Insights for Business Leaders | Doing Well and Doing Good in Asia

DOING WELL AND
DOING GOOD IN ASIA
May 2019 | Insights for Business Leaders

CONTENT
ABOUT THE RESEARCH
Purpose & Overview
Companies in the Study
Creating a Common Language
Background & Challenges
FOUR UNIVERSAL TRUTHS
Belief
Commitment
Focus
Learning from Others
THREE CATALYSTS FOR CHANGE
The Need to Act
Regional Connectedness
The Opportunity to Lead
CONCLUSION
1
2
3
4

RESEARCH: PURPOSE & OVERVIEW
PURPOSE
This research sets out to better
understand the levers critical in
accelerating the long-term
development of organisations and
leaders able to steward the business
for the longer term and explores
whether sustainability in Asia has
different lens.
PROBLEM
There is an increasing emphasis on the
need for business to be purpose-led, to
align profitability and sustainability,
and to demonstrate the ability to
achieve commercial success and
positive outcomes for society and the
environment. However, significant gaps
exist for leaders to successfully evolve
their business models and
organisations in response to this.
METHODOLOGY
The findings and recommendations
draw on a series of interviews
undertaken with selected executives
from companies that have forged a
reputation for their commitment to
building sustainable and enduring
organisations that aspire to both do
well and do good, and that have also
been recognised publicly for the
progress that they have made in
acting on a sustainability agenda.
COMPANY SELECTION
Several indices and league tables recognise
the efforts and achievements of organisations
committed to sustainability practices. For the
purposes of this study, our Core Leading
Companies are organisations that have been
recognised on many of the following lists and
indices:
• Corporate Knights Global 100
• Ethisphere Institute, The World’s Most
Ethical Companies
• GlobeScan-Sustainability Leaders Survey
• FTSE4Good Index
• Dow Jones Sustainability Indices (DJSI)
© 2019 Human Capital Leadership Institute Pte Ltd

LEADING COMPANIES AND OTHER COMPANIES
Additional organisations were invited to complete an online survey between November
and December 2018. Respondents were asked to assess whether at their organisation it
was “more important”, “about the same” or “less important” to do well and do good than
at other organisations. There was a valid data set of 57 responses; 2/3 of respondents
assessed that at their organisation doing well and doing good was more important than
at others, while 1/3 reported that for their organisations it was about the same or less
important.
Throughout this report we explore the similarities and differences between Leading
Companies - drawing on insights of the six companies above that have been publicly
recognised as leading the way, and the additional 38 companies who self-assess that
doing well and doing good is more important at their companies - and Other
Companies, namely those companies who do not report a greater focus on this.
This study draws on interviews undertaken with executives at the
following leading companies, who have been recognised for their
commitment to Doing Well and Doing Good.
COMPANIES IN THE
STUDY
LEADING COMPANIES

CREATING A
COMMON LANGUAGE
SUSTAINABILITY AGENDA IN THIS CONTEXT DOES NOT INCLUDE
• Corporate Governance
• Corporate Social Responsibility
• Triple-bottom Line Focus
• Shared Value Approach
SUSTAINABILITY AGENDA IN THIS CONTEXT
An organization must both be commercially successful and demonstrate its
positive contribution to society to endure for a longer term
CONTEXT
One of the most challenging aspects to shaping and exploring the themes of
sustainable businesses, and leadership in sustainable business, is finding a
shared language for this. The sustainability conversation has been underway
for decades, however there is no common language to describe the intention
to align profitability and sustainability and to demonstrate the ability to achieve
both commercial success and positive outcomes for society and environment
To better understand how the companies in this study think and talk
about being sustainable and enduring organisations, we asked
companies to share the terms that were commonly used in their
organisations. We found a distinction in the language used by Leading
Companies and Other Companies, as shown in the results above.
In addition, Leading Organisations reported using language that
reflected the unique context and orientation of sustainable business in
their own organisations, where examples include “Sustainable Living Plan”
“Inclusive Growth” “Community Impact” and “People, Planet, Profit.” Given
that the most commonly used terms at Leading Companies are “Purpose-
Led” and “Doing Well and Doing Good”, in this report we also use the term
“Doing Well and Doing Good.”
COMPARISON BETWEEN LEADING AND OTHER COMPANIES

