Towards a new model to describe the organisation–stakeholder relationship-building process: A strategic corporate communication perspective

Abstract

Successful organisations depend on stakeholder perceptions to address changes in turbulent organisational environments, report on the social and environmental impact of activities, the prevalence of public activism, globalisation, emerging issues and crises, and the need to be good corporate citizens through ethical and socially responsible behaviour. Despite the current emphasis on stakeholder relations and management, a lack of research exists on how to build these relationships. This article aims to report and discuss the findings of a study that explored the lack of organisation–stakeholder relationship (OSR) building models, to emphasise the elements and development of an OSR and highlight the need for a generic, strategic, integrated approach for sustainable OSR to contribute towards organisational effectiveness. This will be done using an exploratory literature review to constitute a conceptual framework for OSR building, of which the principles of the framework will be measured among leading Johannesburg Stock Exchange-listed South African organisations, by means of a quantitative web-based survey and qualitative one-on-one interviews. The dominant focus on organisational stakeholders has provided added impetus and importance to the role of corporate communication, hence, this article will simultaneously endeavour to highlight the importance of practising corporate communication strategically, by emphasising its role in OSR.     

Poor communities as corporate stakeholders: A bottom-up research approach

Abstract

This article strives to provide an understanding of salient issues affecting the daily lives of participants from various developing communities in the country, and within the bigger picture, discuss some implications for organisations that affect or are affected by such communities. A key implication is that the process of constant connectivity and dialogue, including dissent, with communities as corporate stakeholders, may be more important in establishing trust and earning accountability, than the outcomes of well-planned corporate social responsibility campaigns. The study is based on qualitative research undertaken between 2006 and 2008 in 35 South African rural and township communities in Limpopo Province, North-West and Gauteng. A bottom-up research approach was proposed by the researchers, which, instead of evaluating the effects of corporate communication campaigns on communities, was to begin at a grassroots level with communities themselves, by exploring top-of-mind issues. From the findings it was apparent that a vicious cycle of extreme and endemic poverty was the focal area that occupied community members’ minds. This study provides a linkage between certain aspects of corporate social responsibility, normative stakeholder theory, strategic communication and stakeholder dialogue, in an attempt to provide organisations with guidelines to evaluate and respond to the challenges of poor communities, and offer a perspective on the way strategic communication with poor communities should take place.     

What Dispute Systems Design Can Learn from Project Management

The discipline of project management (PM), a well‐recognized management approach to large‐scale, high‐cost projects, has much to offer the field of dispute systems design (DSD). This article explores the core concepts of each discipline, noting similarities and differences, with a particular focus on stakeholder management, scope management, risk management, and quality management. Two case studies, General Electric's early dispute resolution program and Chevron's corporate social responsibility initiative in the Niger Delta, demonstrate the application of project management priciples in two DSD scenarios: one with internal corporate stakeholders and one with external community stakeholders. The authors identify five key lessons that dispute systems design can draw from project management and identify areas for further study.     

Relationship Management with Managers of Countrywide Offices of SEESA: A Case Study

Employees are a crucial stakeholder group for organisations since they determine the degree to which they achieve their goals. It is therefore necessary to build strong relationships with the workforce to encourage employee engagement, which implies that employees’ individual goals are aligned to those of the organisation. To build strong relationships, internal communication should be managed strategically. However, when an organisation has offices around the country, internal relationship management can be impeded, which adversely affects the entity attaining its goals. In this qualitative study, the case of SEESA, a national labour law organisation specialising in providing legal services to employers, was investigated to determine the way in which it manages relationships with its nationwide managers. A mixed-method approach was followed, using semi-structured interviews and questionnaires to gather data. The findings indicated that, despite studies elsewhere indicating a communication and relationship building strategy as a prerequisite for building strong organisation-employee relationships, the outcomes of such relationships can be present without a formal internal communication strategy. This can occur provided the organisation is inclined towards a symmetrical world view, has an open culture and encourages two-way communication with top management. Suggestions for managing relationships with employees in nationwide offices are made.     

