Define stakeholder salience and identify its three attributes used to determine it.

• A. The degree to which management prioritizes a stakeholder; based on power, legitimacy, and urgency.
• B. The likelihood a stakeholder will protest; based on anger, duration, and visibility.
• C. The salience of stakeholders is determined by market share alone.
• D. Power, legitimacy, and urgency are unrelated to salience.

Answer: (A)

Stakeholder salience is about how noticeable and important a stakeholder is to managers when deciding where to focus attention and resources. It’s determined by three attributes: power, legitimacy, and urgency. Power is the ability of the stakeholder to influence the firm’s outcomes. Legitimacy is the perceived validity of the stakeholder’s claim within social norms and organizational expectations. Urgency refers to the time-sensitivity of the stakeholder’s need, requiring prompt action. When all three are present, a stakeholder is highly salient and will typically be prioritized in decision making. If only some attributes exist, salience is lower. The other options don’t fit because they either rely on factors outside this triad (like market share or emotions) or ignore the established link between these three attributes and salience.