The Scope and Limitations of Corporate Communication in Managing Reputation

Corporate communication is a strategic management tool within organizations, and reputation is one of the intangible assets with the greatest potential for value creation. However, the concept of reputation has evolved over time. From a marketing perspective, which is closer to what is understood as image, to an economic perspective, which places it as an intangible asset capable of generating value, reputation is a dynamic asset that must be managed, and the communications director (DirCom) is the person called upon to carry out that task. Based on a set of broadly accepted ideas, this chapter proposes a definition of corporate reputation that takes into account its process of formation and outlines the elements that influence it. Likewise, it analyzes the interaction among personal reputation, professional reputation, and organizational reputation, as well as the scope and limitations of reputation management.

On the other hand, the chapter explains the conceptual error embedded in the term “digital reputation,” which leads to an operational view and distances it from a strategic communication perspective. Finally, it presents the behaviors that have emerged as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and that have caused reputational damage to organizations, taking as a reference what occurred in Peru, as well as the new challenges in reputation management in the face of changing habits brought about by the public health emergency.