A holistic approach to stakeholder management: A rhetorical foundation

The day-to-day concerns of managing stakeholders are a critical matter for public relations practitioners and scholars alike. “Stakeholder theory” subsumes the knowledge base about stakeholders, who are individuals and groups who affect or are affected by an organization's actions. This article argues that a holistic view of stakeholder management rests on rhetorical grounds and concerns answering three fundamental questions: (1) How are stakeholders created? (2) How can relationships with stakeholders be maintained? and (3) How can relationships with stakeholders be improved? Example cases are used to demonstrate how retrospective analysis reveals the effectiveness of stakeholder management approaches. Ultimately and most important, the combination of theory and case analyses are synthesized into a prospective approach to stakeholder management that organizations may use during strategic planning.     

Stakeholder management and program planning in German public theaters

Taking the example of a German public professional theater, this study is the first to analyze how stakeholder interests are managed in the process of program planning. We address the following questions: (1) What are the goals and interests of the most influential stakeholders? (2) How are these goals and interests reflected by theater management when deciding the season's program? (3) Which strategies does theater management apply to balance conflicting stakeholder goals and interests? Results of our qualitative study identify five decisions to be made with regard to program planning: selection of the season's theme, plays, stage directors, cast, and chronological order of productions. Four strategies of balancing conflicting stakeholder goals and interests are identified: setting priorities, combining stakeholder interests, focusing on neutral goals, and developing audiences.     

Public participation in infrastructure and construction projects in China: From an EIA-based to a whole-cycle process

Many governments world-wide are increasingly encouraging the involvement of interested individuals, groups and organisations in their public infrastructure and construction (PIC) projects as a means of improving the openness, transparency and accountability of the decision-making process and help improve the projects’ long-term viability and benefits to the community. In China, however, the current participatory mechanism at the project level exists only as part of the environmental impact assessment (EIA) process. With an increasing demand for PIC projects and social equality in China, this suggests a need to bring the participatory process into line with international practice.The aim of this paper, therefore, is to identify the weaknesses of EIA-based public participation in China and the means by which it may be improved for the whole lifecycle of PIC schemes. To do this, the results of a series of interviews with a diverse group of experts is reported which analyse the nature and extent of existing problems of public participation in EIA and suggestions for improvement. These indicate that the current level of participation in PIC projects is quite limited, particularly in the crucial earlier stages, primarily due to traditional culture and values, uneven progress in the adoption of participatory mechanisms, the risk of not meeting targets and lack of confidence in public competence. Finally, a process flowchart is proposed to guide construction practitioners and the community in general.     

Envisioning upland futures: Stakeholder responses to scenarios for Europe's mountain landscapes

In a period of agricultural decline in the uplands of Europe, agriculture is ceasing to provide the primary rationale for the organisation, utilisation and functioning of rural space. Policy reform, market trends and changes to the way citizens and consumers think about the countryside all suggest a need for thinking strategically about the future development of these areas. However, without a broad involvement of stakeholders, land use conflicts, and social and cultural conflicts in general, may increase. Involving stakeholders in upland areas can be facilitated by using scenario technique and by discussing alternative futures in local stakeholder panels. In this paper we present four scenarios of land-use change for the year 2030, and their assessments by stakeholder panels in Scotland, France, Norway, Switzerland, Slovakia and Greece. The aim of the paper is to explore the ways in which stakeholders in these locations advocate and assess these scenarios. We also explore how stakeholders in different countries weight the visual landscape impacts, the livelihood and biodiversity aspects of the scenarios in their assessment, and the reasons for their prioritising. The cross-country analysis shows that stakeholders across the study areas are united in their overall rejection of agricultural liberalisation, advocating a production-oriented, but multifunctional and environmentally-friendly agriculture that maintains landscapes and biodiversity.     

