Credo Advisors Blog | Results-driven small business and non-profit consulting

Values-Driven Business

April 18th, 2006 | Posted by Peter in Books and Films | Business Ethics | Corporate Social Responsibility | Nonprofit - (Comments Off)

Values-Driven Business: How to Change the World, Make Money, and Have FunBen Cohen and Mal Warwick have joined forces and authored, Values-Driven Business: How to Change the World, Make Money, and Have Fun, which according to the publisher Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc., “lays out the roadmap for starting and running a business while staying true to one’s own ethics and values” (tip to CSRwire.com for the press release). I have not had a chance to pick up the book yet but am quite interested in reading it. If anyone has read it already, I’d love to hear what you think.

Even at a quick glance, the book’s subtitle, “How to Change the World, Make Money, and Have Fun,” should be compelling enough to prompt anyone to pick it up. I often wonder what the world would look like if even a small majority of businesses were created and operated based on those three goals (and in that order). It is reasonable to assume that prioritizing “changing the world” over profit might reduce the amount of wealth floating around, but is that necessarily a bad thing? I would like to think that the world would be better off, but it is impossible to tell without experiencing such a reality.

It’s interesting to think about though…

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UPS & United Way

March 2nd, 2006 | Posted by Peter in Corporate Social Responsibility | Interesting News | Nonprofit | Social Enterprise - (Comments Off)

UPS popped up on CSR Wire again today: UPS Delivers Sixth Straight Year of Top Giving to United Way [press release]

Here’s a snippet from the release:

“For the sixth consecutive year, UPS has set a new record for United Way giving. In 2005, UPS pledged more than $57.4 million, topping all previous records for United Way giving by a U.S. corporation.

“This year’s support, based on giving from employees and the company through The UPS Foundation, surpasses the previous record donation set by UPS in 2004. UPS was the first company to exceed the $50 million mark in one annual campaign when it donated $52.2 million in 2001, and the giving has continued to grow since.

“More than 237,000 UPS employees participated in this year’s campaign, contributing more than $49.4 million. The company then contributed $8 million through The UPS Foundation. In the company’s hometown of Atlanta, Georgia, UPS and its employees donated $4.4 million, the largest contribution to United Way of any Atlanta-based company.”

It is great to see a company of UPS’s size and stature leading the way for corporate giving. Further, I think it is amazing that $49.4 million of the overall contribution came from UPS employees. Let’s hope other companies take note and follow suit.

And as a side note, the amount is even more amazing when compared to some other recent acts of corporate giving.

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Starbucks Giving in China: Philanthropy or Business Play?

February 20th, 2006 | Posted by Peter in Business Strategy | China | Interesting News | Miscellaneous | Nonprofit - (Comments Off)

From CSRwire:

“As part of its long-term commitment to support improved educational opportunities in China, Starbucks Coffee Company (Nasdaq:SBUX) today entered into an agreement with the China Soong Ching Ling Foundation to provide 12 million RMB ($1.5 million USD) to support a program aimed at helping students in need — and their teachers — in rural China.” (view full press release)

How do you get a monolithic and largely untapped rural population that primarily drinks tea to start ordering venti lattes? Donating a bunch of money to students and teachers in those rural areas sounds like a pretty good idea…

If you have been following the “China opportunity” press, you’ve undoubtedly heard companies blabbering on about capturing “1% of the 1.3 billion Chinese population” (and thus becoming billionaires, or something of the sort). I’ve seen very few companies with seemingly intelligent plans to actually reach the bulk of those 1.3 billion people, yet this move by Starbucks may do just the trick. It feels very tobacco industry-esque (circa 1950-1970 or so) yet very difficult to criticize. Who is going to fault Starbucks for helping advance education around the world. Certainly not SBUX shareholders.

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Substance

January 22nd, 2006 | Posted by Peter in Business Ethics | Business Strategy | Nonprofit - (Comments Off)

I don’t usually post about geeky computer stuff (something else I would call “fun”) but today I read an article by Jeffrey Zeldman that deserves some serious attention. I won’t go into a background bio of Zeldman as it will bore most, and those that might find it interesting probably are already familiar with who he is. Suffice it to say, if  you are interested in doing anything content oriented on the internet, he’s a good person to know about.

In an article on A List Apart Zeldman writes about “Web 3.0″ and does so with a fiery and somewhat catty voice. About half of the article deals with AJAX and other techie stuff, but the other half speaks to substance. Substance in the sense of having a real purpose in your business ventures, in taking the steps that are appropriate because they make the most sense, not because they are trendy.

