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(Title of the Thesis)* AUTHENTICITY AND THE CORPORATE BRAND SAGA by Terry Beckman A thesis submitted to the School of Business In conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Queen’s University Kingston, Ontario, Canada (June, 2012) Copyright ©Terry Beckman, 2012 Abstract This dissertation analyzes what a corporate brand is and what motivates it. Using qualitative methods the corporate brand of IBM is investigated from the viewpoint of many of its stakeholders. It is discovered that IBM’s corporate brand is outside the control of IBM, and is a social construction of IBM and its stakeholders. It is a special type of story – a saga – to which not only the company contributes to the storyline, but also its stakeholders. As such, the corporate brand is a dynamic process driven along by IBM’s attempt to be authentic. That is, as IBM shapes its identity in response to the expectations of its stakeholders, and tries to be true to its identity, it is constantly changing. From this process the corporate brand emerges and is propelled and motivated by the force of authenticity. These findings contribute to the marketing literature by providing a revised view of the corporate brand. Not only does this have theoretical implications, but it also significantly changes how managers deal with and try to manage their corporate brands as they now recognize that they are only one of the contributors to the ongoing saga. ii Acknowledgements A dissertation is a major project, and as with any major project there are many people who contribute time and energy to ensuring its successful completion. This is especially true of my dissertation, where there has been a huge supporting cast. I do not have the space to adequately thank all of the people who helped in some form or another, so I will only mention a few. Know however, that this is just scratching the surface of supporters of this work. Of course my committee was there to make sure I got to the end. Peggy Cunningham, who started me on this path; Jay Handelman who took up the baton mid- race; Peter Dacin, who was there from beginning to end; and Tandy Chalmers Thomas who agreed to add her wisdom and support at a late stage. The PhD students at Queen’s are great, and so many of them were there for support, fun and fellowship. There are however, two specific students that I want to mention. Keith Rogers, for coffee, sushi, curries, summer sausage, fascinating economics articles to read, and for being a sane, rational friend to talk with. And Maggie Matear, a good friend to commiserate with, bounce ideas off, get ideas from, and who willingly opened her home in Timmins to the whole Beckman family on multiple occasions. Many thanks to both of you! My gratitude also goes to Peter and Cyndi Rigby. They provided support, fellowship and spiritual guidance over my long journey…not to mention a lot of good squash games (with Peter!). To my In-laws, Yuri and Darlene Stezenko, who were always there cheering me on, and who had unceasing faith in me – thank you so much! iii To my parents, Dale and Bobby Beckman, who have always been there for me. I am not sure if I could have done any of this without you. Thank you so much for your love and support! To my children, Caleb, Spencer, Matthew and Katie – thank you for your patience and for your good spirit during this time. I love and appreciate each of you, and I am so glad that you were there to ensure that I had a lot of fun along the way. And ultimately, to Debbie, my fabulous, beautiful, loving, wife. Thank you for your patience with me in seeing this through to its end. Thank you for being willing to move halfway across the country, and then most of the way back again. Thank you for being my wife! iv Statement of Originality I hereby certify that all of the work described within this thesis is the original work of the author. Any published (or unpublished) ideas and/or techniques from the work of others are fully acknowledged in accordance with the standard referencing practices. (Terry Beckman) (June, 2012) v Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................................ ii Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... iii Statement of Originality ................................................................................................................... v Chapter 1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1 Dissertation Overview ................................................................................................................. 6 Dissertation Contribution ............................................................................................................. 7 Chapter 2 Literature Review ............................................................................................................ 9 Corporate Brands ......................................................................................................................... 9 Why is the Corporate Brand Important? .................................................................................... 11 The Corporate Brand versus the Product Brand ........................................................................ 13 Structuralism and the Corporate Brand ...................................................................................... 17 The Corporate Brand Revisited ................................................................................................. 21 The Corporate Brand Saga ......................................................................................................... 24 Chapter 3 Authenticity ................................................................................................................... 29 Other-oriented Authenticity ....................................................................................................... 30 Existential Authenticity ............................................................................................................. 33 Be True to Yourself ................................................................................................................... 34 The Role of Authenticity in Marketing ...................................................................................... 42 Authenticity Defined .................................................................................................................. 47 Authenticity and the Corporate Brand ....................................................................................... 49 Chapter 4 Methodology ................................................................................................................. 58 Data Sources .............................................................................................................................. 62 IBM Data ................................................................................................................................... 63 Depth Interviews ........................................................................................................................ 66 Media Articles ............................................................................................................................ 70 Blogs .......................................................................................................................................... 72 Twitter™ .................................................................................................................................... 72 IBM’s Smarter Planet Campaign ............................................................................................... 73 Data Analysis ............................................................................................................................. 74 Traditional Brand Management ................................................................................................. 74 The IBM Story ........................................................................................................................... 75 The IBM Saga ............................................................................................................................ 76 vi Chapter 5 Analysis and Interpretation ........................................................................................... 77 Theme 1: The Development and Management of IBM’s Corporate Brand ............................... 78 Following the Script ................................................................................................................... 78 Maintaining Relevance .......................................................................................................... 79 Creating Value Propositions .................................................................................................. 81 Managing Negative Associations........................................................................................... 82 Managing the Brand in Different Contexts ............................................................................ 84 Making the Corporate Brand Identity Emerge ....................................................................... 84 The Result: A Strong Corporate Brand? ..................................................................................
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