Abstract:
This study examined how the practice of public relations has enhanced the organizational innovation of the First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) and Guarantee Trust Bank (GTBank). The nature of banking has greatly evolved in the 21st century. Not only has the advent of technology made new products and services available, fierce competition among similar brands has also offered customers a wide variety of choices. In an industry where cutting edge technology is readily available, good services is neither enough for customers to remain loyal to a brand nor for potential customers to be interested. This brings to the fore the importance of relationship building. Public relations refers to all the activities that an organization engages in to establish, build and maintain mutual understanding with its relevant stakeholders. The study, therefore, examined the corporate social responsibility of FBN and GTBank over a period of six years. This paper adopted the methodological approach of reviewing the banks’ published annual reports from 2010 to 2015. Statistical analysis was drawn up on the company’s practice of corporate social responsibility which included spending on education and community development among others. The findings revealed MTN’s level of involvement in public relations and linked the company’s openness to the public to its level of innovation. The paper recommended that more effort and fund should be invested in public relations in order to make the public the driving force of the innovation process.
