Selected Case Studies

Asda-Wal*Mart appointed Populus in 2004 to take a systematic approach to managing relations with its senior stakeholders, auditing its existing reputation and setting targets for improvement.

Populus conducted an initial stakeholder perception audit, probing attitudes to the supermarket sector and the reputation of the company among stakeholders including MPs, civil servants, planning officials, unions, and NGOs including environmental, farming and disability groups.

As well as gathering valuable qualitative insight from these key groups, Populus devised a series of numerical questions to establish benchmarks on key measures, allowing Asda-Wal*Mart to set targets for the future.

This research is repeated annually, giving Asda-Wal*Mart’s most senior management a clear reality check and an assessment of the cut through achieved by their strategic communications. The research is used by the company to measure progress against its targets and refine its public affairs activity in response to qualitative findings. The process has helped the company to steadily improve its reputation among its most important stakeholders.