The Link Management Limited : a socially responsible corporate?

Abstract

The Link REITs is the most renowned, world-wide real estate investment trust in Hong Kong since 25 November 2005. Yet, the performance of The Link REIT is controversial under the management of The Link Management Limited (“The Link”). The excellence financial performance of The Link is well known, but the non-financial performance is uncertain.

While The Link has adopted a sustainability framework for sustainability management, the three key concepts including i) CSR, ii) sustainability and iii) the building of reputational capital will be integrated into one as a prism for analysis.

“Corporate Social Responsibility (“CSR”) is simply part of the scope under the concept of sustainability and the notion of building reputational capital is ingrained in various theories in relations to CSR and sustainability. Business that operates to comply with economic and legal responsibilities can be asserted to survive. Together with its compliance with the ethical and philanthropic responsibilities, a company could enjoy increasing competitiveness by gaining consumer confidence over a long term.

The Link has been experiencing changes in its moral system prior to its personnel change upon these years. Start from the individual level, CEO of The Link disseminated his espoused ethical values to the organizational and then to the societal level. The moral system will be examined; barriers against the dissemination of ethical practice will be addressed.

Upon The Link’s behavioural change in its ethical practice, a reputation audit which is also known as perception test will be used to test if there are perception gaps exists in between levels of the dissemination. Contrasting the existing state of The Link’s ethical performance with the desired state wanted by The Link’s key constituencies, this would help to address the perception gaps. Whether these perception gaps are opportunities to improve or challenges to overcome, it is important information for The Link to further develop and to gauge its sustainability management strategy.