Theory of meaningful stakeholder dialogue

• Stakeholders include, for example, employees (including those in the value chain), suppliers, trade unions, civil society organisations, or communities in production countries.
• Meaningful means that the dialogue goes beyond simply informing or consulting: stakeholders can safely share their perspectives at the right moment, there is clarity about what will be done with their input, and the conversation leads to concrete actions or follow-up steps. It is therefore not a one-off conversation, but an ongoing process of listening, learning, and improving.
• The aim is to better understand stakeholders’ experiences, concerns, and needs, and to incorporate these into your decision-making and business operations. This helps you gain better insight into risks and opportunities, prevent or address negative impacts, and build trust with those affected by your activities. This way of working aligns with international guidelines such as the OECD Guidelines and the UNGPs, and helps companies implement responsible business conduct (RBC) legislation and due diligence obligations.
• Key principles are trust, transparency, two-way communication, and continuity.

Companies that embed stakeholder dialogue into business processes create value for their own interests as well as for their stakeholders. Entering into dialogue means jointly exploring issues by actively listening, sharing experiences, and reflecting on needs and insights. The goal is to ensure that the outcomes of the dialogue are addressed collaboratively, maintaining continuous contact, rather than treating it as a one-off, tick-the-box activity.

A company can have various reasons to conduct stakeholder dialogue. The motivation can arise from:

• Intrinsic motivation: the willingness to conduct dialogue
• External stimuli: the moeten to conduct dialogue (such as legislation or reputational risks)

Intrinsic motivation helps you to be open to the needs and concerns of stakeholders, and to take these into account in business operations and decision-making processes. The risk of a purely externally driven motivation is that stakeholder dialogue becomes a tick-the-box activity and gets ceased when no external stimulus is left, which rarely leads to meaningful results. Intrinsic motivation grows when experiencing the added value that stakeholder dialogue can bring.

	Step 1: Determine your motivation
	The added value of dialogue for your company

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A well-structured plan provides clarity, continuity, and predictability for stakeholders as well as for the employees involved in the dialogue. This fosters mutual trust and helps to prevent misunderstandings or disappointments regarding the process. The scope of the plan of action will vary depending on the number of stakeholders involved, the complexity of the topic, and whether the dialogue is formal or informal. The plan should incorporate all elements of meaningful dialogue to ensure a comprehensive approach. This does not have to be perfect right from the start; stakeholder dialogue is a process of continuous learning and adapting.

Compass for Meaningful Stakeholder Dialogue

Companies must demonstrate their commitment, for instance by integrating meaningful dialogue into policies, allocating the necessary time, capacity, and resources, and through specific actions of the company. This could include actively promoting the stakeholder engagement policy or taking stakeholders feedback and signals seriously.

In addition to the company’s own commitment, it is important to consider the feasibility of dialogue and the level of commitment from other stakeholders. For more on this, see the element of ’Inclusion’.

	Step 2: Align internally
	Internal alignment for successful dialogue

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By involving the right stakeholders, you ensure that their interests, needs, and first-hand knowledge are heard and considered. It is important to not only reach out to stakeholders you already know or have existing relationships with.

Engaging directly with (or through representatives of) stakeholders, rather than relying solely on distant experts or familiar contacts, allows companies to gather reliable information from the source. This approach leads to new perspectives, identification of the relevant risks, and more sustainable solutions and follow-up actions that are genuinely supported by those affected. An inclusive process also strengthens a company’s credibility, demonstrating a willingness to listen to all stakeholders—including those who may be critical of your operations.

To ensure an inclusive dialogue, it is essential to explore how stakeholders can participate and remove any barriers they may face. Consider factors such as safety and potential negative consequences of their engagement, power imbalances, physical distance, language barriers, and time constraints. Moreover, the dialogue must meet the needs of the stakeholder, as dialogue is a reciprocal process that cannot be imposed by companies. Understanding stakeholders’ motivations and interests helps foster commitment to the dialogue.

	Step 3: Identify your stakeholders Step 5: Select and engage stakeholders Step 7: Arrange practical preparation
	Identifying your stakeholders Promoting stakeholder commitment Listening to workers in the supply chain

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Transparent communication with stakeholders ensures that they enter into a dialogue with the right expectations. They know what can and cannot be achieved and whether their interests are sufficiently recognised and taken into account in the process. This generates trust and mutual understanding, provided you take confidentiality and sensitivity into account in the topics discussed.

