The point of departure for the project is the fact the three types of intermediaries (consultants, media and international organisations) play an increasing role in the interaction between firms and stakeholders. Three stakeholders are particularly significant in this context: investors, governments and civil society. Against this background the purpose of the project is to study the significance of intermediaries for corporate governance in their relation to these three stakeholders.

In the first phase of the project interviews will be undertaken with those responsible for relations to investors, governments and civil society in a selection of corporations. The purpose of the interviews is to identify the most important intermediaries and the characteristics of their interaction with the companies. In the second phase the focus will be on the relationships between significant intermediaries on one hand and companies, stakeholders and other intermediaries, on the other. The aim of the second phase is also to generate significant case studies, which will be studies in a number of deep process studies in the third phase. In this way the intention is to develop knowledge about the dynamics of the studied interaction.
The project will lead to a theoretical model regarding the role and significance of intermediaries in modern corporate governance. The outcome of the projects is expected to make a contribution to the theory of the firm but also to provide knowledge with practical implications.