Today’s leaders operate in a world which is
global, and uncertain. Organisations, and leaders
who head them, are tasked with leading a
business environment which is undergoing a
general crisis of legitimacy. This can be directly
linked to the failure of key institutions to provide
answers or leadership in response to
environmental disasters and ethical misconduct.
Increasingly we hear calls for social justice and
greater inclusion and diversity to address
economic and social divides. Investor sentiment
is also changing with the core message that, to
prosper over time, companies must not only
deliver financial performance, they must show
how they make a positive contribution to society.
A growing number of organisations and
institutions globally and in Asia are establishing
the governance structures and support to
accelerate this agenda. Importantly the launch of
the United Nations’ Sustainable Development
Goals, or Global Goals, in 2015, offers a
compelling alternative growth model.
IMPORTANCE OF
SUSTAINABILITY
Better Business, Better World reports that Asian
Businesses could capture more than US$5 trillion
in business opportunities over the next 13 years by
responding to the challenges raised by United
Nations. More importantly they suggest that the
Global Goals offer Asia’s leaders in business,
government and civil society the chance to
consolidate and sustain the region’s regeneration.

CHALLENGES
While globally there is concern that momentum
around the sustainability agenda may have peaked,
in Asia the focus on building enduring and
sustainable businesses is increasing. Indeed, there is
a pressing need to act. The prevalence of social
issues across the region, from poverty to health, and
the environmental degradation resulting from
unbridled exploitation, while highlighting
sustainability challenges, also acts as a burning
platform in galvanising organisations to pay
attention.
Experts are hoping that the smart government
intervention and business innovation that catalysed
Asia’s economic transformation in recent decades can
turn these challenges into rewards for both business
and society. The scale of Asia’s social and
environmental challenges also highlights the need to
partner in order to address such issues – thereby
facilitating the forging of partnerships between
governments, corporates and civil society. However,
progress is slow. Global management consultancy
Corporate Citizenship, specialists in sustainability and
corporate responsibility, reviewed the progress of
companies listed in London (FTSE) and Singapore
(SGX) and ranked by Fortune magazine, with regards
actions taken against the Global Goals. The 2017
report found that while 51% of FTSE100 were
responding to the Global Goals, only 38% of the
Fortune 50 were and just 20% of the SGX50.
Chandran Nair, Founder of the Global
Institute for Tomorrow and author of
Consumptionomics, Asia’s role in
reshaping capitalism and saving the
planet, concurs. He emphasises that
most business models thrive on
consumption and are not designed to
be sustainable. He advocates imposing
regulations as the key force in getting
businesses to take a longer-term
perspective and ensuring costing for
the externalities in their supply chains.
Yet the reality is that regulatory
change is slow. The focus must be on
how businesses can improve their
ability to take meaningful action.
Where companies are acting, they are
gaining positive traction.
Research from the National University
of Singapore shows that where
companies are proactively reporting
on sustainability, this is positively
related to the market value of the
firm. However, taking action is not
always easy. In earlier studies,
McKinsey’s Global Survey into the
‘Business of Sustainability’ noted that
companies are best at integrating
sustainability into their Mission and
Values and External Communications
and weakest at integrating
sustainability into their supply chain
or budgeting process.

