CEO / Board member
“I think many people assume, wrongly, that a company exists simply to make money. While this is an important result of a company's existence, we have to go deeper and find the real reasons for our being. As we investigate this, we inevitably come to the conclusion that a group of people get together and exist as an institution that we call a company so that they are able to accomplish something collectively that they could not accomplish separately - they make a contribution to society, a phrase which sounds trite but is fundamental.”
David Packard, co-Founder, Hewlett Packard, 1960
When David Packard promoted the role of business in creating value for society, not just shareholders, he was ahead of his time. Nowadays, his comments are more pertinent than ever and business leaders are asking questions such as:
- What are the issues in society that we need to understand and embrace in order to be successful in the long term?
- How do we ensure that our most important asset, our employees (and especially ‘Generation Y’ employees) are provided with a wider sense of purpose beyond their core roles?
- And how do we successfully combine creating value for shareholders with value for the rest of society?
We support leaders and their organisations to look outwards and connect with key issues, communities and non-profit partners. Our programmes and projects contribute to breaking down barriers between business and society and helping companies to take advantage of the opportunities associated with working across sectors.
Learning & development programmes that not only develop people but contribute to society are an example of an approach that makes sense for both the business and for the community in which you operate – a combination of the pursuit of profits and the pursuit of value for society. We have been running these kinds of programmes since 2003.
Engaging employees through real-life community projects gives them a wider sense of purpose and contributes positively to success factors such as morale, pride and retention. And at the most senior level, business leaders have a great deal to learn from, as well as give to, leaders from other sectors.
Embracing key issues in society – such as child protection for mobile phone and internet providers, health and obesity for food and drink manufacturers and social deprivation for retailers (there are many more examples) – is a mark of a business that not only wants to take a responsible approach in the short term but wants to understand how to be successful in the long term.
“The business of business is business” – Milton Friedman’s well-known adage – may have been a more popular view than Packard’s back in 1960. Nowadays we would align the two views – and help you to do so in your business – by saying “the business of business is responsible business that combines the pursuit of profit with the pursuit of values”. Perhaps not as snappy as Friedman, but much, much more enlightened.