Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to determine the potential contributions of corporate art collections (CACs) to the process of corporate identity management within companies. Design/methodology/approach - Respondents in 181 enterprises in nine different countries completed a questionnaire concerning the roles of CACs in symbolising a firm's core values and culture, influencing the attitudes and behaviour of employees, and developing a company's external image. A regression analysis identified the variables that determined the primary roles of CACs in particular businesses. Findings - CACs were routinely employed to facilitate marketing communications (internal as well as external) and to project corporate identities, including aspects related to a company's core values. Additionally collections were frequently used to symbolise core values to a firm's employees. Research limitations/implications - Less than a majority of the sampling frame returned the questionnaire. Only a single manager was approached in each enterprise. Case studies of the roles of different kinds of CAC (classical, contemporary, etc.) in disparate industry sectors are required. Practical implications - The results demonstrate that CACs represent a powerful marketing communications weapon capable both of attracting clients and developing corporate identity. Originality/value - More than half the Fortune 500 companies and around 2000 other major enterprises in Europe and North America now collect art. This research was the first ever to investigate the use of CACs for marketing (especially corporate identity building) purposes.
