Developing Theory Article - “Managing Corporate Reputation in Times of Global Changes and Turbulence — A Strategy for Competitiveness”.

“ManagingCorporate Reputation in Times of Global Changes and Turbulence — A Strategy forCompetitiveness”.

By: Claudia Ogrean, Mihaela Herciu, Lucian Belascu, Journal of Modern Accounting and Auditing, ISSN 1548-6583 July 2011, Vol. 7, No. 7, 726-733.

This is an article about how a company can take advantage from any opportunities as well as minimize all of the threads thanks to managerial frameworks in such global business. And the main point or important component for this framework is corporate’s reputation. To authors, reputation of corporate is a tangible asset. It is one of the competitive advantages. It is not easy to build but easy to lose. Nowadays, doing business doesn’t mean producing and selling. It becomes suggesting the best products or services solutions for a selected market segment to take as much as market shares that company can. And, players now are facing more and more competitors from international. In this situation, invisible assets in which reputation is an important factor because it is hard to imitate have more interest. And, reputation have important role in improving company image, rising competitive advantage, getting more attention from customers about company products, may accessing cheaper capital, etc.

There are different theories how corporation reputation become a strategic factor. Now, it is related to signals that company gives to public and the congruence between signals and what company actually does. Or we can have the idea that it includes internal reputation (comes from company stakeholders such as managers, workers, customers, suppliers, etc.) and external reputation (comes from external or society stakeholders).

Because of the important of corporate reputation, Fortune magazine as well as Reputation Institute have different surveys that publish the most admired companies in the world based on reputation attributes such as human resources management, assets management, financial management, global competitiveness, social responsibility, innovation, etc. Next, customers from 24 countries rate companies’ reputation for 54 highest-rated companies based on seven dimensions of reputation. They are “performance, products/services, innovation, workplace, governance, citizenship and leadership” from four perceptions of emotions “esteem, admire, trust, feeling”. From the Reputation Institute result, in 2010 Google, Sony, The Walt Disney Company, BMW, and Daimler (Mercedes-Benz) are the top-five highest reputation companies. By global reputation industry, it is “consumer products, food manufacturing, retail food, industrial products, computer, electrical & electronics, retail general, beverage, automotive”, etc., respectively.

In conclusion, from different studies and their results authors say that corporate reputation is an essential element for company success. However, it is needed to have knowledge about its transformations. For example: time, space, points of view. And, in this “crisis time” business environment changes every day, each company is facing more risks and uncertainty situations that can affect to its reputation and its competitiveness as well, a flexible and more adaptable strategy with crisis is a good strategic management for company. I think this is a good article for managers who are looking for a general knowledge about the corporate reputation and its factors. From different points of view mentioned in the article, they may have their own opinions about the managerial frameworks for their corporation in this global recession.