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Corporate Services in Poor Areas: A Case Study with Participative Multistakeholder Involvement
Author(s) -
MELÉ DOMENÈC,
PALADINO MARCELO
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
business and society review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.524
H-Index - 21
eISSN - 1467-8594
pISSN - 0045-3609
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-8594.2008.00320.x
Subject(s) - stakeholder , credibility , business , shareholder , interdependence , reciprocity (cultural anthropology) , politics , public relations , participatory management , corporate governance , political science , economics , sociology , finance , management , anthropology , law
Corporations that provide services such as water, sewage disposal and electricity in poor countries or deprived areas face political, social and economic problems that make it difficult to simultaneously favor the interests of shareholders and other relevant stakeholders. In this paper a case study is presented in which a company, Aguas Argentinas, promoted innovative and participative multistakeholder involvement that produced benefits for all parties. Key factors in the model employed were the generation of credibility and trust, adaptive management to the specific situation of deprived areas, stakeholder dialogue, and participation. It is argued that understanding corporate citizenship as reciprocity and common effort in solving interdependent problems were fundamental to the success of the company in this case.