The 20th-century view of shareholder primacy is flawed. By focusing first on creating wins for all stakeholders—customers, employees, suppliers, and society—companies build a sustainable, beloved enterprise that paradoxically delivers superior returns to shareholders in the long run.

MatZero, a heated mat company with a humanitarian mission, was advised to focus on premium markets like outdoor adventurers. These consumers pay a high price for quality gear, creating a sustainable economic model. The profits and brand cachet from this market can then be used to fund the company's core social mission.

Wild Rye, a certified B Corp, finds that taking strong public stances on issues like reproductive rights amplifies their brand and strengthens customer loyalty. The founder believes this creates a financial upside that is far greater than the direct costs of donations and certifications, especially for a growing brand.

To secure funding, founders with a social mission must demonstrate how responsible, purpose-driven practices lead to better financial results, growth, and competitiveness, making a clear business case to investors.

The company instills a culture where profitability is the necessary engine for its mission, including B Corp initiatives and 1% for the Planet. This framing moves profit from a purely financial goal to an operational requirement for achieving their charitable and employee-focused objectives.

Canva's core mission is a "two-step plan": 1) build a valuable company and 2) do good. Crucially, this isn't a sequential plan for after an exit. They believe step one fuels step two (and vice versa), integrating purpose directly into the business model from day one.

The current model of capitalism prioritizes profit above all. A more sustainable and just version would reorder the priorities: first, advance a greater cause; second, protect the people and places you operate in; and third, generate profit as the means to continue the first two indefinitely.

"Stakeholder capitalism" often fails because it frames progress as a zero-sum compromise and an appendage to a broken system. A better model is "mission primacy," which redesigns the organization's core purpose to be the creation of specific value, from which all other benefits flow.

In an era where purpose is often marketed as a profit driver, Richard Dickson presents a pragmatic view. For Gap, purpose (like sustainability) is a core value and responsibility, but the ability to execute on that purpose at scale is directly enabled by the financial health of the company.