Unlocking the Future: Insights from Clara Fontan on Reputation & Intangible Global Trends

In today’s world, where information travels at the speed of light and public perception can make or break an organisation, reputation is a precious asset. Clara Fontan, Director of Intelligence & Knowledge at Corporate Excellence – Centre for Reputation Leadership, shed light on the intricacies of reputation management during her talk on “Reputation & Intangible Global Trends – Approaching the Future 2023.”

As a pioneer in the field, Clara elaborated on the significance of reputation and intangible assets in shaping the future of organisations worldwide. “Reputation is key for achieving excellence, it’s about listening to key stakeholders,” she pointed out. Her insights were drawn from the latest report, “Approaching the Future: The Effects and Impact of Reputation and Intangible Assets on Organisations Across The Globe.”

Corporate Excellence, being a think and action tank, serves as an incubator of innovation, knowledge, and training in the realm of intangible assets. Their dedication to exploring uncharted territory was evident in the recently unveiled Global PR & Comm Model, now accessible to the global PR and communications community as an executive online training course in both English and Spanish.

The heart of the matter lay in the annual report on Trends in Reputation and Intangible Asset Management. “We created a road map,” she explained and went to say that this  extensive operation involved extensive analysis – over 400 secondary sources, conducting interviews, performing qualitative analyses and deploying an online survey. The ultimate goal was – to emphasise the link between a higher purpose and responsible corporate behavior in building a company’s reputation.

The report illuminated a fascinating aspect of senior professionals’ vision, with 47% of responses hailing from senior management positions in 2023. Ten interconnected trends emerged as pivotal factors defining the present and future of intangibles, including Sustainability and ESG, Responsible Leadership, Corporate Brand, Corporate Reputation, Corporate Communication, Corporate Purpose, Future of Work, Corporate Governance, and Climate Emergency.

Sustainability and ESG claimed the top spot among the relevance ranking trends for 2023, followed by Responsible Leadership, Corporate Reputation, Corporate Communication, Digitalisation and Cybersecurity, Corporate Purpose, Future of Work, Corporate Brand, Corporate Governance, and Climate Emergency.

Communication emerged as the most worked-on trend in 2023, with remarkable growth compared to the previous year. Brand (+27.2), Sustainability (+20), Future of Work (+15.8), Reputation (+12.4), and Communication (+11.1) showed significant increases.

Each of the ten key identified trends unveiled valuable insights

Sustainability and ESG highlighted the growing integration of sustainability into business models. Responsible Leadership emphasised ethical and responsible leadership as a driver of economic, social, and environmental transformation.

Corporate Reputation stood out as a strategic priority, garnering increased resources to fortify and mitigate reputational risks. Corporate Communication navigated a landscape of social polarisation, calling for organisations to assume an activist public role through evolving channels.

Digitalisation and Cybersecurity underscored technology’s pervasive impact on business, with profound effects on working models, customer relations, and products and services. Corporate Purpose consolidated its role as a pillar of success and sustainability, influencing trends like responsible leadership and sustainability.

The Future of Work continued to evolve with hybrid working models, focusing on talent attraction, wellbeing, diversity, and collaboration. Corporate Brand emphasised the rising importance of brand positioning and integrated approaches to intangible asset management.

Corporate Governance witnessed the integration of ESG criteria into governance models, necessitating multifaceted transformations in various areas. Lastly, Climate Emergency underscored the persistent gap between environmental commitments and concrete actions, emphasising the urgent need for change.

This report on reputation and intangible global trends serves as a compass for organisations navigating the complex landscape of the modern world. As we unlock the future, the lessons drawn from this report provide invaluable insights to guide us towards excellence, responsibility & sustainability.

The views and opinions published here belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the publisher.

Shree Lahiri

Shree is the Senior Editor at Reputation Today and hopes to move from one focus area to another in the editions that will be released this year. Having worked in Corporate Communications teams, she has experience of advertising, public relations, investor and employee communications, after which she moved to the other side – journalism. She enjoys writing and believes the power of the pen is indeed mighty. Covering the entertainment beat and the media business, she has been involved in a wide range of activities that have thrown open storytelling opportunities.

She can be reached at: @shree_la on twitter