Who you gonna trust?

Building trust on the stakeholder’s side is an indispensable mission for corporations

 
The extent to which companies are perceived to be trustworthy  and therefore able to involve stakeholders in close relationships may be undermined in a time of crisis depending on the level of stakeholder trust. Where trust and intimacy are perceived to be well embedded in stakeholder relationships, a crisis may not necessarily be detrimental to the business but instead provide an opportunity for companies to interact with stakeholders in new, more meaningful ways.  PR and internal communications play a key role in developing understanding and trust by those who have a potential or actual interest in a company. Arguably, the spate of corporate scandals and unethical practices by corporations around the world have contributed to distrust from the public in businesses. People are no longer willing to cooperate with or purchase from companies that have misled or manipulated them.  A MORI poll conducted in the UK in 2002 showed that half of those who recalled seeing or reading about recent corporate scandals such as Enron‘s collapse say their trust in large companies has diminished. Other influences upon the decline of trust in Europe include changing social values such as greater individualism and consumerism, less deference to authority, and fewer long-term relationship commitments.  Arguably, globalisation is a further factor. Loosening emotional ties between businesses and society enables organisations to be less accountable because no longer are they embedded in a single community where forces of governance are operable. Furthermore, while some would argue that transparency and openness is the ally of trust, others suggest that these in fact lead to the opposite. 

Christine Daymon

Professor Christine Daymon teaches communication management at Bournemouth University’s Media School. Formerly a public relations professional in the media sector, she now leads postgrad programmes in corporate and internal communications. Her research focuses on organisational communication, especially in relation to culture, trust and creativity.

Kate Price

Kate Price is a researcher at Bournemouth University‘s Media School with 20 years of experience in public relations for outfits such as BAA, BT, First Direct & Business in the Community. Her areas of interest are in trust, organisational culture and communication.