Strategic management of public affairs in Swedish multinational corporations - the recipe for success

Sammanfattning: This multiple case study addresses the question concerning how multinational corporations handle their public affairs operations. In general, public affairs regard public private sector collaboration and include how companies can manage their governmental stakeholders. Nevertheless, is there a recipe for managing this more successfully? Public affairs have long been an issue for companies operating on a national and international level and are becoming even more complex in the globalizing world. The theoretical concepts are fragmented and inconclusive. Due to this, the researchers have developed a framework, including the most important components to consider while conducting public affairs. The framework is being put to test through semi-structured interviews to understand the company perspective and the strategic use of the unit's operations to the overall objectives. The results indicate that the companies need to evaluate the stakeholder environment extensively. The companies need to keep themselves relevant and reliable for maintaining their position and influence governmental stakeholders efficiently. A cross-sectional and industry collaboration is needed for influencing governmental stakeholders, accordingly. The structure of the unit is crucial, where a dispersed organization with central coordination results in the best execution.