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U.S. Companies Missing the Mark on Consumer Priorities According to RoperNOP Corporate Reputation Scorecard

NEW YORK, June 17 -- RoperASW today announced results of the RoperNOP Corporate Reputation Scorecard, a survey of over 6,500 adult Americans which found more than two-thirds are disappointed with business efforts around protecting American jobs, giving back to local communities, protecting the environment and disclosing important financial information.

According to the Scorecard significant percentages of consumers believe corporations put "too little" effort into:

   Protecting American jobs (78%)

   Giving back to communities in which they operate (70%)

   Protecting the environment (68%)

   Disclosing important financial information (66%)

   Complying with government regulations (44%)

   Providing equal employment opportunities for women (42%)

   Providing equal employment opportunities for minorities (29%)

"The current crisis in corporate reputation may not only reflect the impact of ongoing accounting scandals, but the view that big businesses aren't meeting the needs of the larger community," said John Gilfeather, Vice Chairman of RoperASW and Director of the RoperNOP Corporate Reputation Scorecard. "Americans expect more from corporate America than they are getting."

The Scorecard also asked Americans to describe U.S. corporations using eight personality traits (strong, greedy, arrogant, deceitful, friendly, trustworthy, dull or fun). More than half of adults feel most large U.S. corporations are "greedy" (63%) and "arrogant" (52%) while less than a third say they are "trustworthy" (27%) and "fun" (13%).

   Percent Agree, In General, Large U.S. Corporations Are:

   Strong      (64%)

   Greedy      (63%)

   Arrogant    (52%)

   Deceitful   (41%)

   Friendly    (38%)

   Trustworthy (27%)

   Dull        (22%)

   Fun         (13%)

"The results indicate a continued distrust in American corporations suggesting that today's business leaders must take steps to tame the hostile environment," added Gilfeather.

The Scorecard also uncovered a disparity among industries with automotive and technology seen as the most "trustworthy" (44% and 39% respectively) and financial services facing the greatest challenge with only 26% using this trait to describe the industry.

The RoperNOP Corporate Reputation Scorecard tracks specific reputations of 30 top U.S. advertisers in six industries including financial services, entertainment, automotive, technology, pharmaceutical and consumer packaged goods and was conducted from March 6 to April 8 of this year among 6,602 consumers employing RoperASW's online panel.

RoperASW, a NOP World company, is a leading global marketing research and consulting firm. With headquarters in New York and offices in London, Manila and throughout the U.S., NOP World is the seventh largest market research company in the U.S. and the ninth largest in the world.