Fortune in association with Shared Value Initiative and FSG has recently launched its annual ‘Change the World’ list for the year 2016. The list highlights 50 industry leaders that are tackling major social problems with their innovative business models. GlaxoSmithKline, the British pharmaceutical giant, has earned the top spot for its move against patenting drugs in the lowest-income regions of the world.
Fortune has prioritized companies with annual revenue of $1 billion or more and ranked them based on three factors:
- Measurable Social Impact
- Business Results
- Degree of Innovation
The 50 companies chosen hail from 22 countries with two of them being from India. The Indian pharmaceutical giant Cipla is ranked at 46 for its low-cost, life-saving drugs while the consumer goods conglomerate Godrej stands at 48 owing to its “Good and Green” product range and more importantly for its innovative and inexpensive mosquito repellents. The list also includes Swiss food products major Nestle (5), India-born Ajay Banga-led Mastercard (7), US retail giant Walmart (15), China’s ride-sharing company Didi Chuxing (30), India-born Indra Nooyi-led PepsiCo (38), Dutch beverages giant Heineken (43) and American motor company Tesla (50).
As more and more companies adopt shared value strategies, there is a growing recognition of the benefits they entail for the growth of businesses themselves. The list cites the example of General Electric that has generated $232 billion in revenue from its green products and Unilever, which has saved $280 million just by reducing waste generation. This litany of examples is evidence to the effectiveness of businesses in addressing society’s biggest problems. The ‘Change the World’ list is a commendable task to recognize the shared value efforts of businesses and is a crucial tool to motivate companies in general to do good by aligning social goals with economic ones.
Browse through Fortune Change the World list here.