Interest distribution in the process of coordination of urban and rural construction land in China

Since the onset of rapid economic development and urbanization, China’s land resources—rather than capital, technology and human resources—have become the lead limiting factor in constraining economic growth. Coordination of urban and rural construction land (CURCL) can be a very effective means for reducing conflicts between economic development and land protection. This research examines the roles of stakeholders involved in the CURCL process. The reasons why the interests of legitimated stakeholders were encroached upon are analyzed and countermeasures to protect the interests of legitimated stakeholders are proposed. Ambiguously defined property rights for owners of rural construction land, unclear conceptions of the public interest, and overlap of power and interest among multiple levels of authority are the reasons why legitimated stakeholders’ interests were encroached upon. Legitimizing construction land ownership clearly, better defining the multiple conceptions of public interest, opening up express channels for expression of the public interest, and clarifying governments’ functions in land interest adjustment are the countermeasures to protect the interests of legitimated stakeholders.     

Walgreens: A Case Study in Health Care Issues and Conflict Resolution

The major problems for Walgreens in the health care reform debate and its primary stakeholders are identified, as well as the possible strategies to resolve the conflicts between Walgreens and its stakeholders. The overt positions, underlying interests, and best alternatives for resolution between Walgreens and its stakeholders are evaluated. Additionally, a conflict resolution model for public relations is developed as a guideline in suggesting strategies for solution. The three major issues for Walgreens were (a) cost of drugs, (b) freedom to choose the drug provider, and (c) mail-order drugs. Walgreens should collaborate with its stakeholders on the cost of drugs issue, accommodate on the freedom of choice issue, and seek compromise on the mail-order drug issue.     

Do public relations professionals understand corporate governance issues well enough to advise companies on stakeholder relationship management?

The King Reports on Governance for South Africa are internationally respected for proposing integrated reporting in a triple bottom-line business context to improve corporate governance. The most recent report, King III, views stakeholder relationship management as a key tenet of corporate governance. This raises the question whether public relations professionals (PRPs) understand the principles of corporate governance well-enough to inform and guide organizations on the management of stakeholder relationships. The views of senior PRPs at selected top performing companies were elicited on their practice of stakeholder relationship management in line with corporate governance principles. It was found that their knowledge on corporate governance was limited, although they recognized its importance. They propose six role functions for managing stakeholder relationships on a strategic or managerial level; these role functions are aligned with the King III principles on stakeholder relationships. The following three were of particular importance: developing a corporate strategy, giving advice to senior management and managing crisis communication. Different terminologies were used to build relations with stakeholders and different approaches were used to profile stakeholders. It is recommended that organizations leverage their public relations functions on strategic and managerial levels in support of their corporate governance efforts. In turn, PRPs are encouraged to ensure a deep knowledge on corporate governance issues when counseling senior management on building stakeholder relationships.     

U.S. Fortune 500’s stakeholders engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence for proactive approaches

In times of a national crisis such as COVID-19, it is important for organizations to show that they are good corporate citizens. At the same time, organizations should carefully select the type of messages that resonate with stakeholders so as to reduce stakeholder skepticism. This study examines how U.S. Fortune 500 companies discussed their COVID-19 pandemic CSR actions on Facebook over 15 months and how the public responded to such messages. We identified three CSR themes: internal stakeholder proactive CSR, external stakeholder proactive CSR, and external stakeholder accommodative CSR. When publics engaged, external stakeholder proactive CSR was significantly associated with better behavioral engagement outcomes, more positive emotional engagement outcomes, and less negative emotions. However, such effects are moderated by industry type. Our findings inform public relations theory and practice and suggest that in times of major crises, organizations should prioritize proactive approaches to engage external stakeholders while being mindful of specific institutional contexts.     

Blurred lines: German freelance journalists with secondary employment in public relations

Nearly half of all German freelance journalists have a second job, mainly in public relations (PR). This work combination can be problematic, since journalists and PR practitioners have different responsibilities. Working as a journalist entails contributing to the public duties of journalism such as informing the public, offering multiple viewpoints, and representing societal interests; in contrast, PR practitioners must advocate solely in their clients’ interests. Conflicts can arise between these two roles if a freelance journalist is, for instance, required to critically investigate his or her PR client. However, there has been little research on freelance journalists with secondary work in PR. This study seeks to address this gap in research; therefore, we conducted a quantitative online survey among German “PR-journalists”. Our results show that nearly half of the participants take on secondary PR work for financial reasons; however, a similar number of journalists take on PR-work voluntarily, as they find the work interesting and enjoyable. Moreover, participants described their professional identity very similarly to that of German journalists in general. The PR-journalists surveyed were aware of the potential for conflicts of interest arising from their dual role. While such conflicts have been rarely encountered by those in the study sample, most participants assumed that other PR-journalists face such conflicts often, and expressed concern that these conflicts are not handled professionally.     

