— OA Busin For A Purpose-Driven ROI, Partner With Those OnTheFront Lines by Rick Shadyac (NAPSA)—Mygreatest hope from last week's historic Business Roundtable proclamation cementing the chang- ingconcernsof someof the world’s top business leaders is that this statement becomesreality. This idea that corporations deliver more thanprofits deserves ourattention,respect, and for those who can, help. Unsurprisingly and perhaps understandably, there are cynics and doubters,butstill, the statementof gov- ernance,the one with nearly 200 CEOs signatures promising a more compas- sionate, broader and intergenerational take on stakeholder value is an essential first step for our communities— current and future—thatfall under this expandeddefinition. “The American dreamis alive, but fraying” said Jamie Dimon, Chairman and CEOof JPMorgan Chase & Co and Chairman of the Business Roundtable in supportof the shifting priorities he andhispeers outlined for the pro-busi- ness lobby, which had not amendedits shareholdervalue statementsince 1997. ‘Theintervening two decades have seen a collective cry for a more purpose-driven society while, according to recent researchpublished by the Harvard Business Review, companies with higher lev- els of purpose outperform the market by 5 percentto 7 percentper year. (These are business folks after all.) Asthe CEOforthelast 10 years of ‘Americas largest healthcare charity, ALSAC—the fundraising and awareness organizationforSt. Jude Children’s Research Hospital—I knowa lot about dreams crushed and dreamsfulfilled. St. Jude has answered many parent's prayerfor their child’s return to health from a catastrophicillness such as can- cer, and has doneso with blind equity at the heart of our mission. Since open- ing our doors in 1962, we've treated It is possible to take a more compasjonate approach to business at the hest levels of American capitalism. T applaudthemfor the bravery of their action and hopethis laudable statement becomesreality. The pursuit of purpose alongside bottom line revenue and traditionally defined shareholderreturn is the moredifficult, yet rewarding path. ‘The journey aheadfor them will be extraordinary; a test against the cynics and nonbelievers. But each can take solace knowing the status quo is not an immovable object when faced with the tenacity of genuine purpose.I hope they'll channel our founder, Danny Thomas, who never wavered despite many in the medical community resolute in their beliefs he was wasting his time trying to save cancer-stricken children; that the challenge would ultimately break his heart. The manifold survivorship suc- cess of St. Jude overfive decades has proved false the naysayers. So I hope the Roundtablewill look to us—and my colleagues across the nonprofit sector— for hard-learnedlessons from operating models that stand on purpose and community benefit. In Memphis, where our headquar- thousandsofpatients regardless ofrace, country oforigin or creed, and at no cost to the families—many of whom wouldneverbeableto payforthetreatments, travel, housing and more that's required ofthis journey that we cover thanks to generousdonors. For many of ourfamilies, the American dream never existed, was never in reach. And when theyleaveus, they face thatreality anew. ters are, the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther their names to paper, as our country’s founders once did, are theoretically accountable now to their words and an ROIthatisn't just measured by profit. call from Dr. King that hangs over my desk: “Life's most persistent and urgent questionis, ‘what are you doing for others?”Learn more at www.stjude.org. ‘The business leaders who have put King, Jr.—his achievements and tragic death—permeates our soul and guides what we strive to achieve. For those business leaders whoselodestar is now fairer, more equitable, sustainable economic and environmentalreality for consumers and—with the aperture widening on “shareholder’—for broader communities and future generations, I lookforward to helping you answerthe