Strategies moulding brand reputation building in the early 21st century

Abstract

Since the mid-1990s, the changing political, economic and social environment and globalisation have contributed to change business behaviour in South Africa. Nowadays, business strategies are built alongside sustainable business goals, with renewed emphasis on quality and brand reputation management. Business intelligence (BI) systems and research demand show clear emphasis on customer brand franchising and brand citizenship in particular. Brands are no longer used only as marketing communication tools. Nowadays, brand companies seem well aware of stakeholders’ concerns with non-financial business aspects and are responding through re-branding, improved customer relations and good corporate citizenship behaviour. Consequently, direct customer feedback via customer satisfaction and franchise-building research, as well as corporate citizenship image and perception surveys have emerged as key research tools that generate business intelligence used to build and protect company reputation. The way in which contemporary research designs are constructed to guide reputation building and protection, and how these inputs are used to guide business reputation strategies form the core of this article. The discussion reveals that corporate reputation and brand management functions are increasingly being synchronised in support of customer-based brand equity, customer franchise and reputation building. This suggests substantial communality between the management functions relating to corporate reputation and branding. Corporate branding and reputation are anticipated to evolve as a core business strategy aimed at building and protecting corporate identity and image. To meet this endeavour, companies will continue to brand their identity and image and create brand awareness and customer relations to enable stakeholders to differentiate company products, services and features from competitor offerings, but will simultaneously strive to enhance customer loyalty. Customer care and ethical behaviour will probably lead the thrust in creating positive corporate reputation. As long as corporate reputation building and branding are pursued, the demand for business intelligence information related to these topics will remain a priority and will guide future marketing and communication strategies in building and protecting corporate reputation.     

Utilising an Ubuntu-Centred Communication Management Framework to Analyse CSR Messages on SNSS

ABSTRACT

This article is the result of qualitative research conducted on the corporate social responsibility (CSR) communication disseminated by two financial institutions, FNB and Capitec, on their social networking sites (SNSs). The research employed a phenomenological research paradigm to explore the interactions between the financial institutions and their stakeholders on Facebook and Twitter. Collected data were analysed by means of interpretative discourse analysis as well as two computer-aided qualitative data analysis software programmes, Leximancer and Centim. The authors categorised the financial institutions’ CSR communication in themes and coded it according to a newly formulated theoretical framework of Ubuntu-centred communication practices on SNSs. It was found that FNB's CSR communication was based on Ubuntu values whereas Capitec's CSR communication did not exhibit key characteristics, such as the inclusion of narratives and archetypes, sound conflict resolution strategies, and the presentation of mutually beneficial solutions to societal issues. Based on the findings, it is proposed that organisation-stakeholder interactions can be facilitated when organisations disseminate CSR messages and constructively engage with stakeholders on SNSs. Moreover, culturally-specific communication management strategies, such as Ubuntu-centred communication, should be infused in holistic communication models to foster participatory online communities which are characterised by dialogue, mutual trust and reciprocity.     

A computational text analysis of the South African banking sector's representation of its core values: A corpus-driven approach

Abstract

This article uses corpus linguistics (CL) to computationally quantify and qualitatively explain how meaning is represented vis-à-vis core values in the text of the 2009 annual reports of the South African banking sector. Core values prescribe the behaviour, attitude and character of an organisation and may be indicative of an organisation's ideologies. This article draws on the work of Fox (2006a and b), who advances the new development of merging linguistics and corporate communication, and in so doing adopting a transdisciplinary perspective on language. Written text is an ideal method with which to capture an organisation's ideologies through corporate public discourse (CPD) such as annual reports, because the organisation can control the content and distribution. However, as corporate messages are generally written by the ‘entity’ and not by the individual, writers essentially accept the banks’ practicing power through consent. The results illustrate how the repeated use of content words may skilfully position the reader of the text positively towards the South African banking sector's core values represented in the text. Researching language in organisations not only facilitates strategic competence in comprehending communication processes, but can also be beneficial in terms of more credible CPD.     

