Focus on projection and protection: MSLGROUP

MSLGROUP, Publicis Groupe's strategic communications and engagement company, has launched its latest publication, with clear counsel for senior global executives among whom corporate reputation is considered the most important strategic risk for big business today*.

'The Future of Reputation' is a collection of 14 articles, authored by the network's reputation management experts across the world, including a closer look at China and India. Drawing on insights from the company's specialists in Employee, Social & Digital, Financial, Technology, Corporate and Brand Citizenship communications, the publication explores the evolving definition of reputation, how it can be protected, and how its sustainability can be assured for the future.

Glenn Osaki, President, Asia at MSLGROUP, said: “Reputation management is high on the CEOs’ agendas. As the articles written by our teams in India and China point out, companies need to adjust their communications strategies to the local conditions. In Asia and all over the world, reputation management advisory always needs to be insights driven and targeted to deliver business impact”.

Pascal Beucler, Chief Strategy Officer at MSLGROUP, commented, "A common thread throughout the publication is that while organizations are currently rightly focused largely on reputation protection - risk mitigation - there is growing opportunity to increasingly center corporate communications around reputationprojection, a means to deliver greater competitive advantage."

Key takeaways from the publication include:

• Never was 'doing good' more crucial for business, wherever a company or institution hails from - a belief held true by MSLGROUP's experts from the US to Germany to Brazil and to China.
• Alongside typical shareholders, regulators and consumers, companies must today focus on dedicated strategies to engage Millennials (across all stakeholder groups), Employees (past, current, future) and External Influencers. While these stakeholders may have particularly demanding expectations of a company or institution, they are also more willing to collaborate and participate to make a positive difference.
• It is almost impossible today to maintain a strong reputation without being a Purpose-led company, but this should be considered an opportunity. Today's growing demand for social transparency and corporate responsibility offers businesses an unprecedented opportunity to tell - and commit to - their brand story in a creative, engaging and publicly accountable way that will increasingly need to play well across social and digital media.
• Looking to the future, companies and brands must learn to leverage Big Data so as to manage reputation effectively in real time.

"The Future of Reputation" is part of MSLGROUP's People's Insights project that crowd-sources insights and foresights from MSLGROUP experts and the network's global team of SPRINTers - 85+ Strategic Planners, Researchers and INsights experts. MSLGROUP shares the 'voice of SPRINT' in People's Insights monthly briefs and quarterly magazines, to inspire more engaging campaigns and to help clients navigate the complexities of the conversation age.