Political Marketing Strategies to Foster the Sustainability of Private Transnational Organisations: The Case of the IASB

Barbara Masiello,Pietro Fera,Nicola Moscariello

doi:10.3390/su10082652

Abstract

By analysing the case of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), this paper aims at assessing the role that political marketing strategies might play to increase the sustainability of private transnational organisations. This paper proposes an integrated conceptual model that draws together political branding theory and political relationship marketing. The proposed model shows how political marketing strategies may help a global standard setter, as well as other private transnational organisations, in achieving higher legitimacy and sustainability in the long-term. By relying upon such a model, an explanatory case study of the IASB is then conducted, providing anecdotal evidence about the IASB’s current political marketing behaviour. By adopting an interdisciplinary interpretative lens, this paper contributes to literature in addressing a theme almost neglected—namely, the role of political marketing strategies in increasing legitimacy and sustainability of transnational organisations, such as global standard setters—notwithstanding the emerging effort made in this direction by private global organisations operating in complex environments, including the IASB. Implications for political marketing theory are also discussed. As to the practical implications, this paper suggests the political marketing strategies and tools that private transnational organisations should adopt to foster their sustainability in the long-term.

Highlights

Recent academic debate has underlined that the concept of legitimacy is central for private transnational organisations
This paper proposes a conceptual model that indicates how political marketing strategies [11] can be implemented by a private transnational organisation, such as the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), to adapt itself to the changes and the demands of the external environment and, in so doing, to increase its substantial and procedural legitimacy as a global standard setter
By conducting an explorative analysis, this paper presents some anecdotal evidence about the branding marketing strategies and the relationship marketing strategies currently adopted by the IASB, in order to offer a concrete response to the accounting constituents’ specific requests and to increase the effectiveness of its institutional activity

Summary

Introduction

Recent academic debate has underlined that the concept of legitimacy is central for private transnational organisations. The brief considerations above appear to be appropriate for the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). The IASB is a private and independent standard-setting body, it is a global organisation not accountable to any domestic democratically legitimated legislative or administrative institutions [3]. The transnational governance of the IASB significantly weakens its legal legitimacy and makes it subject to political influence, in case of environmental turmoil [4]. During the global financial crisis, the IASB faced considerable pressure to change the standard-setting agenda, suffering a re-balance of power in favour of political interests in order to preserve its role in Europe [5,6]

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