Towards contextualising stakeholder relationship indicators for corporate–community relationships

Abstract

In circumstances that are substantially different from the norm, new ways of thinking about those alternative contexts are necessary. In the context of corporate governance and corporate social investment (CSI) the relationship between corporate donors and community organisations is regarded as important, but the indicators used to describe this relationship need revisiting. The argument in this article is that context-specific indicators are needed to bring the true nature of the corporate–community relationship to the fore. In addition, a suggestion is made that such indicators be both rigorous and relevant in describing the relationship. In an interpretative, qualitative exploration of data from individual interviews it was revealed that well-known relationship indicators were inadequate to describe the relationship between corporate donors and community organisations accurately. The article could serve as the first step in reviewing stakeholder relationship indicators from organisational communication research and adapting these indicators to a specific context.     

A meta-theoretical glimpse into the future of South African corporate communication management

Abstract

This article provides a concise discussion of meta-theoretical (critical-rhetorical, feminist and postmodernistic) approaches towards corporate communication management utilising meta-ethical points of departure with the aim of providing a glimpse into the meta-theoretical future of corporate communication management. The discussion is supplemented by an analysis of the challenges that face organisations in the fast-changing environment of the twenty-first century and corporate communication management as a critical/strategic management function that has the potential to assist organisations in adapting and remaining relevant to their environment, and by implication to the needs of their key internal and external stakeholders. The article is concluded by an explication of corporate communication management as being inextricably linked to ethical conduct and a product of the amalgamation of different meta-theoretical approaches, which interprets and advances the values of both stakeholders and the organisation in a manner that socially and ethically responsible, dialogical mutually adaptive, and contributes to democratising the organisation's decision-making and management processes. This poses challenges to, and insight into, the meta-theoretical approach held while engaging in discourse on the comprehensive nature of corporate communication management.     

Challenges in donor–NPO relationships in the context of corporate social investment

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this article is to highlight challenges in the relationship between corporate donors and recipient NPOs within the context of corporate social investment (CSI) in South Africa and to link the relational challenges to problems NPOs face in general. It is theoretically argued that CSI forms an important part of sustainable development and that NPOs, in turn, form an integral part of many organisations’ social investment. The challenges faced by them need addressing for the sake of NPOs, donors and society as a whole. It was found that although the stakeholder relationship generally shows both positive and negative perceptions of the parties involved, the challenges that exist can be traced to challenges in the everyday functioning of NPOs, including resource limitations and dependence; staffing problems; and strategy, management and environmental challenges. These challenges facing NPOs manifest in their relationship with donors and can be seen in the power imbalance in the relationship that favours donors, the lack of transparency by NPOs, divergent views on commitment, the questioned competence of NPOs, time constraints in the execution of activities, a perceived incomprehension by NPOs of the realities of the business world, and an unwillingness on the part of donors to allow NPOs some decision-making power.     

In whose name? The accountability of corporate social responsibility

Stakeholder dialogue, participation, and partnership have become mainstream concepts in international development policy, in particular in the field of corporate social responsibility (CSR). However, the accountability of multi-stakeholder initiatives on CSR to their intended beneficiaries in the global South is increasingly questioned. This paper looks at how the agendas of some initiatives in the areas of ethical trade and sustainability reporting are driven by what Western NGOs push for, what large companies consider feasible, and what consultants and accountants seek to provide. It describes how the resulting practices and discourse restrict change and marginalise alternative approaches developed by Southern stakeholders. It is argued that enthusiasm for stakeholder dialogue, participation, and partnership in CSR matters, and beyond, needs to be reconceived with democratic principles in mind. ‘Stakeholder democracy’ is offered as a conceptual framework for this endeavour, and some recommendations are made for NGOs, companies, and governments.     

Communication strategy for community development: a case study of the Heifer project – South Africa

ABSTRACT

The objective of this qualitative pilot study was to develop a model to be used by a development agency in formulating communication strategy for community development, providing direction to development communication (DC) specialists/facilitators to play a more strategic role in the development process. Based on the findings of a literature study on communication strategy for development, as well as a case study on The Heifer Project – South Africa, the researchers suggest that an existing model for developing corporate communication strategy (Steyn 2000a) can be used for this purpose.

