Corporate Reputations as Economic Assets

Abstract

Companies operate in competitive markets in which attracting financial and human resources is a constant challenge (Penrose, 1959; Barney, 1991; Peteraf, 1993). Survival and profitability depend on a company's relative ability to gain greater attention and support than competitors from four key resource providers: employees, customers, investors, and communities. Employees must be convinced to join and produce for the company; customers must be induced to buy the company's product and service offerings; investors must be persuaded to provide credit and equity financing; and communities must welcome the company to the neighborhood. Securing attractive perceptions of the company by these four resource providers is therefore crucial if a company is to build and sustain a competitive advantage in the marketplace (Rindova and Fombrun 1999).