Soul Economy

I recently came across some interesting research from the US, conducted by Cone Inc in 2006, which reinforces by thoughts that the younger generation has high expectations of their employers. 79% of Millennials, those born between 1979-2001, want to work for a company that cares about how it impacts and contributes to society. 64% say that their company’s social/environmental activities make them feel loyal to the company and more than 50% would refuse to work for an irresponsible corporation.

This supports the results from an 11-year research poll also undertaken by Cone Inc in 2004 in which 75% of respondents said they would refuse to work at a company that behaved illegally or unethically and 67% would be less loyal to their job. A company’s commitment to a social cause was important for 81% of respondents when deciding on where to work in 2004, increasing from 77% 2 years earlier.

In the latest 2007 survey, 72% of employees wanted their employers to do more to support a social issue, an increase of 38% in the 2004 survey by Cone In. What is even more interesting is not just that a company contributes but in what way with 9 out of 10 Americans saying that companies should support causes that are consistent with their responsible business practices.

The recent McKinsey & Company survey of CEOs and top executives of companies participating in the UN Global Compact (July 2007) Europe, the Americas, Asia, Africa the Middle East and Australasia revealed that these business leaders see that a socially responsible company has an edge in recruiting and keeping staff. This will become increasingly important in recruiting the younger generation who are prepared to “reject an organisation if it doesn’t fit with their lifestyle and values.” One company survey identified that employees demand a sabbatical option to undertake nonprofit or volunteer work.

This view is reinforced by some Australian companies who also see the benefits of CSR programs in attracting and retaining staff, especially Gen Y. Chairman of Macquarie Bank in Australia, Simon McKeon, views CSR as ‘entirely complementary with good business sense’ and ‘actually just a way of doing business in the year 2007’ (AFR, 7 Feb 2007). Also, the Centre for Corporate Public Affairs report found that companies are allocating more resources to volunteer and charity work in and effort to recruit Gen Y staff. This supports comments by Michael Trail, chief executive of Social Ventures Australia recently that “giving employees the opportunity to work in the not-for profit sector is becoming a point of competitive advantage” as the “current generation of new workers are telling employers they wish to engage meaningfully in the not-for-profit sector” (SMH, 28-29 July).

However, this is not just limited to Gen Y with many seeking to “give back”. Research results from Volunteering Australia found that 68% of respondents surveyed indicated that an Employee Volunteering (EV) program was either a moderately important (50%) or very important (18%) factor when deciding between two similar roles. 29% even nominated that they were prepared to take a lower salary if the company could offer an EV program (March 2007). One high profile example is the previous brand director of the famous UK chain store Topshop, Jane Shepherdson, leaving to take an upaid consultancy role advising Oxfam’s retail stores. More locally, it is evident in the large number of volunteers who attend the Good Company events in Sydney.

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