ABSTRACT
Corporate communication has been defined in a number of different ways in relation to public relations perhaps the most significant is as the process of establishing trust, social capital and legitimacy. Corporate communication is such a multifaceted practice that the use of a case study has been selected here as one of the best ways of illustrating the different dimensions and issues to be considered in attempting to manage these effectively. Effective stakeholder engagement is key to the success of corporate communication conceptualised in this way, but the ability to achieve real engagement is highly contested. Stakeholderism is inextricably linked to broader concepts of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the role of public relations in relation to democracy. In political terms, stakeholder theory is premised on the interrelation of state, society and the economy as opposed to a free market approach.
