Formula for Thriving: People over Profit
I’m pleased to share some insights from our Vistage Executive Summit featured speaker Dale Partridge. I think Dale’s approach to integrating social responsibility – passion for doing good – within a company’s core mission can inspire us to live our values more fully within our businesses.
Dale is a self-described serial entrepreneur and co-founder of Sevenly.org, a retail site that donates $7 of every item purchased to charity. Since the site launched in 2011, Sevenly has given more than $4.3 million to not-for-profit organizations all over the world.
Dale’s message about people over profit runs much deeper than the garden-variety brand of social responsibility that too often serves as an afterthought or a sideline for most organizations. Conscious capitalism, as Dale defines it, is embedded into the company’s core.
Another example I’ve found of this philosophy-in-action is Toms Shoes, which donates one pair of shoes for every shoe sold. As of today, shoe donations have topped 35 million pairs!
This socially-conscious business approach is effective for Sevenly and Toms because of what it tells us about who is leading these companies and what they really care about. Success, it seems, is based not just on having a compelling value proposition. By living that value proposition, these companies attract passionate employees and customers who want to be their partner in doing good.
I think that organizations who are dedicated to quality, authenticity and integrity as a statement of who they are and what purpose they serve will thrive in the future and make the world a better place in the process.
At Vistage, our values of Trust, Caring, Challenge and Growth are essential to how Vistage works. These values inform everything we do and every choice we make. When Vistage and our Chairs live our values, members’ lives and their businesses are transformed. How do you exhibit your core values?
To hear more from Dale Partridge about his approach to conscious capitalism, feel free to tune into his podcast on Executive Street or see him live at our next Vistage Executive Summit in Seattle on May 5th, where he’ll be joining us as one of our keynote speakers.
Category: Business Growth & Strategy Leadership
Tags: Vistage International