The 18 Immutable Laws of Corporate Reputation - by Ronald J Alsop (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

A veteran Wall Street Journal editor and authority on branding, marketing and reputation provides the 18 crucial rules for companies to follow in developing and protecting their reputation, which can be their most valuable asset or their worst nightmare. A must read book for senior executives, consultants, advertising, public relations, and marketing professionals.

From Enron and WorldCom to the Catholic Church and Major League Baseball, reputation crises have never been more widespread. Now Ronald J. Alsop, a veteran Wall Street Journal authority on branding and reputation management, explains the dangers--and gives organizations the eighteen crucial laws to follow in developing and protecting their reputations.

Consider this example of a simple decision made by a low-ranking employee: When rescue workers at the site of the World Trade Center disaster sought bottled water from a nearby Starbucks outlet, they complained that an employee charged them for it. In a matter of hours, the Internet had picked up the story and Starbucks' carefully cultivated worldwide reputation was quickly besmirched.

This is just one instance among many of how the business world, ever more global and competitive, has become increasingly difficult to navigate. Studies have demonstrated the powerful impact of reputation on profits and stock prices, and yet less than half of all companies have a formal system for measuring reputation. Clearly, companies in every industry--from Dow Chemical to Disney to DaimlerChrystler--have much more to learn.

It is still the rare company that realizes the full value of its reputation: how corporate reputation can enhance business in good times, become a protective halo in turbulent times, and be destroyed in an instant by people at the lowest or highest levels of the corporate ladder. Mr. Alsop provides eighteen thoroughly documented lessons based on years of experience covering every aspect of corporate reputation, with a clear distillation of the complex principles at the heart of a reputation. He explains:

- How to protect your reputation when the inevitable crisis hits
- How to cope with the many hazards in cyberspace
- How to create a reputation for vision and industry leadership
- How to establish a culture of ethical behavior
- How to measure and monitor your ever-changing public image
- How to make employees your reputation champions
- How to decide when it's time to change your name

The result is a book that is important not only for business executives, consultants, and advertising, public relations, and marketing professionals but also for anyone eager to learn more about the companies they work for, buy from, and invest in.

Review Quotes

Joy Marie Sever, Ph.D. Senior Vice President and Director, The Reputation Practice at Harris Interactive "The 18 Immutable Laws of Corporate Reputation" is a unique combination of expert journalistic insight and knowledge gained from quantitative research into how people perceive corporations. Ron Alsop identifies the powerful principles that characterize corporate reputation, and provides revealing details based on specific corporate experiences. Alsop not only establishes the critical importance of reputation to corporate strategy, but provides the essential and much-needed guidance that companies are seeking to understand the dynamics of their own corporate reputations.

Meyer Feldberg, Ph.D. Dean, Columbia Business School Alsop's new book captures most effectively what we either do know or should know about reputation. He demonstrates through his eighteen laws that a sustainable reputation takes decades to achieve and the blink of eye to lose. It turns out that building and sustaining a reputation is a marathon and not a sprint.

Paul Danos Dean, Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth Ron Alsop gives the manager some indispensable insights into creating and maintaining a good corporate reputation. The writing is straightforward and refreshingly free of jargon, and the company examples are timely, relevant, and revealing. The book raises issues of critical importance both to business schools and to corporations.

Ronald Sargent President and CEO, Staples, Inc. "The 18 Immutable Laws of Corporate Reputation" couldn't have arrived at a better time. Companies and their reputations are under scrutiny as never before, and every executive will benefit from reading this book. It's an expertly written guide that through vivid examples shows the rewards of carefully tending your corporate reputation -- and the perils of failing to do so.

Yves Couette President and CEO, Ben & Jerry's A positive reputation is nothing to take for granted, but rather to be cultivated day by day. There's much at stake for any company and this book will provide invaluable assistance in managing your reputation. Ron Alsop provides both illuminating examples and practical advice that will help you not only to establish a good reputation but also to make it endure.

About the Author

Ronald J. Alsop, a news editor and senior writer at The Wall Street Journal, has many years of experience reporting on and supervising the coverage of corporate brands and reputations. He has served as the newspaper's marketing columnist and was editor of its Marketplace page. His previous books include The Wall Street Journal on Marketing and The Wall Street Journal Guide to the Top Business Schools. He is also a seasoned speaker at international conferences on corporate reputation and has worked closely with leading research firms that measure corporate reputation. He lives with his wife and son in Summit, New Jersey.