Compassionate Capitalism: How Corporations Can Make Doing Good an Integral Part of Doing Well

PR Week US BOOK REVIEW - 'Compassionate' gives readers a lot 02.23.04 Andrew Gordon A breath of fresh air amongst the many business books out there, Compassionate Capitalism is full of insight and trade secrets simply about building the bottom line. At a time when many corporations have cut back their philanthropy, Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff shows how giving back is always a good idea. Benioff leads from example, demonstrating Salesforce's own philanthropic philosophy. He includes dozens of other examples from the likes of Hasbro, Timberland, and Cisco Systems. While the book is repetitive at times, it ultimately proves insightful, using the examples to show how companies establish a culture of philanthropy, how they involve staff, how they reach out globally, and how they maintain their giving during tough times. Perhaps most importantly, the authors note that corporate philanthropy 'must be more than lip service or devotion to giving as a way to generate PR coverage.' The book is a nice reminder that shareholders are not the only ones who have a stake in a company's success.

found Compassionate Capitalism to be an extraordinary collection of practical examples for companies who want to make a difference in the world.As CEO of a small and growing business I plan to implement some of these ideas immediately - giving paid time off for my employees and putting aside some of our equity for future charitable growth as two examples. This book provides a blueprint for small and large companies alike to make more of an impact in the communities they operate in. I recommend it to any other CEO or professional that wants to `step up' their level of giving.

I really hope this kind of book published in my country, too. Only a few companies realize that they should do good things in a community. Rather, most of companies still pour their resources for doing well here in Japan. This book is great firstly because, it states that, no matter how large the company is, there should be a way to become a good citizen in a community. I am working in a company with 30 peoples, which is not so large. This book suggests that there is a business-philanthropy integrating model that my company can follow. Secondly because this book points out that a company has a power to change the society better. Most of us do not aware but a company has much more resources and opportunities than we imagine. This book describes how a company takes advantage of their resources to give back to a community. That is the new model of integrating business and philanthropy.

Here is what the Economist has to say:An unusually persuasive advocate of the view that CSR-or "compassionate capitalism", as he calls it-benefits shareholders, employees and the needy all at once is Marc Benioff, boss of salesforce.com, a private company (for now) that provides online customer-relationship-management services. In a new book, co-written with Karen Southwick, Mr Benioff argues that corporate philanthropy, done right, transforms the culture of the firm concerned*. "Employees seeking greater levels of fulfilment in their own lives will have to look no further than their workplace." As well as doing the right thing, the firm will attract and retain better people, and they will work more productively. He makes it seem plausible.Mr Benioff advocates "the 1% solution": 1% of salesforce.com's equity, 1% of its profits and 1% of its employees' paid hours are devoted to philanthropy, with workers volunteering their time either to company-run schemes or to charitable activities at their own initiative. His book describes similar projects at many other firms, always underlining their win-win character.Unlike some advocates of CSR, Mr Benioff says he opposes government mandates to undertake such activities. Compulsion would neutralise the gains for corporate culture, he points out. (He is not averse to tax relief, however, and complains that America's corporate-tax code does too little to encourage his charity.) In any case, if Mr Benioff is right, and CSR done wisely helps businesses succeed, compulsion should not be needed. Companies like salesforce.com and the others discussed in his book will thrive, and the model will catch on by force of example.

An unusually persuasive advocate of the view that CSR-or "compassionate capitalism", as he calls it-benefits shareholders, employees and the needy all at once is Marc Benioff, boss of salesforce.com, a private company (for now) that provides online customer-relationship-management services. In a new book, co-written with Karen Southwick, Mr Benioff argues that corporate philanthropy, done right, transforms the culture of the firm concerned*. "Employees seeking greater levels of fulfilment in their own lives will have to look no further than their workplace." As well as doing the right thing, the firm will attract and retain better people, and they will work more productively. He makes it seem plausible.Mr Benioff advocates "the 1% solution": 1% of salesforce.com's equity, 1% of its profits and 1% of its employees' paid hours are devoted to philanthropy, with workers volunteering their time either to company-run schemes or to charitable activities at their own initiative. His book describes similar projects at many other firms, always underlining their win-win character.Unlike some advocates of CSR, Mr Benioff says he opposes government mandates to undertake such activities. Compulsion would neutralise the gains for corporate culture, he points out. (He is not averse to tax relief, however, and complains that America's corporate-tax code does too little to encourage his charity.) In any case, if Mr Benioff is right, and CSR done wisely helps businesses succeed, compulsion should not be needed. Companies like salesforce.com and the others discussed in his book will thrive, and the model will catch on by force of example.