Abstract
The objective of this study was to explore how corporate reputation is managed at the Emfuleni
local municipality in the Gauteng province of South Africa. This study employed a qualitative
research approach and a case study design. In-depth individual, semi-structured interviews
were conducted with eight participants until data was saturated. Thematic analysis was used to
analyse data. The results show that management of reputation is a multifaceted concept, which
includes corporate social responsibility, emotional appeal, financial performance, products and
services, vision and leadership and workplace environment. They also show that corporate
communication is an essential part of the local municipality as it serves to align the
organisation’s vision, culture and image. The study recommends that corporate reputation
should be one of the most important objectives of corporate communication departments,
meaning that the organisation needs to work harder to build and manage productive
relationships with its internal and external stakeholders. The study further recommends that
communication should be dialogic because it is a tool for negotiating and managing stakeholder
relationships.