Shaping the future together: Swaran Sandhu new on Board

We are welcoming Prof. Swaran Sandhu, Professor for Corporate Communication and Public Relations at Stuttgart Media University, as a new member on our Scientific Advisory Board.

Most of all, he investigates public relations and corporate communications in his research, with a special focus on (applied) social network analysis, data literacy, and neo-institutional theory.

To get to know Swaran Sandhu and his interests a little bit better, we had a brief chat with him. We began with some quick “this or that” questions to get things started easily.

This or that?

Following the brief introductory questions, we delved deeper into his personal preferences and passions.

In your own words:

What motivated or inspired you to become part of the Scientific Advisory Board?

It is a great chance to work together with scientists and practicitioners on the future of strategic communications.

What does successful knowledge transfer mean to you?

I am struggling a bit with the term knowledge transfer, since it is not a simple copy and paste activity but a process that works in both directions. Clearly, the demands of practice are different from the rules of scientific research. Knowledge “transfer” works in both directions: As scientists we can get better insight into the needs and requirements of practice. When working with practitioners I hope to question their assumptions by being a sounding board to help them reflect on their practice.

Which topic in strategic communication research do you personally think should receive much more attention in practice?

One of the most urgent topic in my opinion is the impact of technological superstructures on strategic communication. With technological superstructures I mean the incorporation of AI in all processes of communications which weave the social fabric of our lives. In the end we need to ask why, with what means, and to what ends are we using those structures and what are the consequences of our actions. This is a deeply philosophical and ethical question. It drives us directly to the overarching theme: what does it mean to be human in an age of (seemingly) abundant information and knowledge access (e.g. a post-AGI world)? And how can we yield those powers to a greater good?

What research project would you like to realize one day – regardless of time and money?

You got me with the second part of your question. I got far too many ideas to focus on just one. But if you give me a free pass, I would focus on the big questions. These include the climate and disinformation crises and their impact on the social contract under the conditions of hypercapitalism and the attention economy. With other words, I am interested in the shifting social coordinates: How do they shape our institutions? And how do institutions shape communication processes? That should be enough work until retirement!

You can find all the researchers on the Scientific Advisory Board here.