The Goal and Role of Business
Samuel J. Palmisano · Oxford University Press eBooks · 2015
Businesses throughout the world share a goal of creating value—value principally for their customers. But because businesses don’t operate in a vacuum they should also create value for society. This is in their interest as they need permission to operate from society. Therefore, business, especially global business, has an obligation to be relevant to the societies in which they are operating and help to advance societal needs and opportunities. This chapter outlines the author’s experience as a business leader at IBM and illustrates how this enterprise engaged with and integrated customers, employees, and society. It highlights the significance of values in orienting IBM technology and innovation to this aspiration, and underlines the rising importance of trust in a globally integrated enterprise.