Sir Richard Branson, founder and chairman of Virgin Group,
and Jochen Zeitz, chairman of Puma, launched a nonprofit group called
The B Team on Thursday,
Business Green reported.
The B Team aims to build a better version of capitalism, one that
prioritizes people and planet over profit. By joining forces with
business leaders from across the globe, the group will campaign for
reforms that will make businesses more socially responsible,
The Economist reported.
"Today we want to start a global conversation on a 'Plan B' for
business," Branson said in a statement. "We are working with government
agencies, the social sector and business leaders to help get on top of
some of the world's seemingly intractable challenges. We are keen to
listen, learn and share with others to build businesses that do what's
right for people and the planet."
Joining Branson and Zeitz are:
- Arianna Huffington, Chair, President & Editor In Chief, The Huffington Post Media Group
- Shari Arison, Owner, Arison Group
- Kathy Calvin, President and CEO, United Nations Foundation
- Mo Ibrahim, Founder, Celtel
- Guilherme Leal, Founder & Co-Chairman, Natura
- Strive Masiyiwa, Founder & Chairman, Econet Wireless
- Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Government of Nigeria
- François-Henri Pinault, CEO & Chairman, Kering
- Paul Polman, CEO, Unilever
- Ratan Tata, Chairman Emeritus, Tata Group
- Zhang Yue, Founder and Chairman, Broad Group
- Professor Muhammad Yunus, Chairman, Yunus Centre
- Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, Deputy Chair, The Elders (Honorary Leader)
- Mary Robinson, Secretary, The Elders and President, Mary Robinson Foundation - Climate Justice (Honorary Leader)
During a live online broadcast, the B Team Leaders also issued a
joint declaration:
"We, the undersigned, believe that the world is at a critical
crossroads. Global-business leaders need to come together to advance the
wellbeing of people and the planet. In fact, we think business has to
think this way in order to thrive."
Click here to read Arianna's vision for The B Team.
People, Planet, Profit: Introducing the B Team
If you are one of the many of people who believe that Plan A of the
way business is managed -- aka the status quo -- is not working, this is
a good day for you. Because I'm happy to announce the launch of the B
Team, whose mission is to introduce a Plan B. As one of 14 inaugural
members of the B Team, I've been inspired by the way that over the last
few months -- in meetings and on email threads -- the co-founders of the
team, Richard Branson and Jochen Zeitz, and the other inaugural
leaders, have been determined to change the values that drive
businesses, to "prioritize people and planet alongside profit" and to
move beyond our obsession with quarterly earnings and short-term growth.
Plan A -- the pursuit of short-term profit at the exclusion of
everything else -- isn't working for anyone. It's not working for
businesses' long-term sustainability, and it's not working for
employees' well-being. And at a time when so many governments are
gridlocked and paralyzed and unable or unwilling to pursue big, bold,
far-sighted goals, the private sector has a responsibility and a unique
opportunity to become a catalyst for fundamental change.
Many of my fellow B Team members are gathering today in London for
our kick-off event. They come from all over the world and include
microfinance pioneer Muhammad Yunus, Unilever CEO Paul Polman, Indian
businessman Ratan Tata, Kering CEO Francois-Henri Pinault, United
Nations Foundation CEO Kathy Calvin, Sudanese-British telecommunications
entrepreneur Mo Ibrahim, Brazilian social entrepreneur Guilherme Leal,
Zimbabwean businessman Strive Masiyiwa, the Arison Group's Shari Arison,
Broad Group China Chairman and Founder Zhang Yue, and Nigeria's
Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance Dr. Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala.
We share a belief that a future focused on people, planet and profit
is within reach, and that in the long run, what is good for our planet,
for individuals and for communities, is good for our businesses' bottom
lines as well. As Richard and Jochen write, we want to define "new rules
and models for the future of business -- not incremental 'change as
usual.'"
We also want to start conversations on how current and future
leaders, by adhering to the Plan B principles, can avoid the missteps
that have led to so many of our current self-inflicted crises. On an
individual level, people are burning out. On a company level, we are at
the mercy of quarterly earnings and beating the expectations game. And
on a collective level, we're burning up the planet. We need leaders who
are committed to strategic plans centered on an agenda of people, planet
and profit -- and not just token gestures to sustainability and
short-term goals.
And those of us in the media have to do a much better job at putting
the spotlight on what is working. There is a real danger that by
focusing exclusively on what is not working and what is dysfunctional,
we are missing out on spotlighting the leaders and organizations already
taking steps to change the way we do business around the world.
This is a moment of great possibility and opportunity for all of us
to play our part in course-correcting, and leveraging the best parts of
the spirit of business and entrepreneurship to bring about fundamental
changes to the ways we do business -- for the benefit of individuals,
communities, and companies.
So please join the B Team and help us accelerate that shift by
putting the spotlight on business leaders at the forefront of this
movement and connecting them with each other. And as always, use the
comments section to let us know what you think.
