Corporate Identity: Identifying Dominant Elements in CI Models

Abstract

Over the vast discourse on corporate identity (CI), several CI models have been proposed – each with their respective elements, theoretical and empirical justifications for incorporating the corporate identity elements. These justifications are at the centre of where various scholars differ in the corporate identity debate. These dissenting positions notwithstanding, there are assenting points in the corporate identity debate. In an attempt to probe these areas, the authors re-examined the corporate identity debates and identified six critical CI models between 1995 and 2003. The cross-section of corporate identity elements from the models reviewed, revealed that six out of eight critical CI elements identified, attained a high level of agreement across corporate identity scholars. Finally, the authors recommend that further study should focus on a wider scope of the corporate identity discourse for a more conclusive and verified result.