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Nestlé South Africa: leading multi-stakeholder partnership response in the COVID-19 context

Ravi Pillay (Institute of Business Science, University of Pretoria’s Gordon, Johannesburg, South Africa)
Caren Brenda Scheepers (Institute of Business Science, University of Pretoria’s Gordon, Johannesburg, South Africa)

Publication date: 7 August 2020

Abstract

Learning outcomes

The learning outcomes are as follows: identifying and prioritising of stakeholders’ needs during crises; gaining insight into applying contextual intelligence in leaders’ decision-making on philanthropic investments; and evaluating initiatives by differentiating between creating shared value and corporate social responsibility.

Case overview/synopsis

On 15 March 2020, Bruno Olierhoek, Chairman and MD, Nestlé East and Southern Africa considers his dilemma of where to focus his community support initiatives during COVID-19, which could reflect their company’s purpose of enhancing quality of life and contributing to a healthier future in their response to the crisis? Also, creating shared value (CSV) was in their DNA as a company, and they wanted to do more than philanthropic gestures; therefore, they had to decide carefully about leveraging their strategic partnerships in the relief effort. The case highlights existing community involvement projects, pre-COVID-19, which illustrate multi-stakeholder collaboration. These existing trust relationships and partnerships are then leveraged during the COVID-19 pandemic. The case highlights unintended consequences of Nestlé’s gesture of donating food products to the 5,000 frontline health-care workers for specific stakeholder groups, such as the positive emotional responses of Nestlé’s own employees. These events in the case relate to existing theoretical frameworks, such as corporate citizenship which elicits pro-organisational behaviour in stakeholder groups.

Complexity academic level

Postgraduate programmes MBA or MPhil.

Supplementary materials

Teaching Notes are available for educators only.

Subject code

CSS: 7 Management Science

Keywords

Citation

Pillay, R. and Scheepers, C.B. (2020), "Nestlé South Africa: leading multi-stakeholder partnership response in the COVID-19 context", , Vol. 10 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/EEMCS-05-2020-0167

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited

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