Opportunities and challenges of the digital lifespan: views of service providers and citizens in the UK

Information about UK citizens’ use of digital technologies is often expressed in statistics – x% lack Internet access; y% get online to engage in online banking, update social media sites, or participate in online auctions. There are many social implications to digital technology use, however – individuals may communicate online as a major way to stay in touch with friends and family, and as Internet access rises and government and public sector budgets shrink, online services become an increasingly attractive way for government and public sector service providers to communicate with citizens. This paper presents selected results of an exploratory study designed to investigate the digital personhood of UK citizens through interviews with participants at three life transitions: leaving secondary school, becoming a parent, and retiring from work. Digital personhood in this paper implies identity information online, and some interaction with others around that information. We then report on our presentation of a selection of these results to thirteen stakeholders who represented UK government departments, public sector organisations, and industry. We found that citizen and stakeholder concerns were quite different, especially at the new parent life transition, and that stakeholders tended to underestimate the willingness and ability of citizens to become involved online with the government and public sector, and overestimate citizens’ vulnerability online. Future research should investigate practical strategies for increasing communication between stakeholders and citizens, and also how to encourage stakeholders to work together to benefit their common clientele – the citizens.     

Clarifying the role of belief-motive explanations in multi-stakeholder realist evaluation

In realist evaluation, where researchers aim to make program theories explicit, they can encounter competing explanations as to how programs work. Managing explanatory tensions from different sources of evidence in multi-stakeholder projects can challenge external evaluators, especially when access to pertinent data, like client records, is mediated by program stakeholders. In this article, we consider two central questions: how can program stakeholder motives shape a realist evaluation project; and how might realist evaluators respond to stakeholders’ belief-motive explanations, including those about program effectiveness, based on factors such as supererogatory commitment or trying together in good faith? Drawing on our realist evaluation of a service reform initiative involving multiple agencies, we describe stakeholder motives at key phases, highlighting a need for tactics and skills that help to manage explanatory tensions. In conclusion, the relevance of stakeholders’ belief-motive explanations (‘we believe the program works’) in realist evaluation is clarified and discussed.     

Negotiating the Organizational Effectiveness of Social Ventures among Multiple Stakeholders

When planning their social ventures, entrepreneurs generally need to consider multiple stakeholders with conflicting views of organizational effectiveness. We propose a scoring technique that is often used for the analysis of multiple-issue negotiations to analyze and manage the stakeholder conflicts. We show how the quantitative assessment of stakeholders’ preferences results in a one-dimensional subjective measure of organizational effectiveness for each stakeholder. Our approach complements recent research by contributing to a quantitative discussion of organizational effectiveness. Due to typical structural features of the employed scoring template, we are able to derive general principles concerning the conflict structure and the interaction of multiple stakeholders. We find that an increase in the number of stakeholders required for an agreement tends to decrease the perceived organizational effectiveness for the initial negotiators. On the other hand, the multitude of possible agreements is also reduced, thereby sharpening the focus on acceptable proposals to the stakeholders involved.     

Where you stand depends on where you sit: Participation and reactions to change

Although a considerable body of research on strategic planning, organizational decision making, and organizational change has emphasized the importance of participation by key stakeholders for the successful management of organizational change, few empirical studies have produced in‐depth understanding of the differing perspectives of stakeholder groups according to their level of involvement in decisions about major change. This case study examines the differing perspectives and perceptions of stakeholders leading into and during the merger of two nonprofit arts organizations. It refines and enriches existing empirical research on the effects of participation on the implementation of change.     

