Social media in particular has the power to greatly accelerate change, and it’s being used as a “powerful weapon against companies, industries and individuals when they become targets,” Kossovsky says. The growth in the overall frequency and severity of reputational losses has been driven by three factors, according to Steel City Re CEO Dr. Nir …
“The singling out of Wells Fargo by USAA as a target for patent infringement litigation is a reflection of Wells Fargo’s recent loss of reputational value as a result of other well-reported activities,” Kossovsky said. “All other things being equal, Wells Fargo is relatively more vulnerable than its peers, its defenses more likely to be …
And while Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg seems to have dodged the bullets fired his way during a Congressional hearing last month (did you #deletefacebook ?), Cambridge Analytica’s leadership knew that, based on its actions and the cavalcade of accusations, neither their clients nor the public would ever “like” them again.” Last year, Steel City Re …
“Having been damaged, Wells Fargo really has only one option: to rebuild its reputation,” he said. Kossovsky defines reputational risk as the peril of economic or political damage from energized, disappointed stakeholders including customers, employees, regulators, creditors, and investors. “It’s painful to say that nobody cares about a $1 billion fine, but the general population’s …
Steel City Re also provides risk mitigation, risk transfer and risk financing tools to help policy-holding companies meet stakeholders’ expectations. Along with D&O culpability insurance and reputation catastrophe insurance, the company offers captive insurance solutions to guard against potential losses and satisfy regulatory requirements and a corporate board solution that Kossovsky calls “shark repellent” against …
The Fed took the unusual measure of requiring every board director to sign an attestation – not unlike the Section 302 attestation required of CEOs and CFOs in Sarbanes-Oxley – that they understand the cease and desist order. It also instituted a series of timetables for management and board to report on their risk management …
The lack of objectivity on clawbacks also “makes the board vulnerable to alternative interpretations of how that concept is being executed,” he says. “That puts the relationship of the board with its stakeholders, including litigants and activists, at risk.” “The party being punished needs to understand clearly and objectively what the punishment is if punishment …
“Even if a bad event is short-lived, the equity markets react quickly, so there may be sharp equity dips. There may be some economic impact even over the short term,” Kossovsky said, “because sharp dips are dog whistles for activists, litigators and corporate raiders.” That’s not to say, however, that a tarnished brand name doesn’t …
Based on research by Steel City Re, social media messages by an influential person can have a lasting effect on a company’s stock price if stockholders and the public believe the messages will be backed up by action. “You don’t have to be culpable to be held culpable in the court of public opinion,” he …
“Nir Kossovsky, founder of Steel City Re, has argued for such a strategic and holistic approach to intangibles. In his framework a company’s intangibles include its processes for producing safe, high-quality, innovative, ethical and sustainable products and services. A company’s reputation is the sum total of stakeholders’ perceptions of how the company manages those intangibles. …