The Evolution of Ethical Business Practices
Throughout history, the foundation of many ethical business cultures has been built on the ideals of nurturing lasting customer connections, recognizing employee contributions, and contributing to the communities they serve. This traditional view of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is commendable for various reasons, yet it has also fostered a notion that there are limitations to what can be achieved.
Recently, we took one of our clients through the AGC Sustainability Purpose Strategy Program. A well-reputed family firm in the third generation, this company had a difficult dilemma:
- As a distributor and not a manufacturer of an essential, petroleum-based product, how could they find a way to work with sustainability that would energize, rather than leave their people discouraged by the many things they could not see they would be able to change?
The Dual Nature of Lubricants and Sustainability
Lubricant is an interesting thing. On the one hand, the product is almost exclusively associated with petroleum-based oils. On the other hand, this fluid is what enables machinery to operate well. As such, lubricants remind us that sustainability is also about practices of good maintenance and care.
Guiding the team to revisit their roots led to an intriguing development:
Individuals who had previously felt powerless began to recall instances and discussions where they had been invited to care. Interestingly, the feeling of helplessness wasn’t confined to their perceived smallness; it was a sentiment also echoed by their far more powerful supplier. What emerged was a realization of the potential to build conversations and collaborative practices with their supplier and customers that would bring to new life the heritage of care.
In other words, what emerged was the ability to forge ahead with sustainability, empowered by values firmly rooted in the company's past.
Engage with Your Sustainability Purpose
People are empowered when they connect with a compelling reason to care.
Have you and your people found a compelling reason to care? How did you do so? And how is this reflected in your sustainability purpose?
Frequently asked questions
- What is the limitation of traditional CSR?
- Traditional CSR — built on lasting customer connections, recognizing employees, and serving communities — is commendable but has fostered a notion that there are limits to what a company can change, leaving people discouraged about their potential impact.
- How can a company selling petroleum-based products engage with sustainability?
- By reconnecting with its rooted values. A third-generation family firm distributing lubricants reframed its product as enabling good maintenance and care, then built collaborative practices with its supplier and customers to bring its heritage of care to new life.
- What does the dual nature of lubricants teach about sustainability?
- Lubricants are associated with petroleum-based oils, yet they also keep machinery running well — a reminder that sustainability is not only about avoiding harm but also about practices of good maintenance and care.
- What empowers people to drive sustainability?
- People are empowered when they connect with a compelling reason to care. Once individuals who felt powerless rediscovered moments where they had been invited to care, they recognized the space they actually had to lead change.