For a company to be a successful, sustaining entity, it needs to generate the right return from its activities.  The “return” that is generated can take many forms.  It is most easily thought of in monetary terms – the profit received when revenues exceed costs.  For a for-profit company that is of course important.  For a non-profit the budget must still be managed but a monetary return is secondary to the non-profit mission.  And for all companies, the monetary returns they generate aren’t theirs alone; they are to be used to benefit the shareholders, employees, customers and communities that they serve.

“Exceptional businesses sustain bottom-line results, which the invest to create meaningful, positive impact for their stakeholders.” – Punit Rennin

Whether for profit or non-profit, the best companies seek to achieve both a business impact and a personal impact.  This is what drives long term success; a sustainable business model that can generate the monetary returns necessary to provide for the benefits of the individuals.  This leads to the individuals supporting the business in return.

“A visionary company doesn’t simply balance between idealism and profitability; it seeks to be highly idealistic and highly profitable.”– Jim Collins

They secret to achieving a business impact and a personal impact is to focus on delivering basic needs and grand experiences.

Deliver Basic Needs. Customers need a product or process that you can deliver.  Employees need compensation that fairly remunerates them for their efforts. Each of these is about generating the right return from the activities.  A customer invests their money to receive a return of goods or services. An employee invests their time and talents to receive a return of compensation.  These are the most basic of needs to be satisfied with your company’s activities.

“Success and profitability are outcomes of focusing on customers and employees, not objectives.”– Jack Ma

Deliver Grand Experiences. But needs alone do not sustain a business or a person over the long term. It is the experience that the activities create that are most remembered by both customers and employees. What does your product or service help the customer achieve?  What outcome bigger than the paycheck do your employees participate in?  The answer to both of these can be unique for each customer or employee but the answer is that which brings them joy.

“A great merchant delivers both joy and profit. Then profit gets reinvested in more joy.” –  Andy Dunn