Business is changing before our eyes. We are in a rare confluence of these major trends:
- The financial rewards that drove business behavior have eroded (e.g., stock market returns, higher salaries and bonuses, real estate price growth). Cost-consciousness is the order of the day.
- The business environment is increasingly transparent and open, thanks to social media. Competitors are highly visible to your customers. There is no where to run, no where to hide.
- Social and environmental responsibility are where it’s at. People make purchase, employment, and partnership decisions on this basis.
- Established companies as well as new ones focus on social goals as much as business goals.
- Being who you really are — being authentic — is essential to succeed in this social environment. (No more putting yourself aside to do your job.)
If you are thinking about your business, your nonprofit, you association in the same way you were last year — it’s time to update your thinking.
The future belongs to those who can:
- deliver high value at a low cost,
- interact positively and continouosly with their customers, and
- add personal and social value to their products and services.
PS: Here’s a related article at Harvard Business Publishing online.
