In a world economy that is both global and very volatile, intangible assets have become the essential wealth of many companies. Whereas some assets, like copyrights and licences, brands and leases, may be assessed, the composite ‘reputation’—defined here as the excess value over the total physical assets—can only be derived from the financial market's evaluation of the company's shares. However, drivers impact the long-term reputational standing of any organisation, and these apply to not-for-profit entities as well as to local authorities and public or private healthcare providers. Managing reputation is therefore an essential part of the strategic role of the board of directors, who must take into account all stakeholders, whose perception of the organisation will determine its reputation. Risks or uncertainties, both positive and negative, must be managed in a holistic systemic approach, as there is no such thing as reputation risks—rather, all risks may impact on reputation. Thus the best management of risks to reputation is sound enterprise-wide risk management and governance, where all insiders are involved and outsiders' interest are taken into account. When a crisis threatens, it is a time of exacerbated reputation volatility; preparing a strategic redeployment plan is therefore the best way for management to be prepared to cope positively with the surprises of the future.