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by Martin Liptrot
Riding the Waves of Corporate Social Responsibility
"Corporate responsibility" is the new management buzzword, but for some communicators it can be a difficult wave to ride. Other similar designations abound -- "CSR," "corporate social responsibility," "sustainable development," "citizenship."
These all share a similar theme—if brand is the promise, then reputation is how a company is perceived to have lived up to that promise.
At Ogilvy PR, we are unparalleled leaders in the management of brands—our founder, heritage and decades of success prove that—but the reality is that we are now in the business of reputation management too. Helping our clients ensure that their key audiences—"stakeholders" in the language of CSR—understand the values, positions, actions and intentions of the company and/or its products and services is our new mission.
The opportunity for us in public relations, therefore, is to be the leader in reputation management.
With the sometimes breathtaking emergence of new technologies, digital communications and the erosion of traditional trusted sources of information and knowledge, clients are looking for new ways to connect with their customers.
Our clients' new goal is to be relevant and meaningful in the lives of their customers and consumers; commercially attractive to financial institutions; endorsed and supported by regulators; and respected by employees, suppliers and local communities.
The responsibility for managing these incredibly demanding CSR challenges has now arrived at the front door of the chief executive office and the board of directors.
Today's annual meeting is no longer the comfortable ride through the clubby relationships with analysts and institutional shareholders of old. Employee groups, pension funds, non-governmental organizations and on-and offline activists are watching.
They can have a major impact on a company; for example BP's recent shareholder meeting became a single-issue media feast around Lord Browne's pension pay.
Overall, CSR represents a huge new business opportunity, and provides a chance to engage with our clients' senior decision-making managers. If we in public relations handle this correctly, we can help our clients understand the complex issues and audiences that their businesses face and demonstrate the added value solutions we can bring.
CSR is here -- grab your board, surf's up!