Lens or prism? How organisations sustain multiple and competing reputations
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to challenge singular definitions, measurements and applications of corporate reputation which tend to be reductionist. The authors rebuff such narrow representations of reputation by showing the multiplicity of reputation in the case of a global management consulting firm and demonstrate how it has sustained such reputations.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a large cross-country qualitative case study based on interviews, focus groups, non-participant observations, workshops and a fieldwork diary, dimensions of reputation are highlighted by drawing on perceptions from multiple stakeholder groups in different geographies.
Findings
The authors find significant differences in perceptions of reputation between and within stakeholder groups, with perceptions changing across dimensions and geographies.
Originality/value
The theoretical implications of the research indicate a plurality of extant reputations, suggesting that a prism is more suited to representing corporate reputation than a singular, lens-like focus which is too narrow to constitute reputation. This paper offers theoretical and practical suggestions for how global firms can build and sustain multiple and competing corporate reputations.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to acknowledge the generous funding for this research from the Centre for Corporate Reputation at the University of Oxford.
Citation
Harvey, W.S., Tourky, M., Knight, E. and Kitchen, P. (2017), "Lens or prism? How organisations sustain multiple and competing reputations", European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 51 No. 4, pp. 821-844. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJM-03-2016-0122
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited