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Communication in Organizations

Code: 101846 ECTS Credits: 6
2025/2026
Degree Type Year
Prevention and Integral Safety and Security FB 2

Contact

Name:
Jordi Llobet Llorens
Email:
jordi.llobet.llorens@uab.cat

Teaching groups languages

You can view this information at the end of this document.


Prerequisites

This subject does not have any pre-requirements


Objectives and Contextualisation

Organizations linked to security and emergencies have their own communicative needs and differentiated characteristics from those of any other organism. These organizations, whether public or private, need to project their image, whether due to obligations deriving from the legislation (for example, in the field of Civil Protection), or to enjoy a good reputation and consolidate its brand as a reference.
Students of the Degree in Prevention and Comprehensive Security, as future professionals who will be part of or will have an interlocution with these organizations, must have knowledge related to the functioning of the communication systems of a company, administration or other body, especially those linked to the world of security and emergencies. Communication is a transversal reality that affects and reaches all
elements of an organization, by simple or complex whatever.
Communicating strategically is a must. How to communicate, who and through what tools, the role of social networks or the media in the communicative strategy of an institution or company are elements to know from a prevention and security professional .
You also need to know the mechanisms to communicate communicatively a crisis, how to detect it and manage it so that the negative effects on the reputation of any organization are controlled. This subject offers an overview on the communication of the organizations and specific of the communication of the organizations related to the security and emergencies. The student will be able to obtain the necessary basic knowledge about the subject focused on the professional practice.
 
TRAINING OBJECTIVES
 
Achieve basic knowledge about the reality of the communication of organizations in the current environment, especially of organizations linked to security and emergencies. Understanding the information mechanisms of the media and how they interact with public and private organizations. Understand the media landscape of our environment. Understand the structure, mechanisms and channels of internal and external communication of an organization. Analyze communicative skills and gain sufficient knowledge to communicate effectively in the role of spokesman. To know the functioning of the social networks applied to the world of communication of organizations linked to security and emergencies.


Competences

  • Act with ethical responsibility and respect for fundamental rights and duties, diversity and democratic values.
  • Be able to adapt to unexpected situations.
  • Communicate information , ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised publics.
  • Formulate commercial strategies in the security sector.
  • Generate innovative and competitive proposals in research and in professional activity developing curiosity and creativity.
  • Identify, manage and resolve conflicts.
  • Maintain a positive attitude with respect to professional and personal growth.
  • Make changes to methods and processes in the area of knowledge in order to provide innovative responses to society's needs and demands.
  • Show respect for diversity and the plurality of ideas, people and situations.
  • Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
  • Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  • Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  • Students must develop the necessary learning skills to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
  • Take sex- or gender-based inequalities into consideration when operating within one's own area of knowledge.
  • Use the capacity for analysis and synthesis to solve problems.
  • Work in institutional and interprofessional networks.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Analyse the sex- or gender-based inequalities and the gender biases present in one's own area of knowledge.
  2. Analyse the situation and identify the points that are best.
  3. Apply basic communication and forms of analysis of public behaviour and marketing strategies for the prevention and integral security sector.
  4. Apply the different concepts involved in the internal and external communication of an organisation.
  5. Be able to adapt to unexpected situations.
  6. Communicate using language that is not sexist or discriminatory.
  7. Critically analyse the principles, values and procedures that govern professional practice.
  8. Explain the explicit and implicit deontological code for the area of knowledge.
  9. Generate innovative and competitive proposals in research and in professional activity developing curiosity and creativity.
  10. Identify, manage and resolve conflicts.
  11. Identify situations in which a change or improvement is needed.
  12. Maintain a positive attitude with respect to professional and personal growth.
  13. Propose new methods or well-founded alternative solutions.
  14. Show respect for diversity and the plurality of ideas, people and situations.
  15. Students must be capable of applying their knowledge to their work or vocation in a professional way and they should have building arguments and problem resolution skills within their area of study.
  16. Students must be capable of collecting and interpreting relevant data (usually within their area of study) in order to make statements that reflect social, scientific or ethical relevant issues.
  17. Students must be capable of communicating information, ideas, problems and solutions to both specialised and non-specialised audiences.
  18. Students must develop the necessary learning skills to undertake further training with a high degree of autonomy.
  19. Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
  20. Use the capacity for analysis and synthesis to solve problems.
  21. Work in institutional and interprofessional networks.

Content

UNIT 1.- THE COMMUNICATIVE PROCESS: history and evolution of human and technological communication.
 