I’ve been mulling over social dynamics, business relationships, purpose, ethics and a whole slew of other heavy issues for the past week or two. Some of the topics are related to issues I’ve been dealing with recently while others are offshoots from the exploration I’ve been doing. Yet, for some reason, everything seemed to gel together (finally) when I came to the end of Zeldman’s article. Yes, it’s about new technology and the internet. But it’s also about having a purpose. And about creating companies, services and products that have value. And about ignoring the guy in the room with the loudest voice (you know, the one everyone listens to because he knows all the buzzwords and smiles a lot—but when you really listen to what he’s saying, you realize that “hot air” would be a compliment…).

I may be reading too much into the article, but I don’t think so. I highly recommend everyone take the time to read it and read it again. And for those of you who are tired of substance-less companies and so-called pundits, file it away for those times when you are digging your fingernails into your chair because you can’t take any more of the hyperbole…

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Social Funds (Doing Good Through Investing)

December 15th, 2005 | Posted by Peter in Business Ethics | Corporate Social Responsibility | Nonprofit | Social Enterprise - (2 Comments)

Thanks to this post by Matthieu Croce I’ve done a bit more research on Social Funds. His post points to SocialFunds.com which is a website dedicated to providing information on socially-responsible investing. I found the site to be incredibly useful in aggregating related funds and was pleased to find one of my investments on there (the Ariel Fund [ARGFX]). I remember choosing the fund first for it’s potential return, but after reading the prospectus, I was determined to hold the investment due to it’s focus on socially responsible companies.

Here’s the fund’s summary from Yahoo Finance:

“The investment seeks long-term capital appreciation. The fund invests primarily in the stocks of smaller companies with market capitalizations generally between 500 million and 2.5 billion. The fund typically contains no more than 45 stocks and seeks socially responsible, undervalued companies; in particular, it seeks those whose primary source of revenue is not derived from the production or sale of tobacco products, the generation of nuclear energy, or the manufacturing of handguns.”

SocialFunds.com lists a large amount of information on socially responsible investments and also has daily “social investment” news. Here’s a snippet from their homepage:

“SocialFunds.com features over 10,000 pages of information on SRI mutual funds, community investments, corporate research, shareowner actions, and daily social investment news.”

I’ve pulled out a few of my favorite social funds and have listed them in a ticker box in the sidebar. You can view each fund’s Yahoo Finance page by clicking on the ticker symbol.

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Ethos Water :: An Oxymoron?

October 2nd, 2005 | Posted by Peter in Business Ethics | Business Strategy | Nonprofit | Social Enterprise - (Comments Off)

Ethos WaterIf you have been into a Starbucks in the past few weeks, you’ve most likely come across those sexy clear and blue bottles of water called Ethos. A $1.80 botle of water—what gives? Here’s their claim:

“Founded in 2002, Ethos™ Water takes a unique approach to doing business — it is the bottled water that helps children around the world get clean water. It’s a powerfully simple concept…Water for Water.

Every time you purchase a bottle of Ethos water we will contribute 5 cents toward our target goal of raising at least $10 million over five years. By transforming every purchase into an opportunity, we can directly engage a growing community to help solve the world water crisis.”

I posted about The Evils of Bottled Water earlier, so I won’t get into the irony of a bottled water company claiming to help the “world get clean water.” Instead, I’ll simply throw a question out there for the individuals that are snatching this bottle up in droves, feeling incredibly fulfilled that 5 of the 180 cents they just plopped down, is going to do something to help the world’s children stay hydrated… Why not go to the grocery store, buy the 1 liter bottle of [enter brand name here] water for 99¢, and donate the other 81¢ to water crisis charities? Or, better yet, why not filter your tap water (or not) and drink it for free? That would leave you with a pretty big chunk of change to help make the world a better place.

5¢ out of $1.80? Give me a break.

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Non-Profit Business Sense

June 27th, 2005 | Posted by Peter in Nonprofit | Social Enterprise - (Comments Off)

I hear a lot about non-profits becoming more innovative in their approach to funding, as well as many success stories involving non-profits turned social entrepreneurs. This article from the Arizona Sun, Non-Profits Turning Enterprising, gives an excellent overview of the many ways a non profit can use a little business to better meet their goals. I also like that the article notes that adding revenue streams can be a detriment as well:

“Like any business venture, social enterprises have risks. Experts caution that non-profit organizations may lack business expertise, develop enterprises that don’t fit missions or dilute their missions by paying too much attention to an enterprise.”
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Do the Right Thing

June 24th, 2005 | Posted by Peter in Business Ethics | Nonprofit - (Comments Off)
“Integrity is doing the right thing, even if nobody is watching.”

- Anonymous

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