Corporate Reputation: 12 Steps to Safeguarding and Recovering Reputation

Why did I chose this resource?

As Anant becomes more proactive in communicating and marketing our brand, managing and enhancing our reputation becomes increasingly important. I don’t have a lot of formal training in what corporate reputation is and what it means for us as a company. I chose this reference to gain a better understanding of the importance of reputation management for us.

What did you learn from it?

• About 63% of a corporation’s market value is attributable to its reputation
• It takes almost four years for a failed company to regain its public stature
• It takes seven consecutive positive quarters before a corporation can say that it has begun to recover from a major blow to its reputation
• Reputation risk ranks at the top of the major risks faced by global corporations

Key Knowledge

Science of Reputation

• Over both one-year and five-year periods, companies with positive reputations posted investment returns that were 6% higher than the S&P 500 Index
• well-regarded companies have more recruiting success and greater positive visibility
• When a corporation’s reputation breaks down, overcoming the negative impact takes almost four years
• earning back high public regard takes up to seven years
• When a corporation’s reputation breaks down, overcoming the negative impact takes almost four years, and earning back high public regard takes up to seven years

Reputational Risks

One study found that reputation risk ranks first among the risks that global corporations face, ahead of regulatory, human-capital, IT network-failure, market and credit risks. Three main threats to a firm’s reputation stem from:

1. Changes in communications technology. Reach of Internet makes it possible for any piece of news – accurate or inaccurate alike – to reach anyone. Companies no longer have as much control over their reputation as they used to.
   1. “Infodemics” clashes among different media as they spread combinations of facts, rumors and opinion-based commentary through different cultures. Infodemics are dangerous since the potential harm they can do to a company’s reputation can have serious, long-lasting consequences.
2. Disproportionate impact of small groups. “Microconstituencies” can generate a disproportionate impact on a company’s reputation. While unpleasant, these groups “serve a valuable purpose and should not – must not – be ignored.”
3. Critical need for public trust. Like it or not, public opinion counts. One research firm says companies should reach out to consumers the way elected officials reach out to voters – continually seeking public approval of their actions.

Reputational Repair and Recovery

1. The CEO should accept responsibility
2. Provide information
3. Heed your critics
4. Develop a sense of urgency
5. Start asking questions
6. Do a survey
7. Make culture change positive
8. Objectively assess the need for change
9. Work with the media
10. Follow a clear communication plan
11. Work every day to rebuild a damaged reputation
12. Don’t repeat past mistakes

Good quote:

“Any company’s reputation is vulnerable to getting tarnished, so leaders must protect their organizations’ public images. In many cases, companies suffer at their own hands due to financial problems, unethical activities and executive misbehavior.”

How are you using what you learned?

• We will send out client surveys next Monday (3/31/14).
• We’ll use these surveys to take stock and objectively assess how our clients perceive us as a company and, by association, our brand.
• As we review, update, and iterate our corporate strategy, we will want to add reputation management as one of the items we discuss, and evaluate how proactively we need to manage it.
• It is going to be critically important for us to not only review our past mistakes, but learn the right lessons from those situations, and make sure we act differently moving forward.

Key Changes / Key Actions

• Incorporate the concept and phrase “reputation management” into our daily lexicon at Anant
• Perform an actual data-driven evaluation of the Anant brand
•  We need to take action. We have the lessons learned from past mistakes, but we haven’t fully implemented the improvements that we have identified.
• My Q2 focus will be improving client satisfaction by improving how we communicate, execute, and deliver our services, specifically through project management process improvements, and the communicate the true cost of our service to clients.

Source : getAbstract
Name : Corporate Reputation: 12 Steps to Safeguarding and Recovering Reputation
Author : Leslie Gaines-Ross
Summary.com: Link to Book