The corporate purpose, a strategic priority for managers and investors around the world Published by Unai Admin 18/07/2025 The corporate purpose, a strategic priority for managers and investors around the world The Corporate Purpose Roadmap® is here, a new methodology to help companies in the process of creating, implementing, and activating their corporate purpose Superunion and Corporate Excellence - Center for Reputation Leadership together with DKV Seguros and BlackRock discuss the strategic importance of purpose and stakeholder capitalism Madrid, October 2nd 2020. In a context marked by the COVID-19 crisis, the corporate purpose has become a strategic priority for executives and investors worldwide. Companies must now abandon models focused exclusively on their shareholders to respond to all their stakeholders' needs. This has been stated in the launch of The Corporate Purpose Roadmap®, a new methodology developed by the brand consultancy firm Superunion and by Corporate Excellence - Centre for Reputation Leadership to help organizations create, implement, and activating their corporate purpose.The results of the presented studies, together with the continuous analysis of business practices and, most notably, the effects of the COVID-19 crisis, has demonstrated the fundamental role corporate purpose has. It is a lever for transforming and activating positive and value-creating behaviours aligned around a shared system of beliefs and values. Nevertheless, this purpose has not been defined or implemented in line with a rigorous framework in many cases. Consequently, it has become a mere publicity stunt or irrelevant message or, in the worst of cases, a counterproductive exercise. In the words of Ángel Alloza, CEO of Corporate Excellence - Centre for Reputation Leadership, "a poorly conceived purpose lacks coherence and authenticity, and results in a lack of legitimacy and trust.""The consideration of one's benefit in parallel with that of society is not at odds with good economic and financial results, but rather the opposite," assures Aitor Jauregui, managing director of Blackrock in Spain, Portugal, and Andorra. The annual letters on corporate governance from Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, warned the need for companies to have values and principles that focus on the generation of value beyond profit and loss accounts. It is a significant example of how social change we witness is also reflected in investors' decisions, demanding more inclusive, integrated, and ethically responsible behavior. Jauregui reminds us that Fink's letter from 2019 was solely focused on the need for companies to understand their purpose. "As stated by Larry Fink in his 2019 letter, the purpose is so much more than a mere slogan or marketing campaign. It is the fundamental reason why a company exists: what they do each day to generate value for their stakeholders," the director of Blackrock Iberia concludes.The Corporate Purpose Roadmap® demonstrates how companies can define a purpose that connects employees, clients, and society. To activate supportive behaviors and attitudes, the corporate purpose must be created from the "inside out," through a process of strategic reflection and mechanisms that involve employees. It is strengthened by the "outside-in" through the integration of the expectations of the various stakeholders. In this sense, the CEO of DKV Seguros, Josep Santacreu, highlights that "launching a project for defining or redefining corporate purpose is a strategic activity that requires clear conviction from upper management and it should never be perceived as a fad that we are obligated to take on". In the words of Santacreu, "the definition, implementation and activation of purpose must stem from a reflected and consensual decision, and we must be willing to assume all implications and consequences with a long-term vision".The need for a demonstrated and proven methodology for effectively defining a corporate purpose and, above all, activating it in line with the needs of a company is why we have now launched The Corporate Purpose Roadmap®: a model that enables the identification of a company's true leitmotif - their raison d'être - (why and for what purpose the company exists), how they can develop this purpose (guiding values), what products or services they offer (mission statement), and what scope and the specific contribution they will offer their principal stakeholders (the vision they want to build with them).According to Almudena Clemente, Head of Strategy at the brand consulting firm Superunion, "defining a corporate purpose is relatively easy. What is harder is making it a reality and implementing it in a company's day-to-day activities to serve as a filter and a valuable and authentic guide for the company. Because having a purpose isn't about being perfect. It's about striving each day to be better".Task forces have developed the project at Superunion and Corporate Excellence, led by Almudena Clemente, Head of Strategy at Superunion, and Clara Fontán, Director of Intelligence & Knowledge at Corporate Excellence – Centre for Reputation Leadership. It has counted on the supervision and technical direction of Ángel Alloza, CEO at Corporate Excellence – Centre for Reputation Leadership and Pilar Domingo, Managing Director at Superunion Madrid. Categories Estrategia Sostenibilidad & Responsabilidad Social Empleados Corporate Excellence Propósito & Valores Propósito & Cultura Noticias Co-creación Marca Corporativa Tags propósito superunion valores activación del propósito stakeholders the corporate purpose roadmap® blackrock covid-19 corporate excellence centre visibility 13 thumb_up_alt 0
