Comments on: A Renewed Sense Of Purpose

By: Apx_Alarm

Apx_Alarm — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 08:28:19 +0000

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By: Ted Mininni

Ted Mininni — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 14:27:39 +0000

Good observations, Paul. Thanks for sharing your insights. To your point about financial service companies, why not go for these values: honesty, fairness, transparency, and oh yes, ethics. So many banks and financial institutions have violated the public trust that it seems to me, this would be well-received. Again: it has to be said and then be demonstrated day by day. And there’s one other important point that you raised: that of localization. No matter how large a bank or financial group is, why not make a commitment in every community to get to know their customers and become part of finding solutions for their local communities?

By: Paul

Paul — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 14:06:11 +0000

P&G has a long history, a culture of innovation and stated values of creating products that save customers time/money. Utilizing localization strategies makes sense as micro markets and segments provide lots of opportunity for profit growth.
A bigger challenge for some comapanies (particularly in financial services) is how to get along in a world of “values” if before they hadn’t any other stated mission than making the most profits.

By: Ted Mininni

Ted Mininni — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 11:31:26 +0000

Thanks for the kind words, Strategic Growth Advisors. “Sticking to a core set of values and going back to cultural roots” is important. And I also think companies are smart to add social responsibility to those values–if they haven’t in the past. But as you say, they have to demonstrate they are living those values every day. . .otherwise, it will be rightfully seen as a sham.
Thanks for weighing in on this topic, SGA. Much appreciated.

By: Strategic Growth Advisors

Strategic Growth Advisors — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 01:33:23 +0000

Hey, Ted. Thanks for the insightful post.
I really enjoyed reading the articles, as well as the short (but really smart!) discussion you and Andrea had.
In my own point of view, a company sticking to a core set of values and going back to its cultural roots is a great thing — as long they put their mouth where their money is.

By: Ted Mininni

Ted Mininni — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 21:13:57 +0000

A point well taken, Andrea. Just one thing: if companies choose to “talk the talk, but not walk the walk” these days, they tend to be quickly found out. The backlash due to the quick spread of information these days, isn’t desirable in the least. Let’s hope people come to understand that truth, honesty and transparency are the only way for companies to proceed.
Thanks for such intelligent, insightful conversation, Andrea. I appreciate your input.

By: Andrea Learned

Andrea Learned — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:31:50 +0000

Committing to, meaning it and adhering to values would be AMAZING. This all seems pretty obvious to us, but I think – like anything else, a lot of brands will take a shortcut at first. They’ll want to see if they can get away with leveraging something they aren’t really integrating (talking the talk, but not walking the walk). I am admittedly a bit cynical, but like you – ever hopeful. Social responsibility is the differentiator I am most interested in these days…

By: Ted Mininni

Ted Mininni — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:34:04 +0000

Thanks, Andrea, for weighing in on this topic. Agreed: social responsibility is the centerpiece for many companies like Seventh Generation that were born out of environmental concerns, for example. But many mainstream companies are increasingly adapting their businesses to socially responsible issues, as well. S.C. Johnson in Wisconsin comes to mind, for example. There isn’t any reason why companies can’t “do well by doing good”, right?
In recent marketing articles I’ve seen, with trust having been so violated in the consumer product and service sectors, companies are working very hard to restore faith in their customers. Social responsibility is being touted as a “new” differentiator. This concept is hardly new, in my view. What is really needed: when companies commit to these values, they really mean them and adhere to them. Wouldn’t that be terrific?

By: Andrea Learned

Andrea Learned — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 14:10:20 +0000

A timely piece, Ted. The interesting thing is (as is often the case) – there have been companies focused on this for a while, so other companies have some “best practices” they could study. Consider the early members of organizations called Businesses For Social Responsibility (there is a strong chapter here in Vermont) a good resource. Socially responsible businesses most consumers might recognize today would include Seventh Generation or Timberland, as examples. The much more traditional brands actually have a lot of catching up to do. Consumers have an amazing opportunity to put their money where their ideals are.