In an era when stakeholder expectations and interdependencies are increasingly central to success, the ability to navigate these relationships is not just a matter of fairness or optics, it’s a strategic imperative. Nonetheless, some companies choose not to include all stakeholders in important decisions — and they suffer the consequences.
The authors showcase prominent examples of how things have gone wrong (most recently, in the case of the PGA Tour) and then identify three ways through which companies can ensure that their key stakeholders have a voice in the decision-making process, listen to one another, and work together as effectively as possible.What happens when executives — believing that they know what’s in the best interest of the company — decide to not consult with stakeholders, or even to temporarily withhold important information from them? More often than not, the outcome isn’t good