"Decoding BlackRock Chairman Larry Fink's Letter To CEOs On The Importance Of Purpose", 29 January 2019

[In Fink's 2019 letters to CEOs] he sets the stage of today's calamitous situation with the following lines...

• The global landscape is increasingly fragile and, as a result, susceptible to short-term behavior by corporations and governments alike.
• Around the world, frustration with years of stagnant wages, the effect of technology on jobs, and uncertainty about the future have fueled popular anger, nationalism, and xenophobia...

...Fink rightly points out that as the world crumbles, it just may be the CEO's role to save it. He suggests there is "an extricable link" between purpose and profit. "It must begin with a clear embodiment of your company's purpose in your business model and corporate strategy," he wrote. "Purpose is not a mere tagline or marketing campaign; it is a company's fundamental reason for being – what it does every day to create value for its stakeholders. Purpose is not the sole pursuit of profits but the animating force for achieving them."...

...Further down the letter, Fink highlights the positive relationship between purpose and profits...

...I discovered that when an organization balances the obvious need for profits with an operating model that is purpose-driven, all stakeholders (not just shareholders) end up winning. Employees are happier. Customers return for more purchases. The community earns positive spin-off and windfall benefits. The environment and our planet is protected. And yes, profit seekers and shareholders are rewarded.

But it requires a higher level of leadership, not just of the CEO, but the board, the C-Suite, and every leader throughout the firm...

...It is time to stop the rhetoric of purpose and instead CEOs and senior leaders ought to do something about it.