MKMC.5601 Reputation Management
Reputation is broadly defined as the sum of the images constituencies have of an organization; constituents form images based on a company's communication, performance and behavior. This course is designed to impress upon the student that a good corporate reputation has tangible and intangible benefits and value. The course will examine risks that involve public visibility and possible reputational harm. Through case studies and best practices, as well as analysis of the short- and long-term reputational effects of the global credit crisis, the course will describe and explain the value of reputation components, including integrity, governance and transparency. The course also will stress the need for a formal mechanism, such as a reputation management plan, to periodically measure and manage reputation, in an increasingly diverse and globalized marketplace. These steps show senior management's commitment to protecting reputation as the corporate asset it is. Upon the successful completion of this course, students will be keenly aware of practical and theoretical factors that affect a firm's general corporate reputation in their global and local business environments. Specifically, they will be able to meet the challenges of how societal expectations of business are changing; the increasingly difficult task of managing corporate reputations globally and locally; remaining loyal to customers, employees and other key constituents; how to avoid organizational myopia; and how to view reputation as an asset that needs to be effectively managed like any other asset.