Issues Negotiation™ – investing in stakeholders

Abstract

Getting to the source of the issue through mutual gainsA changing society demands new approaches by organisations in order to, not only just stay in the game, but ahead of the competition. Issues Negotiation 2 is an approach that offers a totally integrated solution for dealing with issues at source and building valuable relationships that develop insight and offer new opportunities. In order to understand the benefits of this approach it is first essential to review the changing environment within which organisations are expected to thrive.To compete effectively, and offer a competitive advantage, businesses must be constantly challenging and innovative in their approach. The demands of today's society put pressure on organisations to develop new methods of working and communicating with stakeholders.The requirement for organisations to openly communicate on both social and ethical accounting is increasingly emerging as a standard practice as a means for organisations to offer greater transparency to stakeholders. Leading companies are beginning to use this type of reporting to help build stakeholder confidence and trust. Of the companies quoted on the FTSE100, 60 per cent have produced annual reports with separate environmental reports.Ghoshal and Bartlett (1997), have argued that corporations create social value.``To see them merely as vehicles for shareholder value is blinkered. Amid a general decline in authority in other institutions ± political parties, churches, the community, even the family unit ± corporations have emerged as the most influential institutions of modern society; not only in creating and distributing a large part of its wealth, but also providing a social context for most of its people, thereby acting as a source of individual satisfaction and social succour''.However, increasingly complex situations, where there are environmental and social implications to securing business success, demand that organisations better understand stakeholders, developing new strategies for communications that reach beyond the``show and tell'' approach. Business leaders no longer satisfy stakeholders with a few well-chosen, often sanitised, words. Today's demanding consumer means companies are now expected to deal directly with the sources of issues ± not

Akzeptanz durch inputorientierte Organisationskommunikation

“…Gerade die Wichtigkeit der Integration von Dialogergebnissen heben Watson et al (2002) in ihrem konkreten Modell der Issues Negotiation hervor. Darin greifen sie den Gedanken auf, dass sich der traditionelle Ansatz des "decide, dictate, defend" von Unternehmensentscheidungen nicht mehr mit den Werten und Erwartungen einer kritischen modernen Öffentlichkeit vertrage (S. 56) und regen durch PR-Verantwortliche gesteuerte Verständigungsprozesse mit relevanten Stakeholdern im gesellschaftspolitischen Umfeld der Unternehmen an, die fünf Schritte umfassen: Am Anfang steht eine Recherchephase, um die Umwelt der Organisation einschließlich ihrer Erwartungen zu verstehen, daraufhin sollen alle relevanten Stakeholder eingeladen werden, sich zu beteiligen.…”

Embedding issue management as a strategic element of crisis prevention

“…The scholarly and practitioner literature of issue management has contributed to expanding the definition of stakeholders and has illuminated, in particular the role of non-traditional stakeholders (Burchell and Cook, 2006;Doh and Guay, 2006;Holzer, 2008;Hughes and Demetrious, 2006;Watson et al, 2002).…”

Ensnared in a gay health controversy: a comparative study in responding to issue activism

“…There has also been close examination of cooperation and alliances between activists and corporates, both from the positive perspective (Susskind and Field, ; Watson et al , ; Jordan and Stevenson, ; Lerbinger, ) as well as from the negative viewpoint (Lubbers, ; Monbiot, ; Dezenhall, ; Beder, ).…”