Names

An organization’s name is a key symbol of its identity. A name expresses the core attributes that define the firm as central, distinctive, and enduring, and in so doing, it describes who the firm is and what it does. An organization’s name is an important reputational signal, for both its internal employees and its external audiences of consumers, investors, analysts, the media, and the public. As a reputational signal, a name functions to (a) position the organization strategically as a credible player within a market niche, but differentiating it from its competitors; (b) serve as a touchstone for the organizational audiences’ understanding, legitimation, and valuation; and (c) drive organizational survival and financial performance.

[Page 472]Organizational names are rich and varied and can be different on a ...