Developing a Strategy to Meaningfully Engage Stakeholders in Program/Policy Planning: A Guide for Human Services Managers and Practitioners

Stakeholder participation can be a valuable component of program/policy development in the human services. However, service users and other stakeholders often experience it as tokenistic and having little effect. Although management literature recommends stakeholder participation and social work ethics promote it, agency leaders and practitioners are given little guidance on how to design participation initiatives that integrate stakeholders' input into agency decision making. This article focuses on creating a strategy that can foster meaningful stakeholder participation. We outline 7 principles of meaningful participation and present a 12-step process for formulating a participation strategy that applies these principles.     

Who Determines How Nonprofits Confront Uncertainty?

This study examines the impact of managers, board members, beneficiaries, donors, and government entities on nonprofit strategic decisions. Using data collected from GuideStar, the National Center for Charitable Statistics, and surveys, we provide evidence that strategic decisions of nonprofits are shaped by the ability of the aforementioned stakeholders to diversify their interests. Our findings offer nonprofits another means by which they can understand and therefore manage their strategic decisions. In addition, our framework suggests future applications of stakeholder theory conceive of stakeholder salience as a bidirectional phenomenon.     

How financial crisis history informs ethical corporate communication: Insights from corporate communication leaders

This study explored how financial crisis history can inform corporate crisis communication practice across industries and over time. Thirty-eight interviews with chief communications officers (CCOs) and their counselors were conducted to explore what lasting lessons these corporate communication leaders learned from their crisis communication practice during the 2008 Financial Crisis. Key lessons learned include: 1) the importance for corporations to tailor their financial communication strategies according to victim vs. perpetrator perception and ethical response expectations held by stakeholders; 2) the importance of stakeholders, and employees in particular, when creating and implementing the plan; 3) the balance between speed and legal concerns, as well as the need for reducing complexity by making sure stakeholder communications are delivered with clarity and accessibility; and 4) a recipe for success includes honesty, transparency, trust/integrity, taking action to reform questionable practices, and abiding by one’s own personal morals. Insights from this study shed light on how learning contributes to ethical corporate communication practice in times of crisis and crisis spillover.     

Charity Transgressions, Trust and Accountability

This research demonstrates how sustained charity fraud is supported when organisations do not develop strong accountability links to salient stakeholders. Whilst increased regulation is one response to reduce charity fraud and to increase organisational accountability, regulators seldom recognise the myriad heterogeneous needs of stakeholders. This research explores the tactics employed by beneficiaries and the donating public to escalate their accountability demands on such charities. By preferring the most powerful stakeholders, charities miss the opportunity to design effective processes to discharge accountability to meet their moral obligations to legitimate stakeholders. This article calls for increased ??stakeholder understanding?? by charity governors as a policy to recognise the moral rights of these stakeholders and to reduce charity transgressions.     

Stakeholder theories of the non-profit sector: One cut at the economic literature

This article examines and organises the economic literature dealing with non-profit institutions using the concept of ‘stakeholders’. In general, the literature identifies conflicts between various groups of stakeholders and then proceeds in two very different directions. The first is supportive of the non-profit sector, suggesting that non-profit organisations resolve those conflicts more effectively than other types of institutions. This provides a positive theory of the non-profit sector, explaining that non-profit institutions evolve when they are more effective in providing a particular good or service than other possible institutional arrangements. The second direction is more critical of the non-profit sector, suggesting that those conflicts will persist in non-profit institutions and will require some kind of resolution, including perhaps government intervention. Of course, a stakeholder approach to non-profit theory focuses on conflict and ignores some other views of the sector.     

Examining Perceived Honest Performance Reporting by Public Organizations: Bureaucratic Politics and Organizational Practice

The credibility of performance information provided by governmentagencies to their stakeholders is critical to performance-basedaccountability and policy learning. However, the public administrationliterature has rarely paid attention to the determinants ofhonest performance reporting. This study draws on the multi-actorprincipal-agent model and examines how bureaucratic politics(external and internal) and organizational practice (participationand culture) affect an organization's performance reporting.Based on survey data from Taiwan, the results show that supportiveexternal environments and harmonious internal environments arelikely to enhance stakeholder participation and innovation culture,which, in turn, encourage honest performance reporting.