This is the question posed in the title of a Harvard Business Review article published April 28 and written by Ron Ashkenas, author of The Boundaryless Organization. His answer, which draws on the current case against Goldman Sachs, and the ongoing trials and tribulations of Toyota’s quality control progams, among others, posits that reputation management “may need to be part of everyone’s responsibility.”

When any stakeholder—customer, employee, investor, etc.—chooses to buy from, work with or invest in any organization, their decision is based at least in part on the organization’s reputation. Based on the historical performance and customer care of an organization like Disney (another of Ashkenas’s examples), we expect a certain experience: For customers, that’s fabulous, family-friendly entertainment; for employees, its an amazing, innovative work environment; for investors, it’s a healthy, reliable return on their investment in the form of regular dividends.

Organizations that don’t hold to their own standards of responsibility inevitably erode their own reputations: Toyota’s current experience, for example, implies a betrayal of their legendary quality control practices. They’re fortunate to have such a strong reputation, forged through decades of strict adherence to their core values; they’ll likely weather the current storm. However, their customers won’t be fooled again. Repeated errors and quality gaffes will erode Toyota’s reputation, sales, and market share.

Reputation management—and brand management—require the care and attention of leaders, managers, and everyone else in an organization. A strong brand requires a remarkable degree of personal responsibility. How successful and consistent is your brand at enhancing its reputation?

This expectation of an experience is precisely our definition of the word brand.

Organizations can choose to embed responsibility for this expectation in their operations and standards, or they can choose to let it follow the whim of circumstance. In Disney’s case, leadership and management “make every employee feel responsible for the entertainment products and services they provide.” Johnson & Johnson, legendary for their adherence to their ‘credo,’ emphasizes every employee’s “responsibility to put the well-being of the people they serve first.” These are two of the most reputable firms in the world. And they’re also two of the most valuable brands in the world.

In a brief but illuminating address, Schultz talked about his roots “growing up on the wrong side of the tracks” in the projects of Brooklyn. He also talked about the heartbreak of seeing his father’s despair after he was injured on the job, and could no long support his family.

Amazing, isn’t it, how great leaders seem to endure adversity before achieving the loftiest of goals?

And lofty, indeed, were Schultz’s goals: He spoke of a time when Starbucks had only 12 stores, but a vision of a world-renowned brand. Today, more than 30 years into the Starbucks story, the company operates more than 17,000 locations in more than 150 countries. And they employ over 180,000 people.

Most memorable from among Schultz’s comments, though, were his discussion of the challenges he and his leadership team have faced during the past year: Starbucks is renowned for treating its employees better than most retail brands can manage. Their extended medical plan is exceptional for a company in their industry—especially in light of its annual $300M cost. The economic downturn of 2009 presented an opportunity to reduce this expenditure, but Schultz would have noting of it:

“To cut back on our commitments to our people would be to tear the very soul out of our company.”

Powerful metaphor. As powerful, perhaps, as Starbucks’s commitment to its Guiding Principles, chief among which is the simple commitment to earn, maintain and extend employees’ trust in the Starbucks brand.

Starbucks is a brand defined by a moment—the moment when countless customers receive their coffee and their Barista’s smile each morning. The consistent delivery of that Starbucks Moment requires tremendous personal responsibility from every employee. And that kind of responsibility only comes when people feel like they’re part of something bigger than themselves. That takes trust. And it’s essential to the creation of an enduring brand.

It also requires leaders to act with honesty and transparency—two elements of the Authenticity Octopus has been talking about for years. And it takes relentless, open communication up, down and across the organization.

Howard Schultz no longer needs to work. He had given up his day-to-day responsibilities at Starbucks, and was engaged with the company only as Chair of the Board. Then the economic downturn began, and Schultz stepped back in as CEO, to help the company find its feet once more in a drastically changed environment.

Asked why he chose to return, Schultz’s answer was surprising to many in the room:

“I’ll use a word that doesn’t get used very often in business: ‘Love.’ I love our people. I love our company. I came back for love.”

And that’s the purpose beyond profit that has driven Starbucks to be the powerful, global brand that it is—right in line with the vision Schultz and his colleagues set all those years ago in Seattle.