Strategic marketing through sport for development: managing multi-stakeholder partnerships

Previous literature establishes links between strategic marketing through sport and corporate social responsibility (CSR). While many corporations will leverage sports to reinforce their product and corporate brands, others will use sports as a channel for their CSR efforts aimed at tackling grand societal challenges – global issues that are so complex that multi-stakeholder partnerships are needed to make a difference. As these partnerships involve corporations, non-profits, governments, and other concerned stakeholders, implementing CSR campaigns involving multi-stakeholder partnership remains challenging. Through in-depth interviews with 14 corporate partners of a global movement that enriches the lives of individuals identifying with intellectual disabilities through sport, our study proposes a conceptual model that crystallizes how corporate partners are activated by the multi-stakeholder partner – our proposed sport for development Partnership Management Matrix provides insights about the importance of the frequency and formality of connection between multi-stakeholder partners. Accordingly, a discussion about how the frequency and formality of connections can contribute to producing greater brand value than traditional strategic marketing through sports is provided.