On January 27, 2015, I attended a forum organized by Sasin Graduate Institute of Business Administration of Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, on the topic “Shaping and Sharpening the Future Roadmap of Thailand and ASEAN’s Human Capital Management”. The keynote address was delivered by Prof. Dipak Jain, Dean of Sasin University (formerly, he had also served as Dean of Nortwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, U.S.A., and as Dean at INSEAD, France).
Jain described in his presentation the evolution of the global business model during the last 500 years. He stated that until the 19th century, countries were the key players. Their business model focused on land acquisition, mainly through colonialism. Those empires that had colonised the highest number of countries were considered the most succesful ones.
In the 20th century, it was no longer countries invading countries, but rather corporations invading countries. The focus moved to free market competition and capitalism. Profit became the metric to gauge the success of those corporations.
In the 21st century, the focus is on human capital development and entrepreneuralism. The key players are citizens. The metric is shifting to having a purpose. And behind purpose, there has to be significance which means making a positive difference in the lives of people.
Jain emphasized that management education should focus on business ethics, sustainability, and CSR (= Corporate Social Responsibility). He summed up his keynote speech with the catchphrase “PERFORMANCE & PURPOSE”.
I was so happy at the end of Prof. Dipak Jain’s key note, since his proposed business model for the 21st century is fully in line with my own approach.
Not only that I had given a few years ago a talk at a German university on sustainable leadership titled “PURPOSE / PASSION / PERFORMANCE”, but his recommendation for the business model for the 21st century is exactly what we had practised and lived at my previous company, Merck Ltd., Thailand for the last 15 years.
We had moved away from focusing only on shareholders, but we rather produced results for all stakeholders. We helped our employees to find meaning and purpose in their work. We took very well care of our customers. Volunteering activities that we had created for our employees and our customers as well as the long-lasting partnership between Merck Thailand and the NGO Raks Thai Foundation / CARE Thailand had a positive impact on the society.
Employee and customer satisfaction surveys showed very high levels of satisfaction and engagement. At the same time, our company was very profitable and produced excellent financial returns for our shareholders. That, by the way, has to be always a given. Without reasonable profits, no company can survive.
As we have already proven over a long period of time, taking care of all stakeholders (employees, customers, society, and shareholders) and delivering great results for all of them is absolutely possible (and the only way for sustainable business success in the 21st century). This model works!
So how is it going at your company? Do you have a business model to ensure sustainable success not only for shareholders, but for all stakeholders? If not, you better start working on it.