Clarity, timeliness, relevance and completeness are important when communicating information transparently. In addition, you must communicate in an accessible manner via a communication tool that matches the stakeholders’ preferences. This approach will help them better understand whether a company does (not yet) take a certain decision or action.

	Step 5: Select and engage stakeholders Step 8: Conduct the open dialogue  Step 9: Follow up and evaluate
	When and how to share information? Building trust

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Personal contact forms the foundation of a dialogue. It helps foster mutual trust, openness during the conversation, and a safe, equal environment. This connection plays a role before, during, and after the dialogue:

• Before and after the dialogue, maintaining personal contact with stakeholders is essential to strengthen relationships and sustain the trust built during the engagement. The ultimate goal is to foster long-term relationships where both the company and stakeholders can easily communicate with one another. By staying connected with stakeholders, you lower the barrier to addressing complex or sensitive issues, promoting more fruitful conversations and deepening the relationship.
• During the dialogue, meaningful contact is established through an open, interested, and sincere approach to your stakeholders. Active listening is key, along with being mindful of power dynamics, cultural differences, varying experiences with dialogue, and knowledge of the subject matter. An external facilitator can assist to maintain a balanced and effective process.

	Step 5: Select and engage stakeholders Step 8: Conduct the open dialogue  Step 9: Follow up and evaluate
	Good practices in conducting dialogue Asking the rights questions  Considering country-specific and cultural factors

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Good preparation fosters trust among stakeholders. Both before, during and after the dialogue, it is important to actively involve stakeholders in a meaningful way. Prior to the dialogue, you must agree on key topics, define the central question being explored, and clarify when and how the dialogue will be considered meaningful. During the dialogue, it is essential that stakeholders can contribute equally. Key factors to consider include the timing of the dialogue, the location and format of the dialogue, the language of communication, reporting methods, and how feedback will be handled. Additionally, assess whether you can effectively lead the dialogue yourself, or if an external facilitator is needed to ensure a balanced and productive conversation.

	Step 4: Determine the reason and topic Step 5: Select and engage stakeholders  Step 7: Arrange practical preparation
	Checklist dialogue meeting Checklist dialogue meeting in supply chain  What makes a good facilitator?

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The stakeholder dialogue approach is more likely to succeed when it is embedded within existing internal processes and supported by senior management. When leadership demonstrates commitment by integrating stakeholder dialogue into the company’s policies, they are responsible for ensuring that its implementation is feasible. The internal processes must then be sufficient to carry out these policies. Essential are:

• Coordination: who within the company is responsible for stakeholder dialogue, and how much capacity needs to be allocated or recruited for this? Is additional training required? Who has the mandate to make decisions on matters raised during the dialogue?
• Internal communication: how is internal alignment regarding stakeholder dialogue managed? When, how, what, and with whom are outcomes and developments communicated within the company, among others to ensure that external messages to stakeholders are clear and consistent?
• Budgeting: What (financial) resources are allocated for stakeholder dialogue, and how are these resources spent (or not spent)?

	Step 2: Align internally Step 7: Arrange practical preparation
	Internal alignment for successful dialogue Checklist dialogue meeting  Checklist dialogue meeting in supply chain

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Since most companies are not experts in stakeholder dialogue, seeking collaboration can be highly beneficial. Working with external partners offers many advantages, including access to valuable knowledge, the ability to verify information, connection to relevant networks, expert advice on structuring and following up on dialogues, increased influence, enhanced legitimacy, and logistical support for organising and coordinating efforts.

When entering into collaborations, it is important to build long-term relationships that respect the capacity and interests of the stakeholders you are working with. Collaborating with experts and organisations in production countries is particularly beneficial. These partners have in-depth knowledge of local conditions, cultural nuances, and specific challenges. However, collaboration may be difficult in regions where civil society is under pressure and the space to advocate for human rights is shrinking. In such cases, civil society organisations may be reluctant to share information due to safety concerns or may lack the capacity to take effective action.

	Step 6: Collaborate with partners
	Who to partner up with?

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Knowledge fosters a meaningful dialogue, since it enables participants to engage in more in-depth conversations about complex topics. Conversations reach greater depth when all parties have a solid understanding of the topics at hand. Moreover, knowledge enhances credibility and builds mutual trust when all participants are well-informed about the subject matter.

However, while factual knowledge is important, there must also be space for emotion and differing perspectives. By paying attention to emotions and varied perspectives, participants can avoid getting stuck in debates over facts that may not address the core of the subject matter.

	Step 4: Determine the reason and topic
	When and how to share information?

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