Rolex, Lego and Google Top Reputation Institute’s 2018 Global RepTrak® 100 – World’s Largest Corporate Reputation Study

Reputation  Institute  (RI),  the  world’s  leading  provider  of reputation   measurement   and  management   services,   today  announced   the  company’s annual Global RepTrak® 100 rankings. The world’s largest corporate reputation  study of its kind,  the  Global  RepTrak  100  (RT100)  is based  on  more  than  230,000  individual  ratings collected   in  the  first  quarter  of  2018.  It  includes   comparative   rankings,   demographic trends, and unique insights into the dynamics behind reputational  impact. The global study shows  what drives  trust and identifies  supportive  behaviors  such as intent  to purchase  a company’s products, willingness to invest in, or even work for, the company.

“The  reputation   bubble  has  burst.  Companies   are  down  by  an  average  of  1.4  points globally,  representing  the first major  decline  since  the end of the Great  Recession,”  said Stephen   Hahn-Griffiths,  Executive   Partner   and  Chief   Research   Officer   for  Reputation Institute. 

Rankings dropped for 58 percent of companies in the RT100. Aligned with the decline in reputation,  garnering  support  among  stakeholders  has  become  more difficult  for companies;  expectations  have risen,  making  it harder  to earn trust,  attain  benefit  of the doubt, create consumer loyalty and entice investors. 

“There  is a growing  crisis  of trust  in the world,  especially  among  big companies  making record  profits,”  said Hahn-Griffiths. “These  companies  are increasingly  judged  on aspects of their morality and ethics. Today, companies are more widely scrutinized based on their alignment   with  social  causes,  how  they  behave,  their  enterprise-wide  values  and  the internal culture they create – they are not solely measured  on what they make or how the make it.” 

Of the companies that featured prominently, BMW and Microsoft broke into the Top 10, while Intel and Rolls-Royce fell out of the top echelon. 

The top 10 companies in RI’s 2018 Global RepTrak® 100 are:

  1. Rolex 
  2. LEGO Group 
  3. Google 
  4. Canon 
  5. The Walt Disney Company 
  6. Sony
  7. Adidas 
  8. Robert Bosch 
  9. BMW Group
  10. Microsoft

Rolex earned the top spot overall as the most reputable company in the world. 

“Continuous innovation, perpetual exploration and lasting excellence are the foundations of our company,” said Virginie Chevailler, Head of Public Relations at Rolex. “We are pleased to be ranked  first  on  the  Global  RepTrak  100  for  the  third  year  in  a  row.   This  is  hard-earned recognition of our sustainable contribution to society and our commitment to inspire future generations  through  our  products  as  well  as  our  philanthropic,  environmental  and  sports partnerships.”

“Our purpose as a company – to inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow – is what drives us and keeps us on our toes,” said Niels B. Christiansen, CEO of The Lego Group. “To be ranked second on the Global RepTrak 100 survey is a great honour. We are humbled and proud that people hold us in such high regard. This doesn’t happen by accident; it is the result of our dedicated colleagues prioritizing children first and delivering play experiences that help them develop those essential skills needed for the future.”

New  to  the  Global  RepTrak®  study  this  year  is  Mars  Incorporated,   which  ranked  84th overall.  Andy  Pharoah,  VP Corporate  Affairs  and  Strategic Initiatives  said,  “Reputation  is critical to every aspect of our business  and is a leading indicator of our positive influence on society.”

This year’s overall results include dynamic changes among companies in the rankings. 

  • High risers in the Top 100 rankings are Samsung (+44), LG (+22), Nestle (+21), and Netflix (+16).
  • Among companies experiencing significant declines, fast fallers include Apple (-38), Daimler (-32), J&J (-28), Ab InBev (-27) and Estee Lauder (-26). 

Industries are also witnessing rapid changes. 

  • Six of the Top 10 are consumer-oriented industries, and the category accounts for27 percent of the Top 100. 
  • Technology replaced Automotive as the third most prevalent industry, after Consumer, followed by Food and Beverages. 
  • The most affected categories in average rankings decline are Hospitality (-16), Transportation (-13), and Airlines (-12).

Among  home countries,  the US leads the way with 43 percent  of American  companies  in the Top 100. However,  only three US companies  made the Top 10 in 2018 and 71 percent of US companies  dropped  in rankings.  Companies  from Japan  and Germany  rank second and  third  in  the  world  in  terms  of  rankings  overall  (after  the  US),  and  three  Brazilian companies appeared in the Top 100 for the first time.  

“There is a growing interest and observation  of CEO behavior and activism and it’s strongly influencing  reputation  trends,”  said  Hahn-Griffiths.  “Beyond  declaring  earnings  reports, there is a need for the voice of the CEO to be heard and associated  with issues that matter to society. The results show that the reputation of the CEO can have a significant impact on how a company is perceived.” 

Learn More and Get Your Company’s Pulse Score:

On  an  annual  basis,  RI  measures  the  reputation   of  thousands   of  companies   using  its RepTrak®   framework.  Its Global RepTrak®   100 study measures  the most highly regarded and  familiar  multinational  companies  in 15 countries  including  Australia,  Brazil,  Canada, China, France, Germany,  India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Korea, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States.

To access the full list of the most reputable companies in the world please visit:

http://www.reputationinstitute.com/thought-leadership/global-reptrak-100.

To hear perspectives  from RI experts on key trends, what they mean and how you can leverage RI insights to build and protect reputation capital, view webinars at: http://www.reputationinstitute.com/events.

Links

https://www.reputationinstitute.com

http://www.reputationinstitute.com/thought-leadership/global-reptrak-100

http://www.reputationinstitute.com/events

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