(Preface) ‘Total Identity is the integrate approach of corporate identity and has grown in recent years into a strategic management issue. Authenticity, character, cohesion, social role and responsibility are the terms whose translation has to be found in identity. And that’s what this book is about. The social functioning of an organisation creates a living reality for its environment. An identity policy enables the meaning of an organisation to be formulated and fleshed out. Just like a person, an organisation thus develops a recognisable character with a consciousness of its own – conscious of itself and of its own role and place. This enables organisations to look at themselves, to make judgements about themselves and to achieve a well-founded presence as the basis for continuity. Ideally, identity (desired image) and reputation (perceived image) display a maximum overlap. In reality, we see a continual and complex dynamic that has to be adequately managed in all its aspects. Hence the title: Total Identity.’