Stakeholder Influence Strategies Research Articles

A multi-level typology for stakeholder influence: A systematic literature review using the structural approach

Despite growing research on stakeholder influence, there is a lack of consensus on the structural approach for stakeholder influence that considers the patterns of stakeholder relationships as a determinant of influence. To shed light on the full gamut of stakeholder influence, this study provides a systematic review of stakeholder influence literature while drawing on social network theory and resource dependency theory. Three levels of stakeholder influence are posited, namely the macro level (role of the environment in stakeholder influence), meso level (influence between a firm and stakeholders), and micro level (influence between stakeholders themselves embedded in the same network). The main theoretical and empirical themes identified in this review are incorporated to develop a new, multi-level stakeholder influence typology. To do so, the well-known topology of Frooman (“Stakeholder influence strategies", Academy of Management Review 24 (2) (1999), 191–205) is revisited using social network concepts of betweenness and closeness centrality. This review contributes to stakeholder influence theory, enabling authors to capitalize on the identified themes for future research attention.

The Theoretical Framework for Institutional and Stakeholder Influence Strategies

The Theoretical Framework for Institutional and Stakeholder Influence Strategies

Events’ external stakeholders and their influence strategies in tourism: perspectives from Borneo

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine external event stakeholders’ strategic actions to advance their interests in tourism events, based on their resource relationships with the event. It takes the novel approach of examining stakeholder influence strategies from the external stakeholder perspective.Design/methodology/approachThe study used a qualitative case study research design, with five government-owned tourism events in Sarawak, involving primary data from 37 interviews with external stakeholders.FindingsThe stakeholders perceived that they were not overly dependent on the events studied due to their short duration. Two types of resource relationships were found: event-dependent stakeholders and event non-dependent stakeholders. Stakeholders were found to be deploying various influence strategies, which were largely subtle, positive and collaborative in nature, regardless of whether they were event-dependent or event non-dependent stakeholders.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings are limited to the context examined in this study. Going forward, stronger public–private partnerships and formalised resource relationships are needed to ensure continuity of resource supplies and greater event innovation.Originality/valueThe study adds to the knowledge of how event external stakeholders exert their influence in accordance with their interests and resource dependency relationship with government-owned tourism events in the context of Sarawak, Borneo.

Stakeholder influence strategies in construction projects

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to investigate strategies that external stakeholders can employ to affect construction project outcomes and, second, to identify essential requirements for utilising each strategy.Design/methodology/approachA new theoretical framework of stakeholder influence strategies was proposed and applied. The research design is a multi-case study, comprising four cases in the construction industry in Vietnam.FindingsSeven specific strategies were found, including inputs withholding, inputs compromising, communication, direct action, coalition building, conflict escalation and credibility building. When possessing project inputs, stakeholders can affect a project directly via a withholding or compromising strategy. Communication is available to those who have basic communicating skills; however, direct action is only employed by groups that include a large number of members. Objectors must have common interests or goals with their potential allies for using coalition building. Conflict escalation is restricted to communities having distinctive characteristics which can be used to create new problems sensibly, while credibility building is used by parties possessing adequate resources and expertise.Research limitations/implicationsThis study’s generalisability may be limited by the main source of data and the types of projects in the selected cases.Practical implicationsThis study provides directions for project managers to predict stakeholder influence by taking project inputs and utilisation requirements of the strategies into consideration.Originality/valueThis study is one of the first investigations on stakeholder-attributes-related requirements for utilising influence strategies in projects.

Value-oriented stakeholder influence on infrastructure projects

Project stakeholder management deals with managing and fulfilling stakeholder expectations and has tended to focus on the viewpoint of the focal firm or the project rather than that of the project stakeholders. The stakeholders' perspective is important because they can significantly influence projects, particularly infrastructure delivery involving both public and private actors. This study focuses on the ways that stakeholders pursue influence on projects through their expectation of project value. The goal is to identify the value-oriented reasons for stakeholders to utilize specific influence strategies. A multiple case study was implemented in three transport infrastructure projects. The study argues that stakeholders' expectations of project value creation explain the stakeholder influence strategies utilized. The findings link project value with stakeholder influence strategies and reveal four influence strategies in transport infrastructure projects, differentiated according to their different value priorities. The unique value-influence combinations of public infrastructure projects are revealed and discussed.