A major insight that emerged from the study was that the existing model for developing corporate communication strategy might also be applied in another context (with slight adaptations in terminology), namely to formulate ‘corporate’ communication strategy for the community/action group involved in the development project – more aptly to be called ‘development’ communication strategy. Such a strategy would make the participatory approach to development, and especially the participatory communication approach, even more ‘participatory’, since the strategic information on issues and stakeholders will be provided by the community and its designated communicator(s) themselves.     

Cultural dimensions of South African employees and internal organisational communication satisfaction

Abstract

This article aims to help communication practitioners know which cultural dimensions are associated with communication satisfaction. The meta-theoretical framework is the Excellence Theory of Public Relations and Communication Management (Dozier, Grunig and Grunig 1995, 35). The conceptual theoretical framework; cultural dimensions by Geert Hofstede (Hofstede and Hofstede 2005, 39) and communication satisfaction by Downs and Hazen (1977, 68) and Gray and Laidlaw (2004, 427) fit into the Excellence Theory of Public Relations and Communication Management. The research design was a quantitative survey with an online questionnaire as a data collection method distributed among a random sample. Validity was improved through pilot tests and the sampling technique. In terms of reliability this survey's scores sufficed as accurate and consistent, scoring above the acceptable score of 0.7 (Van Heerden 2001); 0.72 for national culture and 0.83 for communication satisfaction. Regression analysis was used to analyse the relationship between cultural dimensions (independent variables) and communication satisfaction (dependent variable). The findings clearly showed that national cultural dimensions have significant relationships with communication satisfaction. The implication was that internal communication practitioners could now be informed about the dynamics of the interaction between the cultural dimensions prevalent amongst South African employees and internal organisational communication satisfaction.     

Creating Stable Agreements in Marine Policy: Learning from the California South Coast Marine Life Protection Act Initiative

In this article, we examine the California South Coast Marine Life Protection Act Initiative stakeholder process, evaluate its shortcomings, and consider what could have been done differently. Our objective is to make recommendations to improve future multi‐stakeholder marine policy processes. In our view, while the South Coast stakeholder process had many positive outcomes, it failed to reach what we call here a “stable agreement.” Our analysis is based on two of the authors’ involvement (one as a facilitator and the other as a stakeholder representative) in the process and a post‐hoc survey of participants. We find that several ill‐advised process design and management choices significantly destabilized the negotiations, leading to an ultimately unstable agreement. We highlight four major problematic process design and management decisions, including the following: representation on the multi‐stakeholder group was imbalanced, the pre‐meeting caucuses were not paired with training in interest‐based negotiation, adequate incentives to negotiate toward a consensus agreement were not provided, and the use of straw voting at one point in the process was unclear and inconsistent. As a result of these and other process design and management flaws, many stakeholders believed that the process was biased and that their ends would be better achieved by anchoring negotiations and engaging in positional bargaining. Ultimately, this meant that near‐consensus on a single cross‐interest marine protected area proposal was not reached, the scientific guidelines put forth were not fully met, the process was not and is not viewed as fair by the stakeholders directly or indirectly involved, and the marine protected area regulations lack broad‐scale support. These pitfalls of the South Coast stakeholder process could have been avoided had the management and facilitation team consistently followed best practices in dispute resolution. We recommend that future marine planning processes learn from this example, particularly those occurring in highly complex, urban ocean environments.     

Exploring project sustainability: using a multiperspectival,multidimensional approach to frame inquiry

In development studies, programme sustainability has gained significant attention in recent years. One challenge to sustainability is the range of stakeholders involved in international development projects, presenting multiple perspectives and priorities, not always in harmony, nor necessarily communicated. This article presents an approach to facilitating stakeholder sustainability dialogue, an analytic framework for programme sustainability inquiry comprising five dimensions: political; economic; institutional; ownership; and practice. To demonstrate this framework we describe inquiry into stakeholder perspectives in one Afghanistan education development project. The results indicate the value of multidimensional, multiperspectival inquiry in identifying areas of potential sustainability challenge and strength.     

