World, Inc. - Hardcover

Piasecki, Bruce

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1402208715 ISBN 13: 9781402208713

Publisher: Sourcebooks Inc, 2007

Synopsis

Fifty-one of the world's top 100 economies are now corporations. More than 40 percent of world trade now takes place within multinational corporations. We now know that the world is flat, but what does that mean for the future of business and society?

Dr. Bruce Piasecki, one of the top energy and environmental consultants to companies such as Toyota, BP, Chevron, DuPont and Dow Chemical, provides a groundbreaking new work showing that social response by firms will be the new benchmark by which corporations will be judged and can drive profits.

As power moves into the hands of corporations, the world is looking to corporations instead of governments to solve its problems. The corporations that can best address social issues by creating superior products will thrive and profit in this new world.

"A rare but important vision into our future world-a robust world where 'buy and sell' decisions are made not only on the basis of price, quality and availability but also on the basis of environmental, social and economic criteria..." -Bill Sugar, Senior Director, Anheuser-Busch Corporation

"By linking environmental and social performance to product differentiation at major companies such as Toyota and HP, Bruce Piasecki has illuminated an important source of competitive advantage and stock value in the 21st century."
-Dr. Chris Laszlo, Founding Partner, Sustainable Value Partners

About this title

About the Author

Dr. Bruce Piasecki is the president and founder of the American Hazard Control Group, a management consulting firm specializing in environmental corporate matters since 1981. He is the author of five business books, including the bestselling In Search of Environmental Excellence, and his articles have appeared in the Los Angeles Times and the Christian Science Monitor.

From the Inside Flap

ìCapitalism is in the midst of profound transformationÖWhat Bruce Piasecki sees will surprise and inspire you.î
--from the foreword by Patricia Aburdene, bestselling author of the Megatrends series

An interesting thing happened while no one was paying attention:

-51 of the worldís top 100 economies are now corporations.
-More than 40 percent of world trade now takes place within multinational corporations.
-Problems are more severe, solutions are scarce and global barriers have fallen.

The result?When it comes to solutions, businesses are more capable and powerful than government.Welcome to World Inc.

Welcome to the most important and underreported business story of this centuryóone that has been going on for years, and will dictate the future of how businesses profit and societies advance.

Dr. Bruce Piasecki, top energy and environmental consultant to companies such as Toyota, BP, Chevron, DuPont and Dow Chemical, provides a groundbreaking new work showing that how businesses and their products address social issuesóenvironment, energy, poverty, global conflict and moreóis the most important surprise opportunity in front of them.

Using examples from his 25 years of work with corporate leaders, Piasecki examines this and more, including profiles of companies such as:

-Toyotaóalready known worldwide for efficiencyóand their new drive to take over the automotive industry through environmental and energy innovations
-HPís ìglobal citizenshipî initiative, and the struggles of maintaining vision in an ever-shifting world

Are you ready to be a consumer in this new global equity culture?Is your business ready to be a player?World Inc is a glimpse into the near future.Those who embrace and excel at social response will be the business success stories of our time.

Reviews

In his optimistic account, Piasecki, an environmental consultant, identifies a new consumer expectation: that corporations have social obligations. He describes a 21st-century capitalism transformed by a "bloodless revolution" that has added the necessity of "social response" to the basic tenets of technical quality and price. Piasecki's idealistic but perhaps necessary premise is that multinationals "can address the social problems we struggle with, in conjunction with the government, in a way that's good for both society and business." His answer: social response product development, which he illustrates with case studies from such corporations as Toyota and HP. With Toyota's pursuit of a greener car, for example, Piasecki (Environmental Management and Business Strategy) provides some insight into a successful corporation's shift toward social response capitalism through innovation and leadership. While Piasecki's valuable ideas are timely—given the social pressures of climate change and fossil fuel depletion—this guide's flaw is its breadth. Each of its three sections—the initial outline of social response capitalism, the leadership needed for such a corporate strategy, and the question of profitability—is fodder enough for a book. (Apr.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Chapter 1
On Competition and
Social Needs

There is something incredibly rapid and shocking about global consolidation. When one company merges with another, they grow exponentially overnight. We see it happen all the time, but we do not know exactly what it means.
I once shared a five-minute elevator ride with a senator in Washington before a key session of Congress. As we discussed this global phenomenon, he said: "Certainly, the seven sisters-the world's largest oil players-must be doing something right to get that big. It could not just be their love of debt, their faith in complex technologies, and their thirst to span the globe. They must be doing something right, don't you think?"
I have been pondering this question for ten years now. There are only five oil giants left standing, so not all do it exactly right. Yet, overall, is this rapid expanse of companies a result of doing things right? And by "right," what exactly is meant: right for the environment, right for people of all means, right for the profitability of the owners at any cost to others? Is the growth of these companies good or bad for our world and those of us who live in it?
Consider these facts:
1. Fifty-one of the one hundred largest economies in the world are now corporations, not nations.
2. They are massive mansions unto themselves who have great political leverage.
3. The one hundred largest multinational corporations (MNCs) now control about 20 percent of global foreign assets. These top one hundred are household names.

Edition details

• Publisher: Sourcebooks Inc
• Publication date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1402208715
• ISBN 13: 9781402208713
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 284