Tsinghua University and Edelman Partnership Aims to Help Chinese Companies Improve Their Storytelling Abroad

Edelman, a leading global communications marketing firm, and the Tsinghua University’s National Image Research Center (NIRC) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to carry out a three-year “Tsinghua-Edelman Corporate Trust and Overseas Communications Partnership Program”.

The partnership aims to bring NIRC’s valuable academic resources and Edelman’s global communications expertise together to interpret the dynamics of Chinese enterprises’ overseas image and assist them in telling a better story in a foreign, non-Chinese media environment.

Through the program, NIRC and Edelman will host various forum-style events and workshops on global trust and reputation for Chinese enterprises as well as produce bespoke research on the topic. The program aims to encourage companies to pay more attention to reputation and trust, to strengthen their reputation building capabilities and encourage them to play a leading role for society.

This is a deepening of NIRC and Edelman’s relationship, as both have worked together over the past five years to release the Edelman Trust Barometer in China, Edelman’s annual trust and credibility study.

Present for the MOU signing was Matthew Harrington, Edelman’s global chief operating officer, who commented, “From the 2018 Edelman Trust Barometer, though the trust in brands by companies headquartered in China has risen at home, it has remained flat globally, and companies must focus more on reputation building. It is not only about the relationship building among people, but on the cooperation between people and the organization. This partnership between Edelman and Tsinghua reflects the trend that the trust in the organization cannot build itself and we must leverage both the valuable academic resources and communications experience to build trust.”

The MOU signing ceremony was hosted by Professor Fan Hong, Director of the National Image Communication Research Center and Director of the Institute of Public Relations and Strategic Communication, School of Journalism and Communication at Tsinghua University. Professor Fan represented Tsinghua at the signing and said, "The goal of companies is to build trust and it must be accumulated by long-term devotion to society and its stakeholders. Companies must show their commitment to long-term development and work on building credibility for long-term results for business and beyond."

About Edelman

Edelman is a leading global communications marketing firm that partners with many of the world’s largest and emerging businesses and organizations, helping them evolve, promote and protect their brands and reputations. Among its many honors, the firm was awarded the Cannes Lions Grand Prix for PR, named one of 2018 “Agencies to Watch” by Advertising Age and “Global Agency of the Year” by both the Holmes Report and PRWeek, and cited five times by Glassdoor as one of the “Best Places to Work.” Edelman owns specialty firms Edelman Intelligence (research) and United Entertainment Group (entertainment, sports, lifestyle).

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