New times create new needs – and require new solutions

The world is changing – and so are companies. Because when society’s needs change, business must adapt.

The business of business is still business, but the rules of how to stay in business are changing – no matter whether we are in the business of creating shareholder value, of providing welfare solutions or of making the world a better place.

We believe that sustainable practices that create both economic and social value will secure business and long-term growth as well as the well-being of people and planet.

We also believe that social responsibility can be used as a means of generating economic value – and that business can be used as a means of generating social value.

These are the reasons why we have created The Social Business Company® - a mission-driven company in business of creating social and economic value for the benefit of society and the bottom line.

Our heartcore business philosophy

Our overall mission is to inspire and guide individuals and organisations to engage in or develop innovative and sustainable practices that generate both social and economic value.

On a more operational level, we want to inspire and help companies and entrepreneurs put economic and social value creation into the heart of their business and organization.

Because we believe that the most sustainable way of running a company is to build the values of sustainability, responsibility and meaning into the heart of business strategy – and into the heart of the organization.

The 21st century business mindset must become an integrated part of the business model, as well as an engaging part of a company’s day-to-day practices.

Social innovation should be built into the core of business strategy – and business should be built into the core of social innovation.

You can read more about our mission, manifest and principles in the sidebar to the left.

Our clients – who benefits from our services?

Social and economic value creation is not limited to a particular breed of companies. The 21st century business mindset is present in all sectors of society:

• Companies do good while making a profit.
• Public institutions deliver welfare solutions and are run like a business.
• Non-profit organizations use market methods to create social value.
• Social entrepreneurs create hybrid organizations with traits from all three sectors.

The diversity within the field of social business is also reflected in our wide range of clients across sectors and industries: ministries, unions, business schools and universities, municipalities, NGOs, business networks and associations, think tanks, trade unions, entrepreneurs, medium-sized companies and multinationals.

Ministries, for example, want to develop new policies for corporate responsibility or sustainable consumption. NGOs want to partner with companies to create more social value. Businesses want to create a workplace that can attract the new generation of talents. And entrepreneurs want to develop products and services that meet people’s needs in new, sustainable ways.

You can get inspiration for your own business activities from our many Cases & Clients here.

Our key services – how we create value

Applying the new rules of business starts with new insights and a change of mindset. And then comes action.

This is the reason why we have built our services around two pillars: to give inspiration and facts about the trends and new needs that are emerging – and to provide training and consulting that helps you develop new solutions and put words into practice.

To us ‘social business’ is about working across the fields of CSR – corporate social responsibility (using social value creation as a means to do business), social innovation (developing solutions to social or environmental challenges) and social entrepreneurship (using business methods as a means to create social value).

In short, we blend the disciplines of business strategy, social value creation and innovation.

Your potential benefits from this socio-economic blend of disciplines and fields are manifold: differentiation from competitors; product and service innovation; access to new customers & markets; improved reputation; stronger employer branding; preferred supplier status; efficient resource utilization; new business models; economic & social growth; sustainable value creation.

You can read more about our key services in the sidebar section to the left.

The Four Cornerstones of our work

Our services are built around our model the Four Cornerstones (4Cs) of Sustainable Business Success, an overall framework based on our research for The New Pioneers of companies who have succeeded in putting sustainability into the core of their business:

Clear Purpose (business strategy); Corporate Engagement (involvement of the organization); Collaborate Co-Creation (innovation through partnerships); Clear Communication (stakeholder interaction and corporate branding).