The relationship between corporate identity-management constructs and relationship-management constructs

Abstract

This article investigates the relationship between corporate identity-management constructs andthe quality of employer-employee relationships at the North-West University. Internal stakeholderssuch as employees are not so much concerned about how the organisation is visually representedas about the behavioural aspects of the organisation.Companies are continually finding themselves in positions where they are encouraged to managetheir corporate identities with a view to managing their reputations so as ultimately to strengthenand maintain good relationships with their stakeholders. The realisation that employees formpart of the external corporate identity of a company has shifted the focus of corporate identitymanagement inwards towards employees as an internal stakeholder group. Although it isassumed that good corporate identity management leads to good relationships, little researchhas been done on the direct link between the two concepts. Research in this regard has found arelationship between employees’ perceptions of how effectively the company upholds its values(as part of the non-visual corporate identity) and the quality of its employee relationships.