Public relations consultant /blog

David Wolfe writes:

Stephen,

In Firms of Endearment we purposely avoided the “corporate social responsibility” label because capitalist fundamentalists associate it with New Agey, wooly-headed thinking or the meddling of officious do-gooders in business matters that are far beyond their understanding.

The first two sentences of the book are:

This is not a book about corporate social responsibility.
It is about sound business management.

Many companies do things that might be called socially responsible when in fact those actions may simply be fig leafs covering up their moral nakedness. Companies we call “firms of endearment” act with greater authenticity that can be assessed by their standing in the minds of stakeholders (in addition to shareholders) from customers and employees to suppliers and communities.

True FoEs tend to significantly outperform competitors in their categories. Thus, we argue in the book not for moral capitalism (though the outcome is just that) but for pragmatic attention to the interests of all stakeholders. We do not see this so much as “enlightened self interest (I hate that term as it is appears to me to reflect a cynical approach to doing the right thing); rather we see expanded attention to the interests of all stakeholders as a way of furthering and maintaining the health of the economic ecosystem within which a company operates.

Hope this has the meaning to you that results in a more felicitous regard for our work.

Cheers

Jim Gilmartin writes:

Stop shooting from the hip

Mr. Newton,

Regarding your cavalier comment on the new David Wolfe book “Firms of Endearment” in your blog, it always amazes me when self appointed pundits on many subjects have the audacity to pan the work or others before they take the time to read and understand the work being criticized. To wit, “I’ve not read the book, but I’m cynical too. ‘Firms of Endearment’ strikes me as a rather twee phrase that might sell a few books, but adds nothing to the public relations profession’s body of knowledge.”

I have read a pre-published edition of the book “Firms of Endearment.” I agree the title is catchy (good marketing), but more importantly the content is right on the mark. Perhaps you need some PR advice. No consultant worth there salt would have advised you to make such an ill informed assessment.

With due apologies to David and his co-authors, I’d like to include ‘Corporate Social Responsibility’ in what the book is all about. But rather than an accounting head reported in the annual report, I see it in its expanded form - and this may be because in India social reponsibility means a responsibility to the society at large - world society inclusive. Therefore I’d suggest we change the opening lines of the book in its next reprint to read -

This is a book about corporate social responsibility in its most expansive sense.
It is about the only sustainable paradigm of sound business management.

It struck me as somewhat odd at first that no health care companies; hospitals, health plans or for profit “quality improvement companies” were listed among the FOEs. It is, I believe, a sign of the times that these companies are lost in the abyss of bottom line economics with little regard for their stakeholders. Hopefully, the Board rooms of these giant health care companies will look at the profitability attained by embracing the ideals of the Firms of Endearment.