The complexities of reputation management
An article appearing in today’s ‘Times Online’ unveils the outcome of a recent race discrimination case, concerning a well known consumer products company.
The decision of the court may affect brand value, and highlights the often complex issues large businesses face in managing their reputation.
Many organisations now readily acknowledge the benefits of adopting comprehensive CSR strategies and policies, and of effectively communicating these to all interested stakeholders. This is particularly pertinent to companies with a large retail customer base. In these instances, the ‘perceived brand image’ is obviously extremely important, and is a significant element of sales volume and pricing.
What seems apparent from this example is simply that, for an organisation to effectively manage its risk and opportunities in this area, all facets of the company must be in harmony with its CSR policy and strategy. One episode of this sort can significantly undermine a host of other initiatives (CSR reports, stakeholder communications exercises, brand building and advertising campaigns) and put the company right back to square one.
