Moving from stakeholder intelligence to proactive engagement

We hope you have enjoyed this 6-part blog series exploring best-practice solutions to common challenges of corporate reputation management. As a complement to these blog postings, we have summarized the key points in a brief entitled Building Resilient Corporate Reputations: A GlobeScan Brief on Reputation Best Practice, which is available for download here. To wrap up this series, I’d like to discuss the importance of moving beyond the gathering of stakeholder intelligence to proactively engaging with stakeholders more deeply. This … “Moving from stakeholder intelligence to proactive engagement”

3 Lessons for Brands from Sustainable Brands London 2013

Last week, my colleague, Abbie Curtis, and I enjoyed a fantastic couple of days at Sustainable Brands London. Monday started with insights on declining trust in brands and the rise of feminine values, and Tuesday ended with lessons for intrapreneurs and how to be a successful change agent. There was an abundance of research, advice and case studies in between. I’ve just selected 3 lessons for organizations that are trying to cement their position as sustainable brands. These stood out … “3 Lessons for Brands from Sustainable Brands London 2013”

Are you converting data into true business intelligence?

In my previous post, we looked at the importance of maximizing value by integrating intelligence streams, and developing an integrated framework that includes key indicators across primary research, secondary research, and media monitoring. The next goal for any corporate reputation strategy is to really go beyond the data and to apply the insights to drive better decision making.   While regularly benchmarking and tracking a company’s reputation is a valuable exercise , the simple collection of data and monitoring of … “Are you converting data into true business intelligence?”

Are your intelligence streams integrated?

In my last post, I outlined the importance of gathering stakeholder intelligence from a wide diversity of audiences that can impact your reputation. The aim should be to capture the complexity of the company, starting with the most important markets and audiences, and scaling up over time. In this post, I want to talk about how to maximize value by integrating intelligence streams. With the massive popularity and impact of online and social media, companies need to frequently monitor how … “Are your intelligence streams integrated?”

8 ways to build open innovation and collaboration with stakeholders

Last night I attended a forum on Radical Collaboration, hosted by The Crowd. Here’s my perspective on how to build ‘open innovation’ with stakeholders, from what I heard in the great TED style talks, panel Q&A and our stimulating round table discussion: 1. Have a common goal. In her talk, Jenny Holdcroft (Policy Director at global union IndustriALL) explained that the success of the Bangladesh Accord depends on companies and unions working towards a common goal to transform the industry. In areas … “8 ways to build open innovation and collaboration with stakeholders”

Is your reputation measurement system inclusive enough?

Building upon the last post in this blog series on Building Resilient Corporate Reputations, we looked at the importance of an aligned organization. We also advocated using a customized approach to reputation management to ensure your company is asking the right questions to the right people. The next key step is for organizations to obtain a 360 degree perspective of their reputation, from people who know the organization well, but also from those who don’t. Many companies shortchange their reputation … “Is your reputation measurement system inclusive enough?”

Is your company aligned and are you asking the right questions?

In my previous post, I discussed the importance of understanding the external operating environment for best practice reputation management. It is equally important that companies understand the internal operating environment, to understand which approaches to reputation management will work best within the company’s culture. For a reputation management strategy to be successful and sustainable, it is critical that there be cross-functional buy-in and engagement across the business – people need to believe in the process and see reputation as “everyone’s … “Is your company aligned and are you asking the right questions?”

Why are online Collaboration Forums effective for engaging stakeholders?

The final blog in our series on stakeholder engagement (part 1 | part 2) looks at the psychosocial factors that underlie group brain storming, and why collaborative forums are emerging as an effective tool for business. We know that collaboration between individuals is particularly effective when attempting to generate unique and constructive solutions to problems. Group brainstorming has been shown to produce more high quality and relevant ideas compared to individual efforts1, 2. Exposure to others’ ideas has been shown … “Why are online Collaboration Forums effective for engaging stakeholders?”

What is the future of stakeholder engagement?

We’re starting this week’s blog with a brief history of stakeholder engagement on corporate responsibility. Looking back to the eighties, corporate stakeholder engagement on sustainability was initially oriented towards governments and environmental compliance. Push-back on infrastructure and development from communities was the main catalyst for public consultations, which were largely local, box-ticking exercises. As we moved into the 1990s, the rise of a more empowered civil society culminated with the Battle of Seattle protests at the WTO meeting as the … “What is the future of stakeholder engagement?”