, communications, General Motors told a packed crowd at the 11^th Annual Kenneth Owler Smith (KOS) Symposium, April 4, 2001, at USC, Los Angeles. The event was presented by PRSA-LA and USC Anneberg School of Journalism, and sponsored by

General Motors Worldwide, Manning Selvage & Lee and Nike. The title of his speech was “Taken For A Ride: Lessons Learned from 35 Years in Automotive Communications" Proceeds from the event go to the Pat Penny Scholarship fund and funding for the KOS symposia series. Kenneth Owler Smith passed away in 1989. His former students established the Kenneth Owler Smith symposium as a living tribute to his work as an educator and service to the profession.

Steven J. Harris, vice president
General Motors Corporation

“A PR Pro with a great attitude beats out one with a brilliant mind.”

“We have 600 communication people worldwide,” said Harris. “The greatest attribute for a PR Pro is a great attitude, a willingness to listen to others and to never stop learning, and enjoy working with the media. I would hire someone with a great attitude over someone with a brilliant mind, because I want someone who can collaborate and listen to others, and who is constantly expanding what they know.”

Harris never wanted to be a PR Pro

Harris who said he had no plans to get into public relations when he graduated from Van Nuys High School, because he always wanted to be a "journalist." He grew up in Van Nuys, CA, north of Los Angeles, where the community witnessed auto production at a GM plant for 50 years before shutting down in the early 1990’s. He graduated from the University of Southern California with a BA degree in Journalism in 1967. "Two weeks later, I went to work for General Motors," he said.

Harris began his career with General Motors in 1967. Over the next 12 years, he held a number of positions including regional GM public relations posts in Cleveland, Los Angels and Indianapolis. In February 1999, Harris was elected a General Motors vice president in charge of global GM communications. Harris reports directly to GM President CEO G. Richard Wagoner, Jr.

Harris says he wouldn’t change a thing in his 35 year career.

“I wouldn’t redo anything I did, I love it all and had a charmed career,” said Harris. My first 13 years were with GM, then I was gone for 20 years and then I came back in 1999 as V.P. of communications, so I’ve always stayed in automotive communications,” In 1979, Harris joined American Motors Corporation as director of Product Public Relations. In 1987, following Chrysler’s purchase of American Motors, Harris became director of Corporate Public Relations for Chrysler Motors. After holding a variety of positions with Chrysler, he was named the vice president on January 1998. He became senior vice president of communications for DaimlerChrysler following the merger of Chrysler and Daimler-Benz.

Steven Harris, General Motors and Joseph Cerrell,
Cerrell and Associates talk business during mixer
at USC's 11th annual Kenneth Owler Smith (KOS)
Symposium in LA.

Crisis comes in clusters and General Motor’s is forming a Swat Teams

“The Auto Industry is like O’Hare Airport: There is a crisis circling overhead waiting to land. We’re in a constant crisis mode all of the time,” Harris told O’Dwyer PR daily. “But you learn a lit bit from all of them. I had a number of crisis including the CJ Rollover on CBS 60 Minutes when I was at American Motors, minivan latches at Chrysler, but the auto industry has crisis in clusters much like O’hare Airport.”

He told the audience “GM is forming a “Swat Team across the company devoted to crisis. They include people who know how to get started and respond better to the situation. Life was never dull with CEO Lee Iacoca,” said Harris, who noted that one day he counted some 14 stories about General Motors in the “B section” of the Wall Street Journal.

Steve J. Harris, GM

Harris offers PR tips ...GM works with 50 different agencies.

	“It is better if you call me and say GM has never tried this idea, than for me to call you.”
	“Tell me what other clients are doing at your agency and give me your best of diversity.”
	“If you talk about how much money your making with GM’s account, you’ve lost me.”
	“Don’t complain about ‘not enough face time with the CEO,’ because you don’t need it.”

Harris shares three decades of auto communications lessons learned

	“Credibility is the most important aspect of your job. You lose it, you’ve lost.”
	“You can’t be a good communicator by staying in the office.”
	“Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it.”
	“Always play fair, and remember enthusiasm is infectious.”
	“Don’t give up on people.”
	“Don’t lose sight of employees”
	“Get outside opinions and pay attention to what consultants are saying.”
	“If you can’t be positive or act that way, you should get out of business.”
	“Don’t let your people burnout, find another opportunity for them in your company.”
	“Focus on clarity and uniformity of your messages”
	“ Build good relationships, and be passionate with the media.”
	“You can’t practice for a crisis, but lack of speed kills everything.”
	“Keep your communications fresh.”

Harris recalls some of General Motors best public relations displays.

“In 1992, we decided to drive the first Jeep Cherokee off the assembly to the International Auto Show in Detroit. One idea was to drive it up the stairs to the show, and then we decided to drive it through a 20-foot glass window. We had a diverse group of people working together on great ideas. I think the following year we dropped a Dodge

from the ceiling of a show. Another great display is when we drove off road from the Canadian Border to the Mexican Border in six or seven days, where we actually had two marriages on the road. The worst was when we tried to encase a jeep in ice. We didn’t know it was going to be 45 degrees all week. We also tried a stunt at the Riverside Race Track, ( Riverside, CA.), where we were cooking on the bus, but the odors were so bad everyone threw up out the window.”

If you have a marketing communications or PR event or a trend that others should read about please send us an email. Please send the event notice two weeks in advance. Have a great PR case study to share? Send it along with your electronic photo and we'll share it with our readers. If you got a PR, marketing or geek question for non-geeks send us your question, we'll get you an answer with our endless resources!

gmcquade@MayoCommunications.com

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