Borrowed from Your Grandchildren

CHAPTER 7Corporate Social Responsibility: Changing the World from Local to Global¹

Cowritten with Isabelle Lescent-Giles, PhD, and Jamie Traeger-Muney, PhD

“We are a family company,” statements and advertisements from business families proudly announce. They highlight this because they know that business families are known for their values of customer service, integrity, fairness, dependability, quality, and social responsibility. The accounts of generative families in this book support the reality of this assertion. The description of family business culture in Chapter 6 notes loyalty to and caring for customers, employees, and the community. This chapter continues that discussion by describing how generative families dedicate their companies to values beyond profit, as they assume responsibility for their employees, members of their community, social problems, and the fate of the environment.

By the third generation, family members have often created some distance from their legacy business. Even when the family delegates operational leadership to nonfamily leaders, there is one area where family remains deeply involved: defining values about social responsibility in their company, in other investments, and in the community. The family initiates projects, activities, and visible commitments to these social values.

Sustainability and social responsibility are a reflection of owners' values and their commitment to a long-term future, even if they may sacrifice some immediate ...