Impact of Opinion Leaders in Crisis Communication Management: A Case Study of Kipeto Energy, Kenya
Loading...
Date
2023-10
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Daystar University, School of Communication
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of opinion leaders in crisis communication management with a case study of Kipeto Energy, Kenya. The objectives of this study were to identify the role of opinion leaders at Kipeto Energy in crisis communication management, identify other crisis communication management strategies employed at Kipeto Energy and to assess the impact of opinion leaders in managing crisis communication at Kipeto Energy. The study used Situational Crisis Communication Theory was developed by Coombs and his associates in 1995. The premise of the theory is that crisis always has a psychological attitude, and this attitude affects how the affected parties will interact with the organization. Questionnaires were primarily used to collect data. opinion leaders had played a critical role in bridging the gap between the community and the organization during crisis and that at no single instance has the organization employed the services of incompetent opinion leaders that ever led to a prolonged crisis. The findings show good strategies used by Kipeto Energy in obtaining and using opinion leaders to deliver relevant messages to individuals. The study also found that that Kipeto Energy continuously looks for trustworthy and credible opinion leaders as well as training newly employed opinion leaders on the mission and vision of the organization whereby 50% agreed with this as individual, these findings agreed with a study by The study recommends that the participants in the study to investigate how opinion leaders wield influence during a crisis, exploring their roles in shaping public opinion. The study recommends further research on exploration of how AI can assist opinion leaders in crisis communication, including sentiment analysis, content recommendation and real time monitoring of employee sentiments
Description
MASTER OF ARTS
in Communication
Keywords
Crisis Communication Management, Opinion Leaders, Kipeto Energy
Citation
Onyango, B. O., (2023). Impact of Opinion Leaders in Crisis Communication Management: A Case Study of Kipeto Energy, Kenya: Daystar University, School of Communication