UNIT 2.- TYPOLOGY AND OPERATION OF THE COMMUNICATION MEDIA: relationship with public and private organizations. Journalistic genres and sources of information. Current media landscape. Information shows.
 
UNIT 3.- SOCIAL NETWORKS. Characteristics and trends. Virtual reality. Artificial intelligence. Fake news and manipulation.
 
UNIT 4.- CORPORATE COMMUNICATION: institutional strategies. Advertising, propaganda, marketing and dissemination channels.
 
UNIT 5.- CRISIS COMMUNICATION: preparation, detection and management. Study of cases.
 
UNIT 6.- THE COMMUNICATION OF SECURITY AND EMERGENCIES: singularities and adaptation to the new Paradigm. Study of cases.
 
UNIT 7.- THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE MESSAGE. PUBLIC SPEAKING TECHNIQUES: analysis of communication skills in the role of spokesperson. Characteristics of the story and the message. The use of language from an inclusive, gender and non-sexist perspective. The power of nonverbal communication. Practices and video recording.

Activities and Methodology

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Master classes with ICT support and active student participation. Evaluation. 44 1.76
Type: Supervised      
Tutorials to support the realization of practical and theoretical work. 12 0.48
Type: Autonomous      
Realization, exhibition and discussion of exercises and case studies individually and / or in groups and individual and / or group work 94 3.76 19

Teaching language: Catalan.

This study plan gives great and necessary prominence to the self-learning of the students. However, this does not exclude the survival of a percentage of directed activities that would materialize, on the one hand, in master classes with ICT support and the inclusion of dynamic tools, and on the other, in supervision and teacher advice in individual practices and/or or groups of students.
 
Regarding autonomous activities, students must:
 
- To analyze and resolve different communicative casuistry, preparing individual and/or group work. Present in public defined or simulated topics, according to their specialization, and according to the variables that they will find in their working life.
- Plan personal study to seek the necessary consolidation of knowledge and pass the subject.
 
In the supervised classes, the teacher gives master sessions, distributing the time in a part of theoretical-practical content, followed by the communicative analysis of a current issue and, later, involving the students in learning skills and strategies for public speaking. and as spokespersons.
 
In this sense, the classes will be energized with audiovisual material, objects of historical analysis, article readings, group debates, individual arguments, construction and use of non-sexist and egalitarian language, virtual creativity, as well as the invited participation of leading professionals. . It is also possible, outside of class days and on a voluntary basis for the students, to visit a public or private organization, contextualizing some of the topics taught.
 
In the classes assigned in the calendar as practices (Saturday/Wednesday), attendance is mandatory since, due to the nature of the activities, the active participation of the students is required. For any exception, it will be necessary to present the document accrediting the impossibility of attending class, notifying the professor by email and with a copy to academic coordination, for evaluation.
In the supervised activities, the student receives the advice and advice of the teacher in the works and practices, as well as tutorials, upon request, as reinforcement to advance in the learning of the contents and subjects of the subject.
 
In these activities, students will acquire the following skills: CT11, CE3 and CE7.
Finally, the student will be subject to an evaluation, this being a percentage sum of the grades obtained in the assignments or practices, the presence and active participation in the classroom, and a final test, written and/or oral, with all the subject contents.
 
Tutorials with teachers will be arranged by email, and may be face-to-face or by video meeting.
 
Note: 15 minutes of a class will be reserved, within the calendar established by the center/degree, for the completion by the students of the surveys to evaluate the performance of the teaching staff and the evaluation of the subject/module.

Annotation: Within the schedule set by the centre or degree programme, 15 minutes of one class will be reserved for students to evaluate their lecturers and their courses or modules through questionnaires.


Assessment

Continous Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Written and/or oral tests that allow assessing knowledge purchased by the student 50% 0 0 5, 7, 1, 2, 4, 3, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 19, 18, 17, 15, 16, 14, 21, 20
Delivery of the exercises and work done by the students. Active participation in the classroom. 50% 0 0 5, 7, 1, 2, 4, 3, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 19, 18, 17, 15, 16, 14, 21, 20

Continued avaluation
 
The evaluation system of the subject will consist of 3 items:
 
1 - Presence and active participation in the classroom (10%)
 
2 - The delivery of different assignments and subject practices (40%):
 
     • Individually, the preparation of a communication analysis work.
     • As a group, the elaboration and presentation of an institutional communication campaign related to security, prevention and/or emergencies.
     • Individually, the video recording of an activity as a spokesperson.
 
