Ensure business profitability before corporate citizenship- Colin O’Neal
However, Attorney, Businessman, and Developer Colin O’Neal has said that securing the business, ensuring that it is profitable should be the first order of business, before taking on corporate citizenship.
Mr O’Neal was speaking on the weekly programme Umoja on Thursday April 27, 2017 with host Cromwell Smith aka Eju Enka on ZBVI 780 AM, on the topic: The social, economic and political role and responsibility of the local business community in the BVI, Part 2.
At the time he was responding to a question from Smith on whether the business community was playing their role in the stewardship of the whole country.
Mr O’Neal in his response said he was not assuming responsibility for the entire VI business community, whereby some perform exemplary public services and others perhaps not so much.
People go into business for a reason
“From where I sit, I think you first have to start from the premise that people go into business for a particular reason,” he said. “There are those who would say that their sole purpose of being in business or running a business is to compete and win, and there is no further responsibility than that. Some businesses I would say, particularly in businesses where several people are involved, shareholders in the company, those persons are investors in that company, and their primary objective is to realise on returns on labour and capital. On the other end, I suppose there those who are few and far between I would guess that they see business as a tool for social engineering, where I can use my business to promote the social good in the community.”
Most businesses think of profits/success
The businessman remarked; however, that he believes most of the businesses pull somewhere in between.
“…in where we definitely have as a primary objective, the goal that we provided for ourselves and the people who have invested in our companies. I think if you don’t do that if you don’t build a strong company, all of your other goals, social engineering goals will become a moon point. It's only strong companies that can have that significant impact in the community,” he argued.
Securing the ship first
Mr O’Neal concluded that it is important for all businesses not to lose sight of the first objective in order that they may carry out a second, “which is to fulfill a responsibility to the wider community, which is what you call corporate citizenship, contributing to particularly the social and to some extent the economic and political welfare of the community at large.”
He also mentioned the need for the Government and the business community to work in a more collaborative relationship for the success of all parties.
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16 Responses to “Ensure business profitability before corporate citizenship- Colin O’Neal”
Moreover, though businesses responsibility is to owners/shareholders, they are part of the community and must demonstrate some corporate social responsibility (CSR). They cannot just be taking from the community; they must give back to the community. They cannot just be in the community; they must be part of the community.
would not be able to represent us properly never had to do without,