Companies not doing enough to engage stakeholders, says study

In survey of 80 firms, most did not outline how their boards manage such relationships

- Sue-Ann Tan

Companies need to ramp up their efforts to better engage stakeholders such as investors, customers, staff and the wider community, noted a study on June 27.

The study looked at 80 companies, ranging from firms with a market capitalisation below $300 million to those worth over $1 billion, and found that firms generally did not disclose how their board and executive leadership handle stakeholder engagement plans and decisions. While the companies put content about corporate governance on their websites, they did not outline how their boards manage relationships with stakeholders.

Only 10 per cent of companies gave case studies or examples to show how their boards considered major stakeholder decisions throughout the year, noted communications agency Black Sun Global and the Singapore Institute of Directors (SID), which carried out the study.

They also conducted an online survey in May on stakeholder engagement, gathering around 200 responses from aspiring and current board members and investors.