Connecting the Dots. COVID + Corporate Social Responsibility

Background: Earlier this year BlackRock’s Larry Flint called for greater sustainable business practices.

This letter has been updated for a COVID world in which he calls for:

supporting our shared humanity
higher value for long-term thinking
strong sense of purpose
“we can only serve our full set of stakeholders – from our employees to the communities where we operate – if we continue to make a positive contribution to society”

4 Takeaways for business:

Companies that break with the doctrine of shareholder primacy, they avoid over-leveraging their balance sheets
Invest in your employees, including health care and sick pay, & benefit from a more loyal and engaged workforce
Treat your suppliers like partners, to experience fewer supply disruptions
Do good and be rewarded by consumers

How is this playing out in a COVID world?

1 in 3 consumers are punishing companies that reacted poorly in the crisis
corporate leadership should adopt a 360-degree view and become more attuned to their employees, value chains, and wider society
- Otherwise, you’re Amazon and hailed for a $100 million fund for climate change in February & then in March criticized for staff walk outs over inadequate safety measures
- LVMH hailed for making hand sanitizer at its factories & then criticized for taking government funds

Social Impact