Unilever, the consumer goods giant, is seeking to empower its brands with a "social mission" as part of a broader sustainability drive.
Speaking at a summit held by business school INSEAD, Harish Manwani, Unilever's president for Asia, Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, argued fostering "responsible" growth would be vital.
"That, to my mind, is the true north of organisations that is very much going to decide the future of whether you are going to go for the next 100 years or not," he said.
Unilever recently outlined a range of sustainability targets for the coming decade, including a pledge to reduce internal and customer water use by 50%.
"If a company has to be responsible, then it must have an organisation character, a set of values that are non-negotiable," Manwani said.
"It's not about costing money, this is the way we do business … We believe that doing well by doing good is a business model that allows us to grow our business sustainably and profitably."
Manwani further suggested that giving brands a "social mission" delivers powerful benefits in the marketplace.
"The best leverage we can provide in terms of making that little bit of difference in society is the fact that billions of consumers use our brands," he said.
"If each of our brands can stand for something that is relevant to the societies in which we operate, then every time a consumer buys one of our brands – and multiply that impact by a billion – it makes a big difference."
A long-running campaign for Lifebuoy soap, a major product in many emerging nations, has encouraged people to regularly wash their hands, reducing incidences of diarrhoea and other illnesses.
This initiative, based on partnerships with several NGOs, has extended into rural areas and reached 130m shoppers to date.
"We can only do it because we have a brand called Lifebuoy … In the end, we sell soap. But that soap has a social mission," Manwani said.
Unilever has also attempted to assume a leading role regarding palm oil - a common ingredient in its products - including the aim of sourcing its entire supply in an ethically-sound fashion by 2015.
But one company cannot achieve this objective by working alone.
"A lot of these activity systems ultimately have to have a multiplier effect, and have to be supported by the industry, by our customers, by our suppliers," Manwani explained.
As Unilever has been present in countries like Indonesia, India and Brazil for decades, it boasts a nuanced understanding of popular preferences that may prove essential.
"It keeps you close in terms of what consumers are saying and doing … It also gives a sense of purpose to the business, which is, by the way, very motivating for the employees who work for you," Manwani said.
"We believe the best value comes out of giving our consumers what they are looking for and catering to the communities in which we live."
Speaking at a summit held by business school INSEAD, Harish Manwani, Unilever's president for Asia, Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, argued fostering "responsible" growth would be vital.
"That, to my mind, is the true north of organisations that is very much going to decide the future of whether you are going to go for the next 100 years or not," he said.
Unilever recently outlined a range of sustainability targets for the coming decade, including a pledge to reduce internal and customer water use by 50%.
"If a company has to be responsible, then it must have an organisation character, a set of values that are non-negotiable," Manwani said.
"It's not about costing money, this is the way we do business … We believe that doing well by doing good is a business model that allows us to grow our business sustainably and profitably."
Manwani further suggested that giving brands a "social mission" delivers powerful benefits in the marketplace.
"The best leverage we can provide in terms of making that little bit of difference in society is the fact that billions of consumers use our brands," he said.
"If each of our brands can stand for something that is relevant to the societies in which we operate, then every time a consumer buys one of our brands – and multiply that impact by a billion – it makes a big difference."
A long-running campaign for Lifebuoy soap, a major product in many emerging nations, has encouraged people to regularly wash their hands, reducing incidences of diarrhoea and other illnesses.
This initiative, based on partnerships with several NGOs, has extended into rural areas and reached 130m shoppers to date.
"We can only do it because we have a brand called Lifebuoy … In the end, we sell soap. But that soap has a social mission," Manwani said.
Unilever has also attempted to assume a leading role regarding palm oil - a common ingredient in its products - including the aim of sourcing its entire supply in an ethically-sound fashion by 2015.
But one company cannot achieve this objective by working alone.
"A lot of these activity systems ultimately have to have a multiplier effect, and have to be supported by the industry, by our customers, by our suppliers," Manwani explained.
As Unilever has been present in countries like Indonesia, India and Brazil for decades, it boasts a nuanced understanding of popular preferences that may prove essential.
"It keeps you close in terms of what consumers are saying and doing … It also gives a sense of purpose to the business, which is, by the way, very motivating for the employees who work for you," Manwani said.
"We believe the best value comes out of giving our consumers what they are looking for and catering to the communities in which we live."