Innovations in Communication: Building Beliefs Published by Unai Admin 18/07/2025 Innovations in Communication: Building BeliefsMadrid, April 9, 2014. Building Beliefs Project and the inter-University platform, launched by Corporate Excellence jointly with the Forum for Research in Communication, was presented yesterday within the framework of the Conference on Innovations in Communication. The project draws on the theoretical framework titled Building Belief, which was translated into Spanish as Compartir Creencias (Shared Beliefs), developed by Arthur W. Page Society in 2012. The project unites more than 60 scholars who will fill the model with content both on the theoretical and practical levels by applying its findings to business practice. Corporate Excellence cooperates with Arthur W. Page Society, one of the largest associations of communications directors in the USA, to promote the new model of communication in Spanish-speaking countries, and the team of academics will help us in this endeavour. This is a unique initiative, because for the first time different Universities join forces to create synergies and work together. Research will follow 6 major lines: the model’s application on the institutional level, corporate level, in the digital context, small and medium businesses, NPOs and Universities. In a nutshell, the new model aims to create a strong and unique identity able to differentiate a company and be relevant for stakeholders, resulting in a system of shared beliefs and identification that encourage action and allow key stakeholders of an organization voluntarily share these beliefs and actively recommend products, services and the organization itself to members of their network. This means that communication is driven by stakeholders, who become true “ambassadors” of products, services and the organization. Instead of trying to persuade, this communication model aims to unleash the powerful influence of stakeholders’ favourable attitudes and behaviours towards the company. The Conference on Innovations in Communication was a great opportunity to hear coordinators of different research lines talking about the progress that has already been made. A round table discussion held by business leaders as part of the conference showed that Spanish companies do their best meet the challenge of the new informational ecosystem, where they come under permanent careful scrutiny of stakeholders. Elena Gutiérrez, Deputy Director of the Master in Political and Corporate Communication, Professor at the Navarra University and coordinator of the institutional research line, presented her project Institutions’ Relations with their Stakeholders: Analysis of Reciprocal Influence. David Alameda, Professor at the Salamanca Pontifical University and coordinator of the work group for the model’s application on the corporate level, presented the project Discourse Contexts in Formulating Intangibles. Configuration and Management of Shared Beliefs. Carlos Rey, Professor at the International University of Catalonia and Director of the Department of Leadership Management and Corporate Governance, involved in the same research line, presented his project titled Using DpM Index in the Evaluation Process, which measures employees’ alignment with the company’s mission. This measurement tool has been used by 150 companies over the last few years. The model’s application in the digital context was presented by Leopoldo Seijas from CEU San Pablo University. The round table discussion for business leaders featured three brilliant examples of defining identity in organizations: Silvia Agulló, Business Responsibility and Reputation Director at DKV Medical Insurance, talked about The Methodology of a Dialogue with Stakeholders. It is an example of dreaming about what you want to be and transforming the dream into reality through building a relationship with stakeholders. Eduardo Puig de la Bellacasa, Director for Stakeholder Engagement at Telefónica, talked about Digital Strategies for Engaging Stakeholders and highlighted the digital economy’s potential for maximizing the power of identity, enabling organizations to deliver its corporate message immediately to a large number of stakeholders. Ignacio Villoch, Responsible for Innovation Activities and Events at BBVA, presented BBVA’s Centre for Innovation and described how the bank uses this symbolic space to generate interesting content for its stakeholders based on its identity and able to trigger conversations then spread “virally” by those who associate the concept of innovation with the brand itself. >Juan Benavides, a UCM Professor who established the Forum for Research in Communication 14 years ago, and Ángel Alloza, CEO of Corporate Excellence – Centre for Reputation Leadership, hosted and moderated the conference, which for the 16th time provides platform for discussing trends and developments in the area. inShare Categories Marca Comunicación Interna Comunicación política Co-creación Comunicación Externa Tags jornada de innovación en comunicación compartir creencias foro de investigación en comunicación identidad corporativa arthur w page society building belief april beliefs project corporate excellence forum research communication conference visibility 12 thumb_up_alt 0
