The Value of Values

A new study of studies called Project ROI (Return on Investment) provides clear evidence that companies that deliver social value are rewarded with more financial benefit than companies that don’t. The study demonstrates, across many dimensions, that bottom lines are enriched by organizations that live their principles of benefiting society, the environment and their own health. Not surprisingly, this requires more than marketing and corporate speak, it requires the actual delivery of social value. But when done well, the value of a firm can increase by as much as 36%, profitability by as much as 21%, sales by as much as 20%, and returns to shareholders by up to 6%.

For us, this is gratifying confirmation of practices we’ve led and taught for a very long time. For companies committed to their values, it’s much-needed evidence that it pays to remain steadfast in delivering on them. But as anyone who working to turn theory into practice finds, knowing and doing are two very different things, especially in a world filled with headwinds and counter-productive rules. 

How can businesses learn from what Project ROI evidences, and use it to strengthen their organizations? We’ve included some essential truths below about generating value through your corporate values, learned from working with some of the most inspiring corporate and philanthropic leaders, and some of the most complicated organizations, in the world. 

IT’S NOT AS GOOD ALONE:  We no longer live at a time when individual people or organizations can solve the challenges we face. Companies committed to maintaining their principles and ethics are stronger and more effective when they use the power of collaboration and scale, including within their own organizations.

KNOWLEDGE IS JUST THE BEGINNING. Wisdom is the ability to apply knowledge, experience and good judgment to navigating complexity, integrating insight and making decisions ethically. Benefitting from the learning of Project ROI requires resourcefulness, agility, creativity and humanity. These aren’t developed by reading research reports, or unfortunately, in most business schools. They can only be learned through experience, and are most effective when cohorts within an organization experience them together.  

HUMAN CONNECTION IS ESSENTIAL. Relationships are the  source and the energy of life, and the life of any organization. Participating in a process to imagine and realize a shared future is a fool-proof method for developing deep, productive relationships; the kind that deliver value.

INCLUDE THE NEXT GENERATION. Youth have wisdom to contribute now. They are unencumbered by the past, of shoring up what they spent decades building.  They have fresh ideas and the courage to imagine the future they want to inherit. They often ask the best questions, and questions create new learning and bigger frontiers.

MEASUREMENT CAN’T WAIT. Vague language, inscrutable acronyms, fuzzy assumptions about shared priorities are not concrete or actionable. What’s needed are methods for measuring relational as well as transactional dimensions from the beginning of any initiative, making sure it is working toward the shared goal, and providing evidence that keeps everyone engaged.

To download a copy of Project ROI: Determine the Competitive and Financial Value of Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability, please use this link.