Firms of Endearment: How World-Class Companies Profit from Passion and Purpose
by Rajendra S. Sisodia and David B. Wolfe
Most studies of corporate exceptionalism or
"greatness" start with financial performance and work backwards. We
started with human performance and worked forward.
We researched hundreds of companies that people
love - not just like, but love. We put them through a stringent set of
screening criteria to arrive at a final set of 28 Firms of Endearment:
companies truly loved by all who come in contact with them - customers,
employees, suppliers, environmentalists, the community, even
governments!
These companies pay their employees very well,
provide great value to customers, and have thriving, profitable
suppliers. They are also wonderful for investors, returning 1025% over
the past 10 years, compared to only 122% for the S&P 500 and 316%
for the companies profiled in the bestselling book Good to Great -- companies selected purely on the basis of their ability to deliver superior returns to investors.
The world is changing dramatically, imposing new
requirements for success. To thrive in the future, companies will have
to embrace the social transformation of capitalism. This inspirational
book will show the way.
Today’s best companies get it. From Costco® to Commerce Bank, Wegmans to Whole Foods®: they’re becoming the ultimate value creators. They’re generating every form of value that matters: emotional, experiential, social, and financial. And they’re doing it for all their stakeholders. Not because it’s “politically correct”: because it’s the only path to long-term competitive advantage.
These are the Firms of Endearment. Companies people love doing business with. Love partnering with. Love working for. Love
investing in. Companies for whom “loyalty” isn’t just real: it’s
palpable, and driving unbeatable advantages in everything from marketing
to recruitment.
You need to become one of
those companies. This book will show you how. You’ll find specific,
practical guidance on transforming every relationship you have: with
customers, associates, partners, investors, and society. If you want to
be great—truly great—this is your blueprint.
We’re
entering an Age of Transcendence, as people increasingly search for
higher meaning in their lives, not just more possessions. This is
transforming the marketplace, the workplace, the very soul of
capitalism. Increasingly, today’s most successful companies are bringing
love, joy, authenticity, empathy, and soulfulness into their
businesses: they are delivering emotional, experiential, and social
value–not just profits.
Firms of Endearment
illuminates this, the most fundamental transformation in capitalism
since Adam Smith. It’s not about “corporate social responsibility”: it’s
about building companies that can sustain success in a radically new
era. It’s about great companies like IDEO and IKEA®, Commerce Bank and Costco®, Wegmans and Whole Foods®: how they earn the powerful loyalty and affection that enables truly breathtaking performance.
This
book is about gaining “share of heart,” not just share of wallet. It’s
about aligning stakeholders’ interests, not just juggling them. It’s
about building companies that leave the world a better place. Most of
all, it’s about why you must do all this, or risk being left in the dust... and how to get there from wherever you are now.
Source: Multiple websites, including www.FirmsofEndearment.com and www.Amazon.com