Latest Advances in our Reputation Roadmap Published by Unai Admin 18/07/2025 Latest Advances in our Reputation RoadmapMadrid, December 10, 2013. “Although we still have way to go, this time walking together, many goals have been reached. Many improvements have been made” this was the opening sentence of José Luis González-Besada, Chairman of Corporate Excellence and Communication Director at Iberdrola, at the First Annual Meeting held on December 3rd at Deusto Business School in Madrid. More than 60 top-level professionals from the 17 companies that form part of the Foundation participated in the meeting. Each company shared with the assistants the advances made in the last two years, as well as the main challenges to be faced in the future. Most of the speakers pointed out important topics related to managing large companies among all the difficulties they have to deal with: building stronger relationships with key stakeholders, breaking down silos, driving reputation management as a cross area affecting the whole company, etc. Every assisting company agreed that intangible assets management helps companies to be excellent. Actively listen to stakeholders brings continuous improvements; nowadays it is all about competing for a good reputation, for the recognition by stakeholders. As Josep Santacreu, CEO at DKV, pointed out “this new time needs a new way to do business”. DKV and Banco Popular just joined the Foundation. Corporate Excellence - Centre for Reputation Leadership is an open project to any company willing to compete for a good reputation and share best practices. Banco Popular and DKV, as well as all the companies that form part of Corporate Excellence are aware that corporate reputation is the key for the future of organizations, cities or countries. Having a good reputation is a guarantee for value protection and value growth: it protects companies against crisis and generates sustainable growth. Since the launch of Corporate Excellence in 2011, a complex model where competitor companies share knoledge and expertise has been implemented. Alliances with universities and other organizations have been built; all this to get a better understanding about intangible assets management. The chosen and implemented model by Corporate Excellence is based on public-private collaboration; In these two years, a strong network of partnerships with universities, business schools and other international and national organizations have been created. Categories Tendencias Co-creación Reputación & Riesgos Reputacionales Tags encuentro anual hoja de ruta de la reputación gestión de recursos intangibles competencia y colaboración visibility 12 thumb_up_alt 0
Expert Groups Are Formed by Corporate Excellence Published by Unai Admin 18/07/2025 Expert Groups Are Formed by Corporate Excellence23/11/2011 Expert groups have been formed to deepen research supported by Corporate Excellence and promote participation and knowledge sharing. A working group has been set up for each activity line: reputation, brand, communication, public affairs, metrics and training. The work of these expert groups is organised according to the sections of the Programme of Activities: Reputation: Reputational Risk, Reputation Online, Country Reputation, Role and Functions of the Chief Reputation Officer. Brand: Product Brand/Corporate Brand, Brand Engagement, Brand and Innovation, Financial Evaluation of the Brand Communication: Future of the Communication Media, Innovation and Communication, New Formats, New Content, Social Networks, Internal Communication Public Affairs: Identification and Management of Relevant Issues, Management of Stakeholders, CSR as a Driver of the Reputation Metrics: RepTrak, Managerial Team for Intangibles, Long-Term Indicators, Methodology for Measuring Intangibles. Categories Alineamiento y cultura corporativa Marca Co-creación Tags grupos de expertos investigación intercambio de conocimiento visibility 16 thumb_up_alt 0
Top experts on reputation and brand management welcome Corporate Excellence Published by Unai Admin 18/07/2025 Top experts on reputation and brand management welcome Corporate Excellence28/06/2011. Top experts in the area of reputation and brand management have endorsed the founding of Corporate Excellence – Centre for Reputation Leadership, a think tank created by Spanish enterprises for promoting management of intangibles in order to achieve business excellence. 15 experts took part in the presentation of Corporate Excellence, held today in Madrid. They also recorded a video message and voiced support for the new think tank. Speakers included the founder of the theory of stakeholders Edward Freeman (University of Virginia, USA); corporate communication strategy expert Paul A. Argenti (Tuck School of Business, USA); Charles Fombrun, founder of the Reputation Institute (USA); authors of the concept of corporate brand as the main differentiating value professors Maajken Schultz (Copenhagen Business School, Denmark) and Mary Jo Hatch (University of Virginia, USA); Cees Van Riel (Erasmus University Rotterdam, the Netherlands); Rupert Younger, Director of one of the most significant centres for research in the area of intangibles management, the Centre for Corporate Reputation at the University of Oxford (UK). Other participants included Juan Benavides, lecturer at UCM (Spain); Reyes Calderón, Dean of the Faculty of Economics, University of Navarra (Spain), Seamus Guillen, Director for Reputational Risk Management, RI (UK), Dominik Hell, Wirs Business School (South Africa); Kasper Nielsen, Partner of RI North America (USA); Marcel Planellas, Secretary General of ESADE (Spain); Justo Villafañe, Partner of Villafañe&Asociados consultancy (Spain); and Ana Luisa Almeida, Managing Director, RI (Brazil). Categories Propósito & Valores Co-creación Reputación & Riesgos Reputacionales Tags gestión de la reputación y de la marca empresas españolas gestión de intangibles excelencia empresarial visibility 25 thumb_up_alt 0