Crisis management and social media: An analysis of the Volkswagen’s web reputation on Twitter after the explosion of the “Dieselgate” scandal

Abstract

Volkswagen, the leading European auto manufacturer based in Wolfsburg, Germany, is facing the most complicated scandal of its entire history. This shocking business crisis is the focal point for the development of this master thesis. In this final paper, the increasing importance that social media like Twitter today have for organisations in the management of a crisis is analysed. The aim is to identify the “best practices” to face a negative event, but also to understand how the bad management of a critical situation can deeply damage a company and its reputation, above all on the web and on social media. In more detail, this thesis is divided into four parts. In Part 1, the most important literature and research studies about crisis management are presented. Part 2 is focused on the analysis of the role of social media in the management of a scandal or a disaster. The third chapter is dedicated to the emissions scandal that hit Volkswagen and to the response of the company, while in the last part, the results of a research about the web reputation of the company on Twitter after the explosion of the dieselgate are presented.