Corporate reputation, stakeholders and the social performance‐financial performance relationship
Abstract
Purpose
To increase understanding of the role of reputation in the corporate social performance (CSP) and financial performance (FP) relationship, including contingencies.
Design/methodology/approach
Stakeholder theory is drawn on to present a model of reputation's role in the contingent CSP‐FP relationship.
Findings
CSP is affected by stakeholders' resource allocation to the organisation. This allocation is based on stakeholders' assessment of the organisation's reputation relative to stakeholders' particular expectations, which may be instrumentally and/or normatively framed. Reputation, therefore, plays a key role in the CSP‐FP relationship. Additionally, the authors propose that the equivocal results of previous research into the CSP‐FP relationship may be partly explained by organisational and market contingencies. Specifically, the authors contend that strategic fit, competitive intensity and reputation management capability moderate the CSP‐FP relationship.
Research limitations/implications
Empirical measurement issues and future research directions are discussed.
Originality/value
This paper increases the understanding of the role of reputation in the CSP‐FP relationship. Owing to its rich pedigree in research in corporate branding and reputation, marketing is uniquely positioned to contribute toward the better understanding of this issue.
Keywords
Citation
Neville, B.A., Bell, S.J. and Mengüç, B. (2005), "Corporate reputation, stakeholders and the social performance‐financial performance relationship", European Journal of Marketing, Vol. 39 No. 9/10, pp. 1184-1198. https://doi.org/10.1108/03090560510610798
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2005, Emerald Group Publishing Limited