Most of us are motivated to contribute something positive to the greater good of the world around us.
This motivation does not stop when we enter into our respective workplaces. When we spend forty or more hours a week working as part of an organization, we want to feel that our combined efforts are part of something bigger. We want to belong to an organization that gives back, not just to each one of us as employees, but to the broader social community. In recognition of this motivation, many Canadian companies are building their organizational frameworks on managerial strategies that allow for a reach beyond the workplace, into the broader community, to contribute to a social good.
Three examples of Canadian companies that have built their strategic frameworks on the principles of ‘good deeds’ are outlined in a recent article published by Canadian Business.
Click here to read about the initiatives implemented by Oliberté, Nude Bee Honey and Canada Goose.
From a compensation strategy perspective, each of these Canadian companies seems to include an element of reinvesting their rewards back into their communities, the environment, and their workers. As noted in the article, each of these profitable organizations must have the buy-in of their staff if they want to be successful in bringing about environmental or social change.
As a result, these strategies come at a price for consumers at the point of purchase. In the same way that employees may be motivated by doing good, these companies are successful through the targeting of socially conscious consumers who may be willing and able to pay in order to be part of a broader good.
Discussion Questions:
- How does a prospective employer’s commitment to social responsibility influence your career choices?
- What types of managerial strategies are evident in Oliberté, Nude Bee Honey and Canada Goose?
- How is employee citizenship behaviour rewarded in each of these companies?
- Would you pay more for a product if you knew that the profits would be used for social good?