Introduction: South Africa's multiple languages in a shifting media environment

Abstract

The global South, as the collective for the peripheries of mainstream development is known, is often regarded as merely a beneficiary of Northern-borne notions in the field of organisational communication. The problem is that the Southern context and circumstance do not always mirror those of the North, meaning that these dominant, revered theories are not necessarily applicable. One Southern context is that of the South African mining and construction industries, which is seen as notoriously dangerous, plagued by various obstacles to internal organisational communication (such as illiteracy and diversity), and what Le Roux and Naudé (2009, 29) refer to as ‘historical baggage’. The research question of this article is whether congenital Northern communication theories can be adequately incorporated into the unique global South, in order to fulfil the important task of communicating safety information to employees. The article explores the appropriate implementation of the principles of the excellence theory, the stakeholder theory as well as the relationship management theory, and the research methodology includes interviews, focus groups and quantitative questionnaires at two organisations. The result of the empirical research is the amalgamation and reworking of these theories’ principles into a model for internal safety communication applicable to the South.     

Employer–employee relationships at Lonmin Platinum: A developing South African perspective

Abstract

More than ever, companies are confronted with the importance of developing and maintaining relationships with their strategic stakeholders, such as employees. These relationships should be aimed at balancing the interests of the company with the interests of said stakeholders. Managing relationships with stakeholders is difficult in itself and even more so within the complex context of the South African mining industry. The aim of this article is to determine guidelines that could be used to ascertain employer–employee relationship type and relationship quality in the mining sector. In 2004, a quantitative questionnaire survey was conducted with a stratified quota sample of 508 company employees as part of a commissioned stakeholder perception survey. In addition, qualitative focus-group sessions were conducted to contextualise and clarify the quantitative results. The research indicated that the employer–employee relationship at Lonmin Platinum could be classified as an exchange, rather than a communal relationship. Employees generally perceived the quality of their relationship with the company in a negative way. Employees from all job levels had low levels of trust in the company. This study contributes to a growing body of research aimed at trying to understand the nature of employer–employee relations within large companies in a developing society, where companies are faced with the challenge of communicating to and managing diverse workforces.     

Orchestrating peace in South Sudan: exploring the effectiveness of the European Union’s mediation support

ABSTRACT

Previous research has primarily focused on the EU’s high-profile involvement as direct mediator in peace negotiations. Conversely, less attention has been devoted to the EU’s support to third parties’ mediation efforts, which is a significant component of its mediation activities. Addressing this research gap, this article develops a conceptual framework for the systematic analysis of EU mediation support, identifying key mediation support techniques and the conditions for their success. In terms of mediation support techniques, the EU may rely on “endorsement”, “coordination”, “assistance”, and “lending leverage” to empower and steer third party mediators in line with its mediation objectives and values. We illustrate the utility of the conceptual framework for the EU’s support to IGAD in mediating in South Sudan’s civil war. We find that the EU has contributed significantly to IGAD’s empowerment in terms of endorsement, coordination, assistance, and lending leverage. Simultaneously, our analysis also points to important challenges in the EU-IGAD relationship, which relate to challenges concerning strategic engagement with IGAD’s internal politics that are marked by diverging interests and ties of its member states to the conflict parties.     

Strategic integrated communication: An alternative perspective of integrated marketing communication?

Abstract

In spite of the increased emphasis being placed on integrated marketing communication (IMC), limited attempts have been made to critically analyse existing viewpoints, the evolution of the concept and its application. The research problem of this article is based on this limited mindset, which has arguably created a problem in understanding IMC as a process and in the integration of actions, which appear to be superficial in most cases. The main objective here is to contribute to these viewpoints by addressing the problem through an analysis of existing literature, to stimulate much-needed necessary debate on this phenomenon and advance IMC thinking, which is increasingly being challenged from the perspective of the emerging paradigm of strategic communication. This is done through a combined categorical, theoretical and integrated communicative perspective. The author highlights the need to approach IMC thinking from a strategic and corporate brand perspective, which could help engender dramatically changing expectations and demands across organisations, for a clear understanding of IMC practice and theory. Subsequently, taking an alternative re-orientated strategic perspective, based on all current approaches, is proposed into what is termed ‘strategic integrated communication’ (SIC). The focus in SIC is on the strategic intent of the organisation to enhance strategic, integrated communication and knowledge management of information through creative media strategies and environmental scanning. All of this should be based on trust, loyalty, integrity and credibility, to maintain valuable long-term stakeholder relationships.