**4. Corporate diplomacy as a tool to improve global governance: key findings from the Brazilian business scenario**

Considering the global trade flows, we can now present the general features of the Brazilian business scenario case study based on a sectoral initiative in the context of COVID-19 that influenced the flows of global trade.

The research and analysis of the business scenario was guided by some questions, such as: evaluating the objectives and concatenating the outcomes in order to see the feasibility of the sectorial initiative. According to Godet [14], a scenario describes a future situation and the routing of events that allow movement from the origin situation to the future situation. Indeed, the corporate diplomat must steer the company into the future. To do so, it is necessary to rely on scenarios that include information about key stakeholders, such as competitors, clients, non-governmental associations, foreign governments and national governments, multilateral institutions. The goal of scenario development is to systematize changing trends and analyze the most likely alternatives in order to outline strategies and move towards the desired future. As the future is not completely predictable, there is always a degree of uncertainty in the analysis of business scenarios. At this


#### **Table 1.**

*COVID-19: Stakeholders and strategies within personal hygiene and cosmetic sector.*

respect, it is worth noting that Porter [15, 16] considers that scenarios are views of future reality based on a set of plausible assumptions that take into consideration significant uncertainties that may influence the market evolution. Under the corporate diplomacy perspective, the understanding of the opportunities and threats that might arise from different business alternatives aims at facing factors that may affect the business performance and the decision making process [17].

In Brazil, the role of corporate diplomacy as a business tool of governance to defend sectorial interests within the personal hygiene and cosmetic sector was crucial in the context of 2020. After the outbreak of the pandemics, this sector was deeply affected by the lack of raw materials due to restrictive measures that countries, mainly China, implemented to protect the domestic markets.

In the context of the pandemic, corporate diplomats within the personal hygiene and cosmetic sector working together with the Abihpec, the Brazilian Association of the Personal Hygiene and Cosmetics Industry, monitored all legislation and specific norms applicable to global trade in order to favor the evolution of the industry in a context where the lack of raw materials, the high cost of freights and the devaluation of the Brazilian currency were relevant threats for the business performance.

The sectorial initiative tuned out to influence the decisions of the Ministry of Economy concerning foreign trade decisions. In other words, the impacts of the pandemic related to disruptions in the Brazilian flows of global trade that affected the personal hygiene and cosmetic market were circumvented with the support of corporate diplomats, under the leadership of the Abihpec, in negotiations with the Brazilian Ministry of Economy [18–20]. It is relevant to highlight that, after the outbreak of the pandemics, the Brazilian government has not avoid diplomatic conflicts with China. As a result, the role of corporate diplomats has been outstanding to enhance the normalization of global trade related to personal hygiene and cosmetic inputs and products. In fact, the corporate diplomacy as a tool of governance turned to prove that the Brazilian trade flows could warrant the supply of raw materials and finished product for the local population within the personal hygiene and cosmetic market. **Table 1** summarizes the stakeholders´ map.
