Nine dimensions of reputation management

When a crisis hits a company or organisation, it is usually unexpected. Consider the damage to Volkswagen, with its scandal around the rigging of emissions tests. The Democratic Alliance has been in damage-control mode for over a week since Dianne Kohler Barnard disastrously shared a Facebook post about rule under PW Botha.

Some crises can be seen coming, and averted, but most of them are unanticipated. Think of Woolworths and the Pharrell Williams collaboration, sparking a pro-Palestinian protest over Woolworths’ trade with Israel. Consider the unforeseen and difficult predicament of South African Tourism, the Department of Tourism’s official marketing body, following the debilitating effects of the new visa regulations.

Certain “crises” are not really crises at all, but internal disputes that spill into the public domain. Public service wage disputes are typical. 

However big or small the crisis, the companies and institutions that weather them best, recovering quickly to continue business as usual, are those that have their houses in order ethically, but also have measures in place to pre-empt or deal with the fallout timeously. In a phrase, this capability is called “reputation management”, and it hinges, like most things, on knowledge, accountability and a transparent communication strategy.

One of the major elements in a crisis is effective communications. Any crisis plan should include a responsive communications team, legal counsel, and pre-screened and exceptionally well-trained spokespersons with the right skills. When an issue involves integrity and moral or ethical dilemmas, it’s important to get to the moral reasoning and questioning immediately. Ask the hard questions. Get to the bottom of it.

Yet there are plenty of businesses out there that are not familiar with the components of reputation management, and therefore don’t see the value in it. Until they hit a crisis, that is. Typically a crisis results in some type of loss or change. We find ourselves wanting to get back inside the comfort of the known, but the crisis prohibits this option. Here is where the skills to navigate out of the crisis to calmer seas are essential, and the ability to recognise where the loopholes are and how to close them. Every crisis is an opportunity for improvement and growth.

Reputation management is a comprehensive approach to the communications needs of the company, internally and externally. This is different from public relations, which is managing communication between an organisation and the public. 

Reputation management encompasses all the business aspects that require communication with the public and stakeholders. This includes tracking actions, opinions, perceptions and trends around the business or brand, within the company and outside it. The most intuitive companies, those that see a crisis coming and can defuse it, are those that consistently do this intelligence-gathering.

Not least, measuring brand reputation needs to be driven by top executives and should be a deliverable by all staff. It should be added as a performance measure at all levels, as everyone is responsible for building and maintaining an organisation’s brand reputation.

Nine dimensions of reputation management have been researched by the Branding Institute in Switzerland and are widely accepted in the industry, the first being management quality. It’s very important for leaders in your organisation to be engaged. A leader who embraces and listens to the concerns of their staff ultimately gains respect and trust. This entails networking with employees, asking the hard questions. It’s about really knowing what is going on with your team, reading the nuances. It’s about consistency, keeping the relationship going and flowing.

Second is business performance, the “business case”. In the end this is about the bottom line, and how it might be improved. Intrinsically linked to this is marketing and sales effectiveness. Often businesses need to look at how they are advertising and marketing themselves, what the key messages are and who they are communicating to. Are you reaching the right stakeholders? Are you marketing business-to-business when you need to be marketing more to your consumers? What is the plan, and if it’s not working optimally, why not?

These questions are important, because marketing and brand awareness today is complex. Awareness is more about organisational and product perceptions and not just the product itself. A company’s reputation takes years and dedication to build. Strong relations with customers and all stakeholders need to be fostered and maintained to avoid the devastating results of brand reputational damage which, once lost, can take from weeks or months to five years to rebuild.

The next dimension is social responsibility.  What are you doing to upskill your people? And is your organisation involved in any upliftment or charity programmes socially? Leading with heart is the new wave of management today, and it is gaining momentum.

Fifth is ethical business practices, which speaks to corporate governance, your hiring policies (the kind of people who are on board), the company’s culture and value system, the policies and procedures in place to ensure the company’s code of conduct is upheld. Good governance is of paramount importance, and it is not just a paper-based issue. There needs to be accountability and fairness, proactively pursued, from the cleaner to the board. 

Linked this is the sixth dimension, transparency. Again, communication is key, and it needs to be driven from the top down. Senior management, however uncomfortable they may feel at times, should be regularly interacting with all members of staff, especially in crises situations. 

Social media alone is a large and growing focus of transparency. A set of key messages should be drafted to drive engagement, irrespective of the platform. The priority here is to unpack the issues, determine a strategy, and in a crisis, set the record straight as soon as possible. Show an appropriate sense of urgency and be clear on what you are doing to resolve the matter.

Employer attractiveness is the seventh dimension of reputation management, and one that some companies would shy away from, given the poor environment they provide for their employees. The companies where staff are happiest are those in good locations, where their health needs are considered. The workplace and its facilities demonstrate the corporation’s attitude to its staff.

The last two dimensions are innovation and quality of products and services, for example Uber, which has revolutionised the taxi industry with its cutting-edge digital booking format. The question is, do you have your finger on the pulse of what is happening in your industry? Do your products or services still fit the market? Is your distribution mechanism still optimal? No one thought Blackberry would be yesterday’s news at the time when everybody had one. You need to sex up your business all the time.

When the dust has settled, it’s critical to review what has happened, how it was handled and to learn from mistakes made. Monitoring feedback during a crisis allows you to adapt your strategy and tactics. It could also be an opportunity for the entire organisation to undertake new thoughts and implement additional measures that address the issues that the crisis has revealed.

Janine Hills is the chief executive of Vuma Reputation Management