2019 is the year of the irruption of the subject raison d'être. With an acceleration in media coverage that never ends. Here's a look back at the rise of the subject in a few key dates.
November: An Ifop study shows that employees expect consistency between corporate communication and their actions when it comes to exploiting the new opportunities offered by the PACTE law. 77% of those surveyed believe that, " beyond its economic activity, their company plays a role within society ", and 59% would be ready to contribute to reflection if their company were to embark on a process of consultation with a view to defining its "raison d'être". On the other hand, 69% consider raison d'être to be primarily "a communications operation". Only 31% see it as "above all a reflection of sincere convictions".
October: In an article published in Les Echos, Bernard Sananès points out the paradoxical relationship between the French and companies: while only 34% of French people say they trust companies, 61% believe they have the power to change the world... far more than the President of the Republic. He highlights three pillars for making raison d'être a real force for positive corporate transformation: governance, which must necessarily be cross-functional and embodied; internal appropriation, which must involve consultation and corporate culture; and finally, the question of proof, which must counter the suspicion of a "publicity stunt" by proposing concrete, quantified indicators to monitor the impact of raison d'être over time.
September: The raison d'être must be " at the heart of 21st century capitalism " and the State must be " exemplary ". That's what Bruno Le Maire announced at an initial assessment of the Pacte law presented on Thursday, September 12, before announcing that companies in which the State is a shareholder will have to adopt a raison d'être by 2020. The public investment bank, Bpifrance, has been called on to do the same with companies in which it holds stakes.
August : The Business Roundtable, which brings together the most powerful and influential American CEOs (Amazon, Apple, General Motors, Pepsi, JP Morgan...) presents its Statement on the Purpose of a Corporation. In it, they pledge to generate value for all stakeholders and to integrate social and environmental objectives into their business model.
July: At the Pact for Impact summit, organized by the French government, 50 international delegations launch a manifesto for a social and inclusive economy. June : Other major French CAC40 companies adopt a raison d'être, including Crédit Agricole (" Acting every day in the interests of our customers and society ") and Carrefour (" Leading the food transition for all ").
May : "10% to change everything": a coalition of companies gathers at the Ministry of Ecological and Solidarity Transition to defend the idea that if 10% of companies pursue objectives of social and environmental progress through the performance of their economic activity, the tipping point for real systemic change will be reached. Atos is the first French company to include its raison d'être (" Contribute to shaping the information space ") in its articles of association, becoming a "mission-driven company" under the terms of article L 210-10 of the French Commercial Code.
April: Parliament passes the PACTE law, article 59 of which transforms articles 1833 and 1835 of the Civil Code, introducing into the latter the expression raison d'être. The PACTE law is officially published on May 22, 2019.
March: Even before the enactment of the PACTE law, companies begin the process of defining their raison d'être. This is the case of Veolia, which unveils it the following month at its Annual General Meeting of Shareholders: " Ressourcer le monde" ("Resourcing the world").
February: At a press day, Antoine Frérot, CEO of Veolia, also subscribes to this new mantra, declaring: "A company is only successful if it is useful. And a useful company is one that, faced with the sheer scale of humanity's challenges, does not give up and believes that it is still possible to meet them".
January: Larry Fink, head of the BlackRock investment fund, publishes his annual letter to CEOs in which he stresses the intrinsic link between profitand