The motivation underlying a pure advocacy or good corporate citizenship must be transformed from anger and despair about a depressing state into compassion and love for the afflicted that can provide a platform for change and development. This is not to deny the legitimacy of noble anger or courage or injustice of any kind. Rather, we seek to work for the love of our countrymen instead of against the evil people or institutions that bring forth malady and malaise of any kind.
In reality, doing the right thing can demand enormous sacrifice. When we feel tempted to avoid all squabbles that come along with doing what we know we should do, just believe that things do have a tendency to balance themselves out. If we turn our backs on opportunities to make things go right for our families, friends, or even strangers, don’t be surprise, if, somewhere down the road, people we meet take the same easy road rather than help us out of the rut.
In a business context, it means not only avoiding monstrous wickedness; it is actively doing what is ethical and admirable. Since business corporations and conglomerates comprise half of the world’s largest economies, they have as much potential to improve or destroy lives as does war. Many socially responsible companies, however, realize that they should put some idealism back and become a force for positive change.
Businesses are created by humans, and are thus vulnerable to human impositions. People’s behavior and attitude toward a company can have an impact on its operation – positively or negatively. It is inextricably linked with the constituencies it serves, and under this reality, it cannot avoid moral choices. Its future success or failure depends on public support or the lack of it.
"Be the change that you want to see in the world." Gandhi admonished. That simple teaching has philosophical overtones. If businesses want a loving, compassionate milieu, then they must become loving and compassionate themselves. They should make doing the right thing a way of life.
Author Emmet Murphy and environmental care advocate Will Keepin offer some valuable insights on how businesses can do it:
• Value intangible rewards. Bestow good fortune on others, not for recognition or gain but for the welfare of those we have aided. Expecting rewards or praise whenever we extend a helping hand should be far from our mind. The value of the intangible rewards we receive for doing what is good is more valuable than the tangibles. A company can’t take a trophy to its grave, but corporate reputation and a good deed performed will continue to live long after its existence.
In fact the more challenging call is for non-attachment to the outcome of our deed. The thinking is that if our work is to foster lasting positive change, we must commit to doing something even if we never see the results in our lifetime.
• Protect our moral integrity. If we can help it, don’t turn away an opportunity to do good. We might regret it later. Do it, not just to win the respect of others, but more important, to gain our own self-respect. Our integrity is our protection. If our work has been built around a solid principle, then that itself will protect us. We should always place a premium on protecting our own moral probity. Failure to do so could haunt us forever.
• Avoid a false sense of altruism. Let us not kid ourselves. Selfless service is a myth, because in serving others, we also serve ourselves. This is important to recognize so we don’t fall into the trap of pretentious service to others’ needs and develop a faulty impression of generosity.
• Emphasize trustworthiness in our everyday activities. Engender the trust of our public when making decisions in our everyday life. For when we trust others, they tend to trust us. And when we distrust others, they usually distrust us, too. Let trust guide our actions.
• Don’t cut off from the misery of others. We must allow our hearts to be broken open. As we let the pain in, we become a vehicle for transformation, and if we block the anguish, we prevent our own participation in the country’s attempt to heal itself.
• Choose a good deed that shapes and defines us clearly. What we attend to, we become. If we constantly attend to battles, we become embattled. On the other hand, if we constantly give love we become loving. If we extend help, we can receive it back when we need it.
• Set a good precedent. When we do the right thing, we inspire others to do the same. And if people see us doing the right thing, they will feel inspired to do likewise. The influence of our actions can tremendously impact on the behavior of those around us. And as we work together we must move from an "us-them" consciousness to a "we" mindset. Our public and us become one in thought, behavior, and process in doing what is beneficial for all, if not most. A good deed is directed at a specific community, rather than for us. We serve for the benefit of others, and not for our own satisfaction and glorification. We are sowing seeds for a cherished vision to become a future reality, and our fulfillment comes from the privilege of being able to do this work.
One such company that adheres very strongly to the idea of giving back and helping out is Mirant Philippines, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Atlanta-based Mirant Corporation. It is the largest private producer of electricity in the Philippines, owning more than 2,000 megawatts of installed generating capacity nationwide. It has seven generating stations, and likewise has a stake in the natural gas-fired Ilijan Power Plant.
In April 2002, Mirant launched Project Beacon (Barangay Electrification Assistance for Countryside Development), which was aimed at providing electricity to over 1,000 barangays all over the Philippines. It is the largest social responsibility program ever carried out by a single private corporation in the country, spending over P1 billion, and at no cost to the identified beneficiaries. Project Beacon is under the "O-Ilaw" program launched by the Department of Energy in 1999 which seeks to energize 41, 955 barangays all over the country by 2006.
As its series of ads trumpets, Project Beacon’s primary goal is to develop local economies. With electricity installed in the area, industries will be developed, and poverty will be fought. Households in remote places will finally be able to do their chores with relief, even at night. Children who have literally been kept in the dark can finally travel to faraway lands, and study more comfortably. Farmers can now turn on their pumps to irrigate and cultivate more lands and process their produce. With the all-important electricity installed, people are empowered to change their lives for the better and join the mainstream of Philippine development.
When we choose to do the right thing, we will discover that the rewards far outweigh the costs. More than the palpable results, we will enjoy self-respect, trust of the public and our associates, lead an exemplary corporate existence, and reap positive results – spiritually, and oh yes, financially – which count more than all the tangible awards in the world.
As we ponder our next corporate social responsibility move, internalize George Bernard Shaw’s words: "I want to be used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live. Life is no brief candle. To me it is a sort of splendid torch which I’ve got to hold up for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations."