Integrative Stakeholder Engagement: Stakeholder-Oriented Partnership Between the Coca-Cola Company and World Wildlife Fund

Abstract

Stakeholder engagement lies at the core of stakeholder theory even though management scholars have not researched engagement thoroughly relative to other aspects of stakeholder theory. In fact, practicing managers, not academics, have led exploration of and innovation in stakeholder engagement. This paper provides scholars with analysis of a practical integrative stakeholder engagement conducted by The Coca-Cola Company (TCCC) in partnership with World Wildlife Fund (WWF). This case is unique in that the analyzed integrative stakeholder engagement was both extremely successful and sustainable by going beyond the original partners and spreading among stakeholders across the entire value chain and beyond. Triggered by community concerns in India, TCCC’s best practices in engaging multiple stakeholders to preserve freshwater spread across all continents and went on to be adopted by other companies and their stakeholders which were outside of TCCC’s direct reach. The analyzed case is also valuable in showing that TCCC, though enjoying the leading position in its industry and having considerable influence over its value chain, chose to engage stakeholders in its freshwater conservation initiative through a collaborative, dialogue-based process, demonstrating a stakeholder mindset both on the part of the company and multiple stakeholders.