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Cause for Success: 10 Companies That Put Profit Second and Came in First

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Christine Arena's "Cause for Success" is a refreshing glimpse into an emerging culture of consciousness. Especially so, when the news of the day is filled with Enronesque stories of corporate plundering of wealth and resources with little or no regard to the cost both in human and environmental capital, these studies bring both hope and inspiration for a better and seemingly reachable future.
Christine Arena provides 10 brilliant examples of business perceiving, then executing long-term plans that seemingly contradict current attitudes in corporate governance, giving the reader a push into a new way of thinking about success.
Ms. Arena opens her book exploring British Petroleum (BP) and Interface; in showing how these giants of Petroleum and Textiles are able to make the shift from a solely profit driven model of production to one that values both the social and environmental resources on a par equal with profitability, the readers are bound to give credence to the other 8 but nonetheless brilliant examples of corporations building business around "the right thing to do" and consequentially finding success.
A most inspiring read.

Christine Arena has created a powerfully provocative portrait of business as a high-potential, transformational force in today's world. With real case studies of companies like British Petroleum, Hewlett Packard, Stoneyfield Farms and Avon - and not-so-well-known companies like Grameen Bank - Cause For Success clearly demonstrates how imaginative and socially-conscious business leadership creates high social value plus remarkable profitability. Ms. Arena challenges businesses to explore what people really want (clean air, good health, honest work, for starters-not just color variations on packaging). I'd list this book as required reading for every business school student - and everyone who aspires to true leadership in the 21st century.

Christine Arena's book is s truly ground-breaking.

In her book, Christine challenges the long-held belief that corporate "good deeds," while nice, don't always benefit the bottom line. She shows through a series of detailed case studies that, with the right tools, many businesses can actually improve their performance by embracing corporate responsibility in their day-to-day operations. At a time when the nation is rife with corporate scandals, Christine's book is a rare beacon of hope, demonstrating that we can successfully achieve a symbiotic merger of corporate and global human interests.

Advance copies of the book have been incredibly well-received and CEO's from some of the nation's largest companies have written glowing endorsements of the book.

I have read plenty of business books from the latest authors - Collins, Buckingham, Godin, etc.. But Cause for Success is BY FAR the most inspiring, practical and thought provoking business book that I have ever read. This book shatters myths that ethical businesses can't be highly profitable, and raises the bar for the entire business community. It makes you think twice about how to run your company, and plan more wisely for the future. It will help you make better business decisions. DON'T MISS THIS!

"Cause for Success" is a highly essential wake up call to humanity and corporate business. Warmly written, this book shows us the truth of what we as a society need to do to repair the planet one person at a time. "Cause for Success" is highly pertinent and a phenomenal read!

This terrific book clearly demonstrates how great companies achieved greatness - financially and socially - by taking on some of the world's worst problems. It defies critics who still contend that social responsibility is unrelated to business performance, and sets a higher standard that made me expect more, not only from my business, but from other companies that I support. It's one of the best books I've read this year.

Cause for Success was a most inspiring book. Ms. Arena helped me to realize even more ways to better run my business. It helps to know that the big guys are working hard to do what they can too.

Thank you Ms. Arena for writing an articulate, interesting and exciting book.

Profiles 10 socially conscious "high-purpose" companies--and predicts that corporations ignoring these greater purposes will meet with failure in the marketplace.

And by paying attention to social criteria, these companies can actually move forward faster and more consistently: "Rather than approaching social responsibility, environmental stewardship, philanthropy, operational accountability, and ethics as separate interests, high-purpose companies align the goals of these activities with their business strategies, leading them to be remarkably effective on all fronts...in solving colossal world problems, they tap into unmet needs vital enough to sustain business perform ance over time." (p. xvii)

Arena identifies several traits these companies have in common: compassionate, heart-driven leaders; an ability to pick causes that are relevant to the company's core business--and to work on those problems in ways that play to the company's mission-critical key strengths; a willingness to imbue every aspect of operation with genuine attention to the wider social cause (they "walk their talk," in other words); a needs-based approach that gives primary attention to solving the social problem: "By allowing the problem to lead to the appropriate solution, these companies discovered financially self-sustaining philanthropic models, while making their cause-related programs essential to the communities they serve."

Finally, all the companies use a broad definition of success.

Most of the book is given over to profiles of the ten companies:

* Interface, a company that reinvented itself as green and sustainable, after 21 years of the traditional extractive, polluting approach--and since its conversion to a cyclical model, has grown to one of the largest flooring companies in the world. CEO Ray Anderson says, "The economy is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the environment." The company has pioneered such innovations as leasing its carpets to its major corporate customers, so instead of going to the landfill, the used carpet goes back to the plant for disassembly and reuse.

* Oil giant BP, whose groundbreaking effort to reduce carbon dioxide emissions has made the company vastly more profitable.

* Eziba (founded with the socially responsible mission of lifting 3rd-world artisans out of poverty and preserving their culture by making their craft items available to developed countries)

* Stonyfield Farm, which finds its commitment to organic, sustainable farming has not only keep a generation of local dairy farmers solvent and profitable, but has also influenced food giant Danone, which bought the company a few years back

* Avon (yes, the cosmetics company--which has a major corporate goal of curing breast cancer)

* Timberland, with a 15-year history of supporting the City Year program: an urban volunteer community improvement corps

* Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, which made a conscious choice to end rapacious industry practices that are actually driving coffee farmers off their land

* The Body Shop, whose stores are such points of social action that they've not only helped release political prisoners all over the world, but have been able to collaborate with such personages as the Dalai Lama and Bruce Springsteen (and of course, such partnerships certainly make marketing a good deal easier!)

* Grameen Bank, a well-known microlender that has lifted thousands of Bangladeshi women out of poverty

* Hewlett-Packard, which seeds technology to microentrepreneurs in developing countries (and whose social change efforts I cover in a profile of HP's Barbara Waugh, one of several profiles of individuals who are making in a difference--in my book, Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First)

It's important to note that Arena does not gloss over these companies' faults and problems; these are not models of perfection, but of continuous improvement. They've come a long way, either from their own histories as environmental and social abusers, or from proving, against society's expectations, that companies set up from the get-go as honorable, ethical, and socially committed can actually succeed in the marketplace. You can expect to see others of these ten companies profiled in future issues.

Shel Horowitz's award-winning sixth book, Principled Profit: Marketing That Puts People First, demonstrates how to build a business around ethics, environmental sustainability, and cooperative practices--and how to develop marketing that highlights those advantages.

As a corporate social responsibility professional, I am always reading to expand my CSR tool belt. "Cause for Success" proudly joins my list of "must read". In her book, Ms. Arena provides specific examples of the strong business case and social need for corporate citizenship. Each case study includes valuable reflections from business executives, and measured outcomes of the organizations program. While the entire book is worth reading, Ms. Arena also provides several boxes in each case study that highlight program components and quotes that are extremely useful for future reference. For me, it is a great tool that will assit me in presenting the case for CSR initiatives in an enterprise. Thank you Ms. Arena.

Cause for Success recently won FIRST place for "Best Business Book" at the Nautilus 2005 Awards ceremony that honored books that contribute significantly to conscious living and positive social change.

According to the editors at Marilyn McGuire & Associates, Inc., the company that hosted the awards: "There is hardly a wasted word in this succinct homage to ten corporate exemplars who prove that "conscious business" is not an oxymoron. These high-purpose companies are changing the face - and the principles - of standard business practice with a diversity of commitments to ethics, partnership, economic justice, environmental wisdom, and service to a greater good. In a world of rampant corporate malfeasance, it's heartening to know that companies with a soul do exist, and are thriving because of it."