Corporate Affairs - Custodian of "Brand & Reputation" largest intangible assets of any business.
Friends, Thank you very much for taking out time from your very busy schedule to read my blog(s). I really feel encouraged after reading your feedback in the comments column. Friends, presenting 57th blog titled “Corporate Affairs - the custodian of largest intangible assets in any business - brand and reputation”.
Friends,
while surfing the internet I came across an article titled “All eyes and ears
on communications during the COVID-19” on www.egonzehnder.com. I’m sharing below the opening paragraph of the article
for your reference please.
The
following themes emerged from the conversation:
1. Prioritizing for the
Crisis and Beyond
2. Changing the Face of
Internal Communications
3. Redefining Leadership
Visibility in a Newly Remote World
4. Keeping Tempo and Saving
Your Sprint for the Finish
Friends,
you would agree that in today’s world of instant news and citizen journalism,
reputation can make or break balance sheet of any corporate. Safeguarding reputation
is a key critical concern of every board, and therefore, the person(s) handling
corporate affairs of a company is/are responsible for handling a multitude of
conversations in a meaningful, content-rich way.
As you know that “Corporate” is a business organization characterized by the limited liability of its owners. The process of becoming a corporate, called incorporation gives the corporate separate legal standing from its owners and protects its owners from being personally liable in the event that the corporate is sued - a condition known as limited liability. Incorporation also provides corporate with a more flexible way to manage their ownership structure.
Corporate affairs
is an important function of Corporate PR to influence or shape the thoughts of
policymakers such as NGOs, single issue groups, academics, consumer groups,
inter-governmental organisations and think tanks. A corporate affair is
responsible for a company's internal and external communications, including
government relations, public policy, corporate governance, corporate
restructuring and determination of employee attitudes in a company. Corporate
affairs is also responsible for creating and communicating a favourable public
image of the company through media campaigns designed to reach investors,
consumers, employees, industry analysts, customers, government agencies and
other stakeholders.
Today corporate affair is a strategic business division in major corporate houses because corporate have to manage reputation while developing new skills, perspectives and relationships to interact and engage with various regulating agencies and the government. Corporate affairs can help the organisation(s) make better decisions on strategic investment decisions or operational initiatives/changes, by showing business leaders the potential downside of certain strategic options and helping them appreciate the unintended consequences of these actions. Corporate affair is taking on more responsibility for areas such as marketing, brand management, customer experience and commercial development. This all fits with the idea of the ‘increasing indivisibility of corporate and brand reputation.
Across the world many CEOs have rated reputation risk as ‘more important’ or ‘much more important’ than other strategic risks their organisations are facing. Even some of the most popular corporate brands have also been dangerously exposed to reputational threats. Seen through the prism of risk mitigation, the role of the corporate affairs is therefore an important one in safeguarding organisation’s reputation.
As per Julia Meaghan, chief executive at VMA Group “Corporate affairs is custodian of the largest intangible assets in any business i.e. brand and reputation”. Corporate affairs play an important role by providing an external perspective on key decisions of management. Communications once existed in a controlled environment with a focus on delivery – ‘trading, trailing, spinning and selling in news’ but today it is about strategy and content. Corporate affairs help the organisation(s) make better decisions such as strategic investment decisions or operational initiatives/changes, by showing business leaders the potential downside of certain strategic options and helping them appreciate the unintended consequences of these actions. In so doing, the corporate affairs can help provoke discussions that might not otherwise be had.
Corporate affairs can help to create and develop relationships that result in a more favourable operating environment that advances the interests and prospects of organisations. Corporate reputation is the responsibility of everyone in a business that gives a critical role to play in advising and influencing from the board to the frontline. And the internal audience is incredibly important as communicators of the business themselves.
Corporate affairs is taking more responsibility for areas such as marketing, brand management, customer experience, business development, investor relations and regulatory affairs, This all fits with the idea of the increasing indivisibility of corporate and brand reputation. Corporate affairs department of an organisation deals with the following matters.
• Corporate
governance
•
Corporate
social responsibility
•
Dealings
with taxation authorities
•
Govt.
affairs
•
Internal
communication
•
Key
policy decisions & implementation
•
Legal
matters
•
New
business acquisitions & expansions
•
Stakeholder
& investor engagement
Challenge of corporate affairs lies not in skills, but in structure so while structuring the corporate affairs team, do consider to include professionals having the following expertise:
• Brand marketing
•
Corporate brand management
•
Corporate social responsibility
•
Digital communications
•
Employee engagement
•
Government Affairs
• Investor Relations
•
Media Relations
•
Public Affairs
•
Regulatory issues
•
Social media engagement
•
Thought leadership
To sum up;
Communications once existed in a controlled environment with a focus on delivery – ‘trading, trailing, spinning and selling in news’, but today it is all about strategy and content. Corporate affair is also moving from a peripheral division to a strategic business unit within major companies and corporate affairs professionals are stepping up the leadership ladder. Now corporate affair is far more than ‘just PR’: it’s about being a top-tier fixer, tactician and strategist.
Thank
you for reading the blog.
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