Ramnaresh Gorlamandala argues that businesses should be measured by their social and community impact, not just profit. He says the UN's Sustainable Development Goals can't be met unless companies and community organizations close the gap between financial returns and real-world outcomes.
Hey guys, let's imagine a world where there are no not-for-profits or charities knocking any rich man's door asking for donations. Let's also imagine a world where every company is now going to be measuring itself not by its gross profits, not by its net profits, but by real profits. And the real profits that I mean is talking about the real impact that these companies are actually leaving in the societies and in the communities that they are operating their businesses in. Can we think of a world where there is a convergence of commerce and community together? Can we think of a world where shareholders of a publicly listed company or a private company are bold enough to challenge the boards to be more communally responsible, to be more socially responsible, and are more engaged to report a real profit and the real outcome based on the impact that their businesses are leaving on the community as much as their impact on creating profit for the shareholders. Let's think of those frameworks which which can actually make this world a more reasonable and a more answerable community where we engage in the world of commerce with a view to create sustainable income streams to make a difference to the people in need, to the communities in need, by and large to the society that we live in. Sustainable Development Goals that United Nations have put out are not actually possible unless we bridge the gap between organizations which are driven by profits and by the community development organizations which are driven by outcomes to the community. And these sustainable goals are only possible when the divide and conversation between profit and communities come together, when the profit-driven enterprises are able to report on real outcomes and able to measure themselves and take their shareholders on a journey of engaging community much before profits.