fromhbr.org
1 day agoStartup companies
What Leads Companies to Betray Their Own Principles
Companies can lose mission and purpose under short-term financial pressure, but founders and leaders can take actions to stay aligned over time.
According to the 2025 Bentley University-Gallup poll published in May of this year, 51% of U.S. adults now believe companies should take a public stance on current social and political issues, a significant jump from just 38% in 2024. This is an interesting development at a time when companies face heightened scrutiny around sustainability and social commitments. However, a SmartNews survey released earlier this year shows that 90% of respondents question corporate messaging at least some of the time and 36% think company statements feel inauthentic.
I think this is on the topic of every CXO conversation I'm a part of. And I think the thought process has to be looking for high-impact areas that may not be necessarily the most glamorous or high-profile functional areas, but are ripe for automation and use of this technology to create efficiencies as well as innovation. And over time, AI agents will be also in customer-facing and growth-oriented domains.