Reputation in the digital age: a conversation with Patrizia Minerva and Tecla Notti of Reputation Manager.
Have you ever wondered what kind of image you project online?
Have you ever “googled” your own name or the name of your business?
Have you ever been fully satisfied with your digital identity?
Digital identity: an asset that has become indispensable, yet difficult to assess and measure, because it is often different from how we perceive ourselves “offline”.
To better understand this, we sat down with Patrizia Minerva, Client Director, and Tecla Notti, Head of Communication at Reputation Manager, a leading Italian company since 2004 in the analysis and management of the reputation of institutions, companies, top managers and prominent public figures.
We talked about reality and perception—not only of brands, companies and people, but also… of a city like Milan.
Hi Patrizia, hi Tecla!
We open every Redpoint_Real People interview with a seemingly simple question: what is the world, for you?
Patrizia: Within this company, when we talk about the world, we talk about “perception”, which is the very essence of the concept of “reputation”. In the world we analyse—the digital world—the feeling we have right now is one of chaos. All previous parameters of communication have collapsed: there is no longer a chronological order, news is permanent and remains visible forever. There is no longer even a criterion of authority—no definable standard beyond the algorithms of each platform. The intangible has become far more tangible and has a much greater impact than reality itself. It’s a bit like throwing a deck of cards onto a table and seeing what happens—but what emerges is certainly not order.
Do you experience this chaos as professionals, or also in your personal lives?
Tecla: As professionals in this field, we have more tools to avoid being overwhelmed by it. That’s undeniable: we are immersed in a sea of information that flows extremely fast. This immersion doesn’t allow you the necessary distance to properly assess what an algorithm places in front of you. On a personal level, however—speaking as a parent—I feel deep concern about what lies ahead, considering how the web has increasingly become a stage for violent relationships and interactions, often involving very young people and all their vulnerabilities.
When I think back to when I started this professional journey, in 2008, an enormous number of things have happened in the digital world, at a speed unmatched by the previous decade. Just think of the changes introduced in the past year alone by artificial intelligence now accessible to everyone—an evolution that was hard to imagine just a few years ago for non-specialists, and yet one that we all must now deal with, for better or worse.
How would you explain what you do every day to someone who doesn’t know you?
Patrizia: We build, design and protect the digital identity of any type of entity. Reputation involves companies and individuals—but not only: even a city, for example, can have a digital reputation. We analyse what already exists and, without inventing anything, we bring order to this informational chaos, so that a perceptual trajectory of knowledge can emerge—one that provides the right representation of values.
This is a complex process. Among our colleagues we have people with degrees in psychology, sociology, computer science and engineering—professionals with technical, communication and legal expertise. The strategy is highly sophisticated and requires cross-disciplinary skills. And once built, this work must be maintained, verified and constantly monitored.
So if brand image once used to be the more or less effective outcome of a brand identity strategy, today…?
Tecla: Since the advent of so-called Web 2.0—about twenty years ago now—which transformed communication by introducing direct interaction among people in the public debate, brand image is also shaped by everything that is published online. As Patrizia mentioned, it’s about assigning weight to this informational chaos. Not everything has the same value or impact—especially when it comes to intangible elements.
Patrizia: Gravity and light are intangible too, yet they can be measured. In the same way, at Reputation Manager we are able to measure reputation. Our CEO (Andrea Barchiesi, Ed.) is an electronic engineer who developed a methodology that assigns a specific weight—a “reputational kilogram”—to every piece of online content we identify.
For example, a post on my personal Facebook profile followed by two people is very different from an article on the same topic published on the website of a major national newspaper.
We can also steer the reputation of any entity in relation to specific reputational dimensions, such as ESG, leadership, employer branding, talent attraction, risk assessment or crisis management. We call this process “reputational engineering”. We never invent anything—we simply organise, reposition and enhance in value terms those pieces of information which, although present online, have not been considered relevant or visible by algorithms.
You mentioned ESG: on this blog we focus not only on communication, but also on sustainability. How much does this concept affect web reputation?
Patrizia: It has a significant impact. For instance, we developed a perceptual ESG index that measures the correlation between the 17 pillars identified by the UN as goals to be achieved by 2030 and individual brands. Once again, this is an activity focused on measuring perception.
Climate change was already being discussed twenty years ago—Al Gore was giving lectures on the subject as early as 1998—but over time it gained increasing attention until it effectively became mandatory. The real turning point came with Greta Thunberg, who brought the environmental debate to an unprecedented media level, because the conditions were right for that message to resonate with public opinion. Today, however, we are witnessing a slowdown.
What happens, in ESG terms, when there is a gap between what is “real” and what is “perceived” in a business?
Patrizia: This is known as “divergence”. There can also be a positive divergence, when a company carries out meaningful, value-driven ESG activities that do not emerge reputationally. In that case, it’s an opportunity, and we work to make those activities visible and properly valued.
On the other hand, there is negative divergence when companies communicate heavily around ESG, but then run a business that is not fully compliant with those principles. This must be monitored closely, because it can become a “sleeping bomb”—an event capable of triggering a real crisis. In such cases, it’s crucial to be fully aware of where the “point of reality” lies and—like sailors do—to know how to set the right tension on the sail according to the wind. Because the risk is real. The stronger the positive perception of a company, the greater the reputational fall if negative news emerges. There is a direct proportion.
The “point of reality” is a powerful concept, especially in an increasingly digital world. How do you encourage companies to identify and understand their own “point of reality”?
Patrizia: What we recommend is starting a process of optimisation and enhancement—sometimes also simplification. That is, organising information so users can access it without having to navigate complex paths.
For example, ESG objectives often involve technical topics—parameters, criteria, certifications, sustainability reports—which, although important, are not very user-friendly. They often fail to do justice to companies that have undertaken serious and meaningful work. Depending on the context, we design tailored strategies.
Earlier you mentioned that cities, too, are entities affected by reputational dynamics. Let’s talk about Milan, which is currently experiencing challenges in terms of perceived safety and liveability. What is your perspective as professionals?
Patrizia: There is no overarching strategy or vision for the city, like there was, for instance, during Expo 2015. That’s why I spoke earlier about chaos: everything feels very fragmented and uncertain. A genuine effort to strategically enhance positive elements would help significantly.
Tecla: In November 2023, we launched an analysis on the perception of safety in Milan, which revealed some interesting data. First of all, the sheer volume of content was enormous: nearly 55,000 online items in a year. There were countless TikTok videos of people recounting violent episodes or unpleasant experiences in the city—videos that alone generated 13 million views in a single month. It’s clear that there is neither full awareness nor a plan to manage the perception of this content online. The divergence we discussed earlier can be substantial: if I don’t live in Milan and I see these things online, I form a very negative opinion that may not even reflect the actual lived experience.
Patrizia: We should also consider that online content tends to be polarised towards the negative. That’s natural for platforms—because negative news captures attention—and it’s human nature, too, because we are wired to look for warning signals.
In this “chaos”, what path should be taken?
Patrizia: When it comes to reputation, I believe a cultural shift is needed—one that helps organisations understand how strategically valuable it is to be more aware of the actions required to build and protect a digital identity. Regardless of generational differences, we must acknowledge that we are in a new era, where a single newspaper article is no longer enough to counter thousands of online posts.