How can stakeholders promote environmental and social responsibility in the shipping industry?

The highly globalized and competitive nature of the shipping industry poses serious governance challenges. Recently, the use of voluntary measures, such as corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, has been explored in terms of moving towards environmentally and socially responsible as well as safe shipping industry practices. Limited attention has been paid on the role of stakeholders such as consumers, employees, NGOs, and academia in pressuring the shipping industry towards greater environmental and social responsibility. Here, by applying stakeholder theory and drawing on examples of already materialized stakeholder actions and multi-stakeholder initiatives, we study the potential ways that stakeholders can promote CSR in the shipping industry: we explore the resource dependencies between stakeholders, the stakeholder influence strategies, and the importance of multi-stakeholder pressure. We show that stakeholders can gain more power by using indirect strategies such as working via and/or in alliances with NGOs, trade unions, banks and financers, and/or different national or international regulatory bodies, as well as with the industry itself. Our results reveal the potential of multi-stakeholder pressure and action to promote the adoption of CSR activities, support the transparency, legitimacy, and enforcement of the practices, as well as widen the scope and focus of CSR initiatives and practices by focusing on a broad range of social and environmental issues. Finally, stakeholder pressure can push towards improved regulations. The study suggests that increased attention needs to be paid on the multi-stakeholder demands, especially considering the accentuated importance of effective maritime governance in the future.

Stakeholder influence strategies in China: the case of Beijing’s MasterCard Center

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine influence strategies in organization-stakeholder relationships, by examining the National Basketball Association (NBA) and Anschutz Entertainment Group’s (AEG) involvement in the operations of MasterCard Center in Beijing, China.Design/methodology/approachUsing Frooman’s model of stakeholder influence strategies, a case study of AEG and the NBA China was undertaken, relying on archival sources and interviews with key stakeholders.FindingsThe study produced two major findings. First, Bloomage employed different influence strategies to press the NBA and AEG to further reduce their involvement in the MasterCard Center’s operations. Second, Bloomage used cultural differences to justify the need to reduce its reliance on the NBA and AEG.Originality/valueThe study adds to the literature on stakeholder theory and sport organizations by examining organizations establishing themselves in foreign markets, and the influence strategies employed by key local stakeholders.

Lack of Stakeholder Influence on Pollution Prevention

In a developing country context, this study explores environmental awareness, stakeholder influence strategies, and pollution prevention roles among 11 local, civil society groups (e.g., environmental nongovernmental organizations [NGOs] is one grouping; media and press is another grouping). A theoretical framework that builds on the social movement literature and is more inclusive of a developing country context is offered. In essence, awareness-raising is also considered a stakeholder influence strategy. Based on surveys conducted in Chittagong, Bangladesh, the results of this empirical study show that 10 of the 11 groups were environmentally aware; however, only the environmental NGOs were willing to influence the other groups. The environmental NGOs were actively raising awareness, but they were not directly influencing firms or the federal government on pollution prevention. These findings challenge the generalization of current stakeholder influence theory to a developing country context and raise concerns about the capacity of local civil society to encourage pollution prevention.

Sustainability fellowships: the potential for collective stakeholder influence

Purpose– Given the current ecological state of the planet organizations now need to develop their sustainability to a significantly greater extent and at a faster pace. This paper aims to propose stakeholder collectives as a means for rapid and comprehensive sustainability, while also examining the moderating influence of firm size and change potential.Design/methodology/approach– A theoretical analysis leads to the development of multiple propositions. The work concentrates on one research question: how can the authors bring about rapid and comprehensive organizational sustainability?Findings– Arguments for the inability of individual stakeholders to drive the level of sustainability now required are presented. Propositions suggesting that sustainability can be obtained through stakeholder collectives, moderated by firm size and the change potential of the firm are developed.Research limitations/implications– Research using stakeholder theory has examined intra-stakeholder group collective action, but arguably the more important, inter-stakeholder group collective action, has received little attention. The authors elaborate the prospects for collective stakeholder influence strategies as useful for increasing sustainability.Originality/value– The main contribution is the nexus between stakeholder influence strategies and the collective goal of sustainability. By examining an underdeveloped component of stakeholder theory, the authors answer the question how stakeholders can drive the extensive and rapid organizational sustainability now required.