vv
Asia-origin enterprises have often been
established to serve a social purpose and this
is embedded in the organisation’s business
agenda. However, while across Asia there is a
long history of Doing Good – the challenge is
to build a mindset that sees the virtuous circle
of also Doing Well. Companies describe
“concern for the collective” as a core value of
their Asia-based employees, sharing examples
of volunteerism and socialism as the fabric of
many Asian communities, but a reluctance to
link “Doing Good” with commercial outcomes.
Several multinational organisations reported
that implementing a Doing Well and Doing
Good strategy is more structured and formal
than many of their Asian markets have been
used to.
Economics also have a significant influence
on the overall agenda. Companies report
that price is still a key differentiator for most
Asia-based customers and consumers. On
the whole customers are unwilling to pay
more for a product or service, and any
positive impact on the environment or the
community must be delivered in addition to
the best price offering. This can act as a
positive catalyst, forcing companies to
innovate in ways that allow them to deliver
more for less and to generate revenues
from the bottom of the pyramid. However, a
relentless focus on the bottom-line can
make it challenging to take a longer-term
perspective. In some organisations
employees who maximise growth and
profits, regardless of the impact, are held up
as role models, reinforcing this culture.
Connection Between Social
Purpose and Doing Well and Doing
Good Agenda
Doing Well is Critical
Addressing the Doing Well and Doing Good agenda in Asia presents different challenges. 75% of study
respondents believe that social, economic, regulatory and cultural differences impact how organisations in
the region respond to the sustainability agenda. They highlight the following:
CHALLENGES

75%
SAY THAT ASIA
IS DIFFERENT
SOCIAL
DIFFERENCES
ECONOMIC
DIFFERENCES
REGULATORY
AND CULTURAL
DIFFERENCES
FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO DIFFERENCES IN
DOING WELL AND DOING GOOD IN ASIA

3 CATALYSTS FOR
CHANGE
Doing Well and Doing Good in Asia

The prevalence of social
issues across the region
acts as a burning
platform in galvanising
organisations.
ThePressing
NeedtoAct
The region’s connectedness
creates stronger visibility of
the challenges of urbanisation
and environmental damage
and this is a catalyst for action
Regional
Connectedness
Organisations that act now
have the opportunity to
establish reputation as
pioneers in advancing the
agenda in the region.
TheOpportunity
toLead
3 CATALYSTS FOR CHANGE
AFTER SLOW START ASIA IS POISED TO ACT

THE PRESSING
NEED TO ACT
Catalyst #1
Companies referred to “concern for the collective” as a core value of their Asia-based
employees, Respondents pointed to the fact that the prevalence of social issues across
the region, from poverty to health, and the environmental degradation resulting from
unbridled exploitation, while highlighting sustainability challenges, also acts as a burning
platform in galvanising organisations to pay attention.
Mark Malloch-Brown, chair of the Business & Sustainable Development Commission says
“the ‘Asian Century’ is threatened by persistent inequality, environmental collapse and
unabated climate change.”
Yet he also believes that the smart government intervention and business innovation that
catalysed Asia’s economic transformation in recent decades can also turn these
challenges into rewards for both business and society (BBBW).

REGIONAL
CONNECTEDNESS
Catalyst #2
Across the region there is a sense of connection.
In ASEAN this connectedness creates stronger visibility of the challenges to address,
particularly the impact of the macro drivers of urbanisation and environmental damage.
Unintentionally, this visibility has been a catalyst for action. For example, while the
Indonesian forest fires and resulting haze across Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia was a
contentious issue, it focused the region more broadly on how to ensure an ethical supply
chain.
The scale of many of these challenges also highlights the need to partner in order to
address such issues – thereby facilitating the forging of partnerships between
governments, corporates and civil society.

THE OPPORTUNITY
TO LEAD
Catalyst #3
Given that Asia has been comparatively slow in focusing on a Doing Well and Doing Good
agenda, leaves the stage open for organisations to take the lead in establishing a
reputation as a key contributor to advancing the agenda in the region, and in doing so
enhance their brand and reputation.
To date only a few Asia-origin companies have been recognised on multiple global listings,
including Singtel and DBS, participants in this research. Those that have been recognised
are typically from industries without significant sustainability challenges and thus their
challenge has been to move from Good to Great. However, many Asia-origin organisations
face significant social and environmental challenges in their current business models.
As they embark on their journey to Doing Well and Doing Good this can provide a useful
blueprint for other companies in Asia whose challenge may be more to move the needle
from Bad to Better.