  3 - The completion of a final test, written and/or oral, with the contents of the entire subject (50%).
The mark to pass the continuous assessment will be the result of the percentage sum of the grades of the assignments and practicals (40%), of the presence and active participation in the classroom (10%), as well as a final written test and/ or oral, with the contents of the entire subject (50%). To pass the continuous assessment, this average must be 5 or higher.
 
Unique Assessment
 
Students who opt for the single assessment will take a final synthesis test of all the content of the subject (50%) and hand in the assignments and practices of the subject (50%)
The date for this test and the delivery of the subject's assignments and practices will be the same scheduled in the schedule for the last continuous assessment exam.
The same recovery system as for continuous assessment applies.
 
Evaluation of students in the second call or more
Students who repeat the subject must take the scheduledtests and exams andhand in the assignments and practicals of the subject on the dates indicated in the Moodle classroom.
 
Recovery Exam
 
The student who does not pass the subject, who does not reach 5 (total) out of 10, in accordance with the criteria established in the two previous sections, may take a final exam as long as and when the student has been evaluated in a set of activities, the weight of which is equivalent to a minimum of two thirds of the total qualification of the subject. 
In this exam, all the contents of the subject will be reassessed.
If the final exam is passed, the subject will be approved with a maximum of 5, regardless of the grade obtained in the exam.
 

Not evaluable

If you have not been evaluated by these two third parties for not having appeared in the tests, you will receive a grade of Not Presented, without having the possibility to appear in the final remedial exam.

 
Change of date of a test or exam
 
Students who need to change an assessment date must submit the request by completing the document found in the EPSI Tutoring Moodle space.
Once completed, the document must be sent to the teaching staff of the subject and to the coordination of the Degree.
 
Review
 
At the time of carrying out each assessment activity, the teaching staff will inform the students of the mechanisms for reviewing the qualifications.
For single assessment students, the review process will be the same.
 
Other considerations
 
Due to unforeseen circumstances that prevent the normal development of the subject, the teaching staff may modify both the methodology and the evaluation system of the subject.
 
Without prejudice to other disciplinary measures deemed appropriate, and in accordance with current academic regulations, "in the eventthat the student commits any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation inthe grade of an assessment act , this evaluation act will be graded with a 0, regardless of the disciplinary process that may be instituted. In the event that several irregularities occur in the evaluation acts of the same subject, the final grade for this subject will be 0”.
 
 
Plagiarism

If during the correction there are indications that an activityor work has been carried out with answers assisted by artificial intelligence, the teacher may complement the activity with a personal interview to corroborate the authorship of the text.

 


Bibliography

  • 1. Basic course bibliography:

    • Bermejillo, Ana. El portavoz corporativo: Manual de supervivència. Baltha Publishing, 2020
    • CANEL, María José. La comunicación de las instituciones públicas. Madrid: Tecnos, 2007.
    • CASTELLS, Manuel. Comunicación y poder. Madrid: Alianza Editorial, 2009.
    • GUILLAMET, J. Història del periodisme. Barcelona: Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 2003.
    • LEITH, SAM. ¿Me hablas a mí?: La retórica, de Aristóteles a Obama. Madrid: TAURUS, 2012.
    • VARIOS AUTORES. Comunicación política en tiempos de coronavirus. Barcelona: UPF-Ideograma, 2020. https://www.upf.edu/documents/220602201/233560922/Definitiu+Comunicaci%C3%B3n+Coronavirus/1c1d3def-34ae-fe5d-0019-ef40c936b0e3
    • WESTON, ANTHONY. Las claves de la argumentación. Madrid: Editorial Ariel, 2011.

    2. Complementary bibliography:

    • KAPUSCINSKI, RYSZARD. Viajes con Herodoto, Anagrama, 2008.
    • LOSADA DÍAZ, José Carlos. (NO) CRISIS La comunicación de crisis en un mundo conectado. Barcelona: Editorial UOC, 2018.
    • MARTÍN VIVALDI, Gonzalo. Curso de Redacción, Madrid, Paraninfo, 1994.
    • PONT, Carles. Comunicar las emergencias. Actores, protocolos y nuevas tecnologías. Barcelona: Editorial UOC, 2013.
    • RODRÍGUEZ, Encarnación. Comunicación de riesgo y estudio de caso. Los polígonos químicos españoles. Barcelona: Editorial UOC, 2016.

Software

This subject will use the basic software of the Office 365 package.


Groups and Languages

Please note that this information is provisional until 30 November 2025. You can check it through this link. To consult the language you will need to enter the CODE of the subject.

Name Group Language Semester Turn
(TE) Theory 1 Catalan second semester afternoon
(TE) Theory 2 Catalan second semester afternoon