business on purpose

We envision a global economy that uses business as a force for good. This economy is comprised of a new type of business which is purpose driven and creates benefit for all stakeholders, not just shareholders.

As leaders of this emerging economy we believe that we must be the change we seek in the world. That all business ought to be conducted as if people and planet mattered. That through their products, practices and profits, businesses should aspire to do no harm and benefit all. To do so requires that we act with the understanding that we are each dependent upon one another and thus responsible for each other and future generations.

It is with this increasing recognition that we need better ways to account for the social, economic and environmental value that results from our activities. The language varies – ‘impact’, ‘returns’, ‘benefit’, ‘value’ – but the questions around what sort of difference and how much of a difference we are making are the same. Understanding and managing this broader value is becoming increasingly important for the public and private sectors alike. This is true whether it is civil society organisations working to create value, Governments commissioning and investing in activities to create social value, investors seeking to ensure that their investments will make a difference, or private businesses recognising both risk and opportunity in the wider effects of operations.

All this means that it is also more important that we have some consistency and a shared language when we talk about value. Social Return On Investment (SROI) is the application of a set of principles within a framework that is designed to help bring about that consistency, whilst at the same time recognising that what is of value will be very different for different people in different situations and cultures.