Engaging for a social licence to operate (SLO)

Organizations in free and relatively free market economies depend on permission to operate being granted by stakeholders. This often-tacit permission functions as a social licence and reflects an organization's ability to engage with its stakeholders to identify and respond to their demands and expectations. Research suggests the generation of a social licence to operate (SLO) and its reputational benefits depends on the quality of organization-stakeholder relationships, but limited attention to how this occurs has been given in the public relations literature. This paper explores two organizational approaches to building SLO - pro-self and pro-social - and considers the role of public relations and engagement in achieving, maintaining, and repairing SLO.