No entity without identity — Communications strategies of corporate Germany in the early 1990s

In Germany the significance of corporate communications has come a long way since the early 1990s. In many cases, multidimensional structural change within companies has left an identity vacuum which some have superficially attempted to fill by way of the shareholder value versus stakeholder value debate. While the market's Top 30 effectively operate as stakeholders, they position themselves for the most part as shareholder‐focused. A successful identity and image policy is characterised by a mindset which interprets identity as a process and image as the benefit to all stakeholders.