Extending the application of stakeholder influence strategies to environmental disclosures

PurposeThis paper aims to provide insights into stakeholder expectations regarding the types of disclosures a firm should make, and if dissatisfied with the disclosure policy, whether it will use different intervention strategies in an attempt to induce the desired disclosure outcome.Design/methodology/approachAn inductive qualitative framework is used in the study. In‐depth interviews, triangulated against relevant web site and media releases, are used to identify the salient stakeholders and the major environmental issues in Malaysia. Then an experimental approach is used based on role‐playing whereby experienced participants are introduced to hypothetical vignettes that relate to environmental issues identified.FindingsThe results indicate that the preferred form of disclosure is for the firms to “defend” the reasons behind the environmental event and/or explain what has been done to rectify the situation. With relatively few exceptions, the preferred strategies chosen by various participants align well with the influence strategies identified by Frooman. The findings confirm that although Frooman's model is useful in predicting stakeholder influence strategies, its effectiveness is tempered by the level of significance placed on the event by the stakeholders.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough based on a small sample, the results suggest that stakeholder theory has much to offer in terms of understanding management/stakeholder behaviour and corporate environmental disclosures.Originality/valueThe paper extends the application of stakeholder influence strategies in the “environmental reporting” domain. Likewise, it attempts to address the scarcity of literature taking the view of a wide array of stakeholders and how they choose to influence the firm. Finally, it confirms that stakeholder theory can be extended to aid the understanding of events in non‐western developing economies such as Malaysia.

A project lifecycle perspective on stakeholder influence strategies in global projects

Summary Global projects affect and are affected by multiple stakeholders with differing interests and demands. Recently, there has been increased pressure for global projects to be more environmentally and socially responsible. A project creates a dynamic context for stakeholder management and stakeholder behavior because the project moves through different phases during its lifecycle. By adopting a lifecycle perspective on secondary stakeholders’ behavior, we develop a set of propositions that increase our understanding of the potential of secondary stakeholders to influence the project management's decision making during the different phases of the project lifecycle. Ultimately, a better understanding of secondary stakeholders’ influence behavior during the project lifecycle enables the use of more effective project stakeholder management approaches.

Stakeholder influence strategies in bidding for a professional sport franchise license

This paper examines an application for a franchise license in Australia's professional rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL). Frooman's (1999) typology of stakeholder influence strategies is used to analyse the negotiation of resource relationships between a Gold Coast franchise bid team and its key stakeholders. Primary data came from 12 interviews with nine key actors in the bid process; these were buttressed by secondary data. Frooman's typology provided a useful heuristic, but did not fully account for the critical role of firm legitimacy in stakeholders’ choice of influence strategies. The bid team negotiated stakeholders’ initial direct withholding strategies by creating access to the intangible resource of legitimacy. This subsequently provided access to material resources such as finance, a new stadium, and, ultimately, a franchise license. The findings are of note to practitioners and scholars interested professional sport and stakeholder theory.

The Case For Reporting Pro-Active Environmental Initiatives: A Malaysian Experiment On Stakeholder Influence Strategies

The purpose of this research is to gain insights on the preferred strategies chosen by various stakeholder representatives to influence management to either provide/not provide environmental disclosures in an experimental setting. A typology of resource relationships and influence strategies is adapted as a framework to make sense of the views presented by various <br />stakeholder representative groups. To facilitate a Malaysian experiment, qualitative interviews with the aid of a hypothetical vignette are conducted to understand how different stakeholder groups go about seeking what they want from the management. The findings in this exploratory study indicate that although the model is useful to understand the influence strategies taken by each stakeholder group, its effectiveness is tempered by the level of significance placed by these groups on the environmental initiative and their perception of how the event will affect their stake on the firm. <br /><br />

An empirical test of stakeholder influence strategy models: evidence from business downsizing in Taiwan

Frooman's model of stakeholder influence strategies uses levels of resource dependence to determine the power of stakeholder influence. Our study provides initial empirical tests of his model applied in business downsizing. Data from 18 recently downsized firms in Taiwan, including nine multinational corporations (MNCs), were plotted against the Frooman model. We found that resource-dependence alone as Frooman theorized could not explain the influence strategies that stakeholders (in this case the employees) took in response to firms' downsizing decisions. Further investigation revealed that the institutional factors had a significant effect on how firms structured their downsizing initiatives and hence changed the way the employees reacted to firm decisions. We proposed a new model using both resource-dependence and institutional legitimacy as determinants of stakeholder influence strategy and suggested relationships between these determinants and stakeholder actions. This proposed model has profound research implications for the strategic stakeholder theory, as well as practical implications for human resource management.

Stakeholder Influence Strategies: An Empirical Exploration

In the present study, I sought to more fully understand stakeholder organizations’ strategies for influencing business firms. I conducted interviews with 28 representatives of four environmental non-governmental organizations (ENGOs): Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Greenpeace, Environmental Defense (ED), and Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS). Qualitative methods were used to analyze this data, and additional data in the form of reviews of websites and other documents was conducted when provided by interviewees or needed to more fully comprehend interviewee’s comments. Six propositions derived from Frooman (1999) formed the basis for the initial data analysis; all six propositions were supported to some extent. Perhaps more interestingly, the data revealed that Frooman’s model is too parsimonious to adequately describe stakeholder influence strategies and related alliances, necessitating the development of an alternative theoretical model grounded in the data collected.

Stakeholder Influence Strategies: The Roles of Structural and Demographic Determinants

Using Frooman’s typology of stakeholder influence strategies, this research examines the strategies that stakeholders select to exert influence on a firm. Using an experimental approach, the responses of actual environmental leaders to a series of hypothetical vignettes were examined. The results of the experiment suggest how both structural and demographic variables can act as determinants of strategy choice along with how these two types of variables may both complement and inhibit one another. Specifically, the results suggest that repertoires of strategies play a critical role in stakeholder behavior. Demographic variables appear to define the repertoires of strategies the stakeholder will typically choose among, whereas structural variables further refine choice from within that repertoire.

SOCIAL ISSUES IN MANAGEMENT Conference Paper Abstracts.

Academy of Management Annual Meeting Proceedings includes abstracts of all papers and symposia presented at the annual conference, plus 6-page abridged versions of the “Best Papers” accepted for inclusion in the program (approximately 10%). Papers published in the Proceedings are abridged because presenting papers at their full length could preclude subsequent journal publication. Please contact the author(s) directly for the full papers. ArticlesSOCIAL ISSUES IN MANAGEMENT Conference Paper Abstracts.Published Online:13 Dec 2017https://doi.org/10.5465/ambpp.2003.13792276AboutSectionsPDF/EPUB ToolsDownload CitationsAdd to favoritesTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail AbstractThis article presents several conference paper abstracts on management. In the paper titled 'Interrelatedness and Value Creation in Firm-Stakeholder Networks,' the authors attempt to raise the practical dilemmas of having an agent provocateur or a stakeholder within the firm's network. The paper titled 'Stakeholder Influence Strategies in the Canadian Forest Products Industry' draws upon the stakeholder literature to propose and test hypotheses regarding managerial perceptions about the different types of strategies that organizational stakeholders adopt to influence the sustainability practices of individual firms in the industry. The authors of the paper proposed that resource interdependence and type of stake would determine whether the influence employed by individual stakeholders was direct or indirect via other stakeholders. The paper 'Communication Philanthropy. Multiple Representations to Multiple Stakeholders' examines the accounts given by 100 large firms in the UK for their involvement with the arts. It finds support for strategic philanthropy, but that the strategic intent may be more about meeting a form of social contract or securing a licence to operate. It also adds to the literature by combining the corporate philanthropy and social accounting literatures.FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Vol. 2003, No. 1 Permissions Metrics in the past 12 months History Published online 13 December 2017 Published in print 1 August 2003 InformationCopyright of Academy of Management Journal is the property of Academy of Management and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder’s express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use.KeywordsMANAGEMENTBUSINESS enterprisesSTAKEHOLDERSCHARITIESDownload PDF