By Business & Finance 
Volkswagen has been named the most reputable organisation in Ireland, according to the results of the annual Ireland RepTrak® 2014 study, announced by The Reputations Agency.
This is the fifth year of the most comprehensive study of corporate reputations undertaken in Ireland, carried out by The Reputations Agency and their global partners the Reputation Institute. The study measured the reputations of 100 organisations in Ireland between January and February 2014, encompassing the views of 4,701 members of the general public across Ireland.
Volkswagen ranked first among the firms studied, with SuperValu (2nd), An Post (3rd), Google (4th) and Boots (5th) all following in the top five.
The top ten indigenous firm rankings (in order and including their respective overall score) are:
- SuperValu (2nd overall)
- An Post (3rd overall)
- The Irish League of Credit Unions (6th overall)
- Smyths Toys (9th overall)
- Eason & Son (11th overall)
- Irish Rugby Football Union (15th overall)
- Aer Lingus (16th overall)
- Arnotts (17th overall)
- GAA (20th overall)
- Kerry Group (21st overall)
This year, nine new entrants have been included in the Top 100. In the retail and food category, three new entrants, Centra, Spar and SuperValu, have been included.
In the financial services (bank/insurance) category, The Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU) and RSA (Royal & Sun Alliance) have been included for the first time. For the first time, Ireland’s three national sporting bodies, the Football Association of Ireland (FAI), Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA), and Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU), have been included under the public services category with interesting results. The IRFU ranked 15th, the GAA ranked 20th and the FAI ranked 98th.
Awards were presented to Volkswagen (1st), SuperValu (2nd) and An Post (3rd). In addition, The Irish League of Credit Unions received an award for the best reputation in the financial services category.
The independent study ranked each company on its RepTrak® Pulse score, representing an average measure of people’s feelings for it. The scores are statistically derived from four emotional indicators: trust, esteem, admiration and good feeling. It also studied how an organisation was rated across the seven key dimensions of reputation which are: leadership; products & services, innovation; governance; workplace; performance; and citizenship.
Niamh Boyle, managing director, The Reputations Agency, said: “We are living and working in a reputation economy where reputation is the new currency. Businesses are recognising this and so do the general public, who are more attuned to the reputation of an organisation than ever before. For the public, actions speak louder than words and an organisation needs to ensure stakeholders understand that the company is addressing issues that are pertinent to them as customers, be it good corporate citizenship or being ethical and transparent in the way it does business. The credibility and reliability that follows creates economic value. This year, Volkswagen has been named the most reputable organisation in Ireland, the second consecutive year an automotive company has taken the top position. The banking industry still remains the lowest ranked industry in Ireland. The one clear leader in this sector in 2014 is The Irish League of Credit Unions, who as a first time entrant received a strong score with 77.2 points. While members of this industry have made real efforts to work on their reputation, it remains clear from the results that there is much work still to be done in regaining public trust.”
Paddy Comyn, head of PR & Social Media, Volkswagen Ireland, said: “Volkswagen Group Ireland is delighted to have been recognised as the company with the best corporate reputation in Ireland. We have a talented and committed team that help us to maintain our position as Ireland’s favourite automotive brand. The combination of the best people, the best vehicles and the best dealer network is the reason for our success.”
