Shapeholders: Business Success in the Age of Activism

by Mark Kennedy

Today, all it takes is one organizational misstep to sink a company's reputation. Social media can be a strict ethical enforcer, with the power to convince thousands to boycott products and services. Executives are stuck on appeasing stakeholders―shareholders, employees, and consumers―but they ignore shapeholders , regulators, the media, and social and political activists who have no stake in a company but will work hard to curb what they see as bad business practices. And they do so at their own peril.

In Business Success in the Age of Activism , former congressman, Fortune 500 executive, and university president Mark Kennedy argues that shapeholders, as much as stakeholders, have significant power to determine a company's risks and opportunities, if not its survival. Many international, multi-billion-dollar corporations fail to anticipate activism, and they flounder on first contact. Kennedy zeroes in on the different languages that shapeholders and companies speak and their contrasting metrics for what constitutes acceptable business practice. Executives, he argues, must be visionaries who find profitable―and probable―collaborations to diffuse political tensions. Kennedy's decision matrix helps corporations align their business practices with shapeholder interests, anticipate their demands, and assess changing moral standards so that together they can plan a profitable route forward.

304 pages, Hardcover

Published May 9, 2017

Reviews

[Darren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reputation matters and a reputation today can seemingly be won or lost, or at least substantially impacted, by a misstep that gets amplified by social media and the media-at-large.

The title of this book – shapeholders – has been coined by the author to describe a group that has no actual stake in a company, such as regulators, the media and social media activists, who still have the potential of significantly impacting it. This group should not be readily ignored, since they can influence a company’s fate and this can translate into real-world economic figures.

There can be different demands and expectations placed on the company by shapeholders and the company needs to find a way of servicing this audience and handling their ‘needs’, through carefully considered actions, language and behaviour. It does not mean, of course, automatically bending to another’s will, but a bit of planning ahead can see off many potential problems and create a process for dealing with issues should they occur, whether rightly or wrongly. Anything that possibly removes, neuters or dilutes problems can only be a good thing.

It made for an interesting, thought-provoking read, covering a subject that will not go away. If anything, its implications will only get worse, as invariably somebody will find a way of being offended by a company’s actions. This is even before faux rage may be seeded, perhaps by a less-ethical competitor or former employer who is out for perceived revenge.

The only critical comment could be the style or approach of the book. At times, it felt as if it was more of a leisurely ramble, which could be off-putting to the time-pushed reader. Those who are prone to dip in and out could also lose some valuable content in the process. To get the most out of the book you may need to take the perceived rough with the smooth, should you consider it goes out of focus from time to time.

[Mills College Library]

658.408 K361 2017