CEOs Increase Their Focus on Values, Trust

A high level of trust drives business performance. PwC’s studies indicate that the world’s most successful companies are building trust through a commitment to values and purpose. These organizations are significantly more profitable than their competitors that lack this focus.  Consumers make choices not just based on services provided, but more often because of overall trust in the organization.

CEOs know that customers, employees and other stakeholders increasingly care about what an organization stands for, and 84% believe that customers value how organizations conduct themselves in society. Most CEOs (69%) understand that their organizational purpose should encompass value for a variety of stakeholders – not just customers and investors, but also employees, wider society and even the organization’s supply chain. Serving this broad constituency had always been the case for 45% of the organizations. Evolving societal expectations caused 24% more to revise their mission over the last three years to reflect a broader constituency. Moreover, 64% of the CEOs said corporate social responsibility is core to their business, not an add-on program.