Thinkers & Doers – At the Citizen College of France, you spoke this week on the role and responsibility of companies in facing the climatic, social and democratic challenges of our societies. Putting in relation the meaning, the common good and the economic performance, you campaign within your company for this alignment. You say that this is possible: under what conditions?
Jean-Francois Rial – It is of course possible. The main condition to be fulfilled is that the manager (s) deeply share this conviction and that it is necessary to do so both ethically and in terms of interest… including the economic interest of the company. Thus, the commitments made at the social and ecological level create recognition and even loyalty of employees, as well as increased motivation and performance on their part. In short, everyone is a winner. My only warning would be to speak of sincerity. It must be deeply and utterly sincere. If not, not only does it show quickly. And above all that, in the long term, can be very harmful because it discredits the company in the broad sense and creates mistrust.
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Business engagement, you seem to say that it is impossible to do otherwise for economic decision-makers. What are the risks ultimately for those who do not yet do so? And what would be the conditions to accelerate the transformation of companies in this direction?
Not having a social and ecological behavior will become totally unmanageable for companies because they will suffer virulent attacks on 5 fronts: the first, that of their employees, which, in my opinion is the most serious, then that of their customers, this which immediately jeopardizes the organization, then will come just behind, in no predefined order, their shareholders, politics, the media and social networks. I would like to underline at this moment what Raphaël Glucksmann is doing who denounces the ambiguous attitude of companies vis-à-vis the inadmissible treatment suffered by Uyghurs. It is a vivid demonstration of what I am saying. It will soon be impossible to put questionable, revolting behavior under the carpet. And that’s good.
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Tell college students, future leaders, that the company makes it possible to change the world: what does this generate as questions, as doubts among your interlocutors? What are the arguments you give to convince them?
Companies are neither more virtuous nor more horrible than the average number of individuals, institutions, and even NGOs. On the other hand, they have strengths that no one else, to my knowledge, has. When they get into motion, they have an incredible capacity for action in terms of speed and execution. They can make solutions massive, they can finance them, or contribute financially, they have the agility to transform and an incredible capacity to disseminate ideas, provoke new behaviors. But they will never be good at doing everything. Just as we say “the state cannot do everything”, and neither can companies. It is collective work, team work, a work of accountability between States, companies, associations and civil society. It is this triptych, fluid, coherent and with well-distributed responsibilities, which will make it possible to resolve the issues with which we must face. Businesses are part of the solution, they have to take their part. And strongly that the green where the social washing no longer work. This kind of marketing or com approach is even more dangerous than companies that do nothing.
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