Good Works!: Marketing and Corporate Initiatives that Build a Better World...and the Bottom Line

Chapter 2

Six Social Initiatives for Doing Well by Doing Good

At Starbucks, the values that guide every decision we make can be found in our mission statement: to inspire and nurture the human spirit—one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time. For 40 years, we have lived these values in the ways we ethically source our coffee beans and work to improve the lives of the people who grow them; in how we participate in the neighborhoods where we do business, operate our stores and care for the environment.¹

—Howard Schultz Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer Starbucks

In Chapter 1, we defined marketing and corporate social initiatives as major activities undertaken by a corporation to support social causes and to fulfill on commitments to corporate social responsibility. We have identified six major initiatives under which most socially responsible-related activities fall—three that are developed and managed primarily by the corporation's marketing function, and three that are developed and managed by other corporate functions including community relations, human resources, foundations, and operations. Brief descriptions of each are presented in this chapter. In subsequent chapters, each initiative will be described in more detail, one at a time, presenting typical programs, potential benefits, potential concerns, keys to success, when to consider the initiative, and steps in developing program plans. In our final chapters, we will summarize these perspectives, ...