Public Perception and Industry Image- Who Do They Think We Are? By Todd Bingham, President, Utah Manufacturer’s Association
What is public perception?
Do we need to change public perception and improve the image?
The social phenomenon known as public perception can be seen as the difference between an absolute truth based on facts, and a virtual truth shaped by popular opinion, media coverage, and/or reputation. Corporations and industries all face the same scrutiny by the public they serve. It can be very difficult to overcome a negative perception by the public. While individual companies may strive to do the right things for the right reasons, how the public views an industry, as a whole, can make things much more challenging to put into motion. Public perception is not necessarily inaccurate or based on something other than the truth. The public at large can often receive enough factual information in order to form a general opinion about an industry without relying on innuendo or unfounded rumors. There can be instances, however, when the perception of a situation is affected by other issues, such as cultural bias or prejudice, or media involvement. So… that being said,
What do we want them to know and believe? How do you change public perception and the image of manufacturing in Utah? What is the perception of the manufacturing industry in the United States relative to other industries? It’s been revealed that the vast majority firmly believe that a strong manufacturing industry is crucial to Americans’ standard of living and economic prosperity, as well as the national security of the United States. However, most see our nation’s global competitiveness in manufacturing as stagnant or declining. There is an ongoing concern about the image of manufacturing and whether it’s hampering efforts to encourage growth. As the share of manufacturing in the economy fell and employment in manufacturing declined sharply over the past 30 years, newspapers appeared to be full of stories of the decline and the rise of the post-industrial society.
What does the public think of manufacturing? What is our image? What do they know about it? 5
According to successive surveys, the image of manufacturing is a major issue. Attraction to careers in manufacturing due to public perception continues to hamper today’s youth and their involvement in the MFGUTAH