4 UNIVERSAL
TRUTHS
Doing Well and Doing Good in Asia

Leading companies
have a strong belief
in Doing Well and
Doing Good, setting
an agenda which is
an authentic
expression of their
organisational DNA.
Belief
Leading companies
set public measurable
targets, they share
these internally and
externally, and hold
people accountable to
deliver on them.
Commitment
Leading companies
have a relentless
focus on their Doing
Well and Doing Good
agenda, starting with
committed leadership.
Focus
Leading companies
deliberately collaborate,
internally and externally,
in order to learn and
progress.
Learning
from others
4 UNIVERSAL TRUTHS
LEADING COMPANIES ADHERE TO FOUR UNIVERSAL TRUTHS

BELIEF IN
DOING WELL,
DOING GOOD
Universal Truths #1
Look to your past to imagine your
future.
• What has been core to your
organisation since its inception?
• What are the stories that
employees recall with pride?
• When you have been at your
best, what have you stood for?
• What is the mindset in your
organisation?
• Is investment in building a
business that does well and does
good, seen as an integral part of
your business strategy and one
that adds commercial value to
your organisation?
Leading Companies have a strong belief in Doing Well
and Doing Good. Many of the Leading Companies
describe their journey to Doing Well and Doing Good as
“revisiting their roots.” They share that making the
conscious decision to focus on being a business that is a
force for good has meant “making the invisible visible.”
A key factor influencing Leading Companies’
commitment to Doing Well and Doing Good is the belief
that a sustainable business makes good business sense.
It is not separate to their core business: it is integrated
into everything they do.
While Leading Companies focus more on Doing Good
than Other Companies, leaders were quick to highlight
that for Doing Good to be sustainable it must be
inextricably tied to Doing Well and must feature a
genuine intention to do business in a way that delivers
commercial success and ensures a positive contribution
to society.
Suresh Rai, Vice President HR, SEA &
Australasia, Unilever, shares, “Our
journey is anchored in our DNA - in the
1890s, William Hesketh Lever, founder
of Lever Brothers, wrote down his ideas
for Sunlight Soap. It was ‘to make
cleanliness common-place; to lessen
work for women; to foster health and
contribute to personal attractiveness,
that life may be more enjoyable and
rewarding for the people who use our
products.’ So, a sense of purpose and
mission has always been part of
Unilever’s culture. Paul Polman [Former
CEO] took what was understated and
brought it all together, gave it visibility
and energy, and used it as a rallying cry
to help employees be a Force for Good.”
EXAMPLE

Universal Truths #2
PUBLIC
COMMITMENT
TARGETS AND
MEASUREMENTS• Have you translated your
Doing Well and Doing
Good strategy into clear
targets and measures?
• Do key business units
and functions have these
measures in their
objectives?
• Is there a clear process
for sharing progress
against these and
measuring performance?
Leading Companies set public, measurable targets,
share those within the organisation and externally, and
hold people accountable to deliver on them. In order to
publicly commit to targets companies need to make a
significant investment in understanding what is
important to stakeholders, and where they can use their
organisational strengths for greatest impact. Companies
emphasise that measuring what they do and reporting
back on that has been key.
Companies also shared that having compelling stories of
the actions being taken and the results achieves helps
build commitment. They stressed that tangible and
measurable targets have been critical in communicating
the impact they have.
Amita Chaudhury, Director, Sustainable
Business, South East Asia and
Australasia, Unilever shared that to
establish organisation-wide targets and
goals at Unilever they began with an
extensive materiality exercise which led
to the launch of the Unilever
Sustainable Living Plan. There was one
agenda with 69 targets owned by
different functions and roles. After the
first year each country was asked to
share progress against those
commitments and targets. Suresh Rai
adds that then they started to see a
difference, adding “When you measure
the commitments, and when it is the
global COO asking the questions,
people see that you are serious! “
EXAMPLE

RELENTLESS
FOCUS
Universal Truths #3
• Are your senior leaders
committed to the Doing
Well and Doing Good
agenda?
• If they are not, then you are
not ready to start. Is there a
commitment to invest
financial and physical
resources to ensure there is
the capacity and capability
to drive the agenda?
• Is there a process for
sharing progress against
these and measuring
performance?
At Singtel, Group CHRO Aileen Tan
shares that they have resourced
properly, and the sustainability agenda
is given the right level of visibility (the
sustainability role reports directly to the
CHRO), at both the C-suite Management
Committee level and with the Singtel
Board. She concludes that to do less
than that, to make this a special project
or a part-time job, would be a trade-off.
Leading Companies describe a relentless focus on Doing
Well and Doing Good which translates into focus at all
levels. And it starts with committed leadership. When
companies were asked to identify the greatest barrier to
their focus on Doing Well and Doing Good, Leading
Companies identified External Factors, such as a lack of
clarity in the regulatory environment and customer
readiness for change. However, at Other Companies the
most significant barrier was Organisational Leadership, or
more specifically the lack of it.
At Leading Companies and Other Companies there was
consensus that the CEO and the Board are most critical in
focusing the organisation on Doing Well and Doing Good.
One organisation shared that building commitment at the
next level was critical too. They focused on educating and
immersing these leaders, sharing that the next level of
leaders was tasked with speaking internally and externally
about their sustainable business agenda.
In addition to the senior leader commitment and attention,
Leading Companies commit time and resources to ensure
that the Doing Well and Doing Good agenda is set up for
success. This includes ensuring the right levels of staffing
and the right level of visibility.
EXAMPLE

LEARNING
FROM OTHERS
Universal Truths #4
The DBS Foundation, established in 2014, is
committed to building a more inclusive Asia by
championing social entrepreneurship and
encouraging the development of businesses for
good; businesses with a dual bottom-line, aligning
profit and social impact. Claire Wong, Head of DBS
Foundation, shares that while the DBS Foundation
nurtures promising social enterprises through
grant funding, capacity building and mentorship it
also learns from them. They see firsthand the
perseverance, willingness to experiment and
agility mindset that help social enterprises
succeed and are learning from that.
The DBS-SMU (Singapore Management University)
Sustainability Initiative was launched in February
2019 to support academics, businesses and
students passionate about tackling real world
sustainability challenges. The initiative also
includes a DBS Business for Good internship
program where university students and DBS
Foundation supported social entrepreneurs are
matched to allow students to learn what it means
to be a business for good, and consider how they
too can do business differently.
• Listen. Put in place
mechanisms that allow you to
listen to others – particularly
those who are least like you.
• Test assumptions. What
assumptions do you have
about Doing Well and Doing
Good – do customers,
employees, activists see it the
same way?
• Ask for help. Whether you are
at the start of your journey or
well progressed actively look
for others from whom you can
learn and ask for their help and
advice.
Our Leading Companies share stories of deliberately
collaborating internally and externally, building a
“Learning Ecosystem” including – customers, regulators,
suppliers, start-ups, employees, activists and, particularly,
the rising voice of millennials. They concur that they have
progressed because they have learned from others.
Until recently leadership and organisation success has
been built on the model of the outspoken and expert
leader, however research from Harvard Business School,
shows that successful leaders share one quality in
common: reflectiveness, or the ability to possess an
accurate view of themselves – both the good and the bad.
Humility allows leaders and organisations to keep
listening and, more importantly, learning from others
whose ideas can help push their business forward.
EXAMPLE

CONCLUSION
• LEAN INTO the stronger sense of social
purpose and the ecosystem of players
• USE INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY to
address sustainability challenges
• FOCUS ON THE BOTTOM-LINE provides
the opportunity to reinvent business
models to progress the DWDG agenda
EMBARK ON YOUR DWDG JOURNEY
Asia has been comparatively slow to initiate its DWDG agenda. To
date very few Asia-origin companies have been named on the
global listings that recognize company achievements in building
sustainable businesses.
However, many Asia-origin organisations face significant social and
environmental challenges in their current business models. It is to
be acknowledged that their ability to address and action on these
issues will provide a powerful blueprint for other companies.
Given this, the stage is open for organisations to take the lead in
advancing the agenda for the region.
For more insights, download the full report here:
https://www.hcli.org/research/doing-well-and-doing-
good-asia
If you’re interested in our upcoming sustainability
masterclass, reach out to us at info@hcli.org

Insights for Business Leaders | Doing Well and Doing Good in Asia

Insights for Business Leaders | Doing Well and Doing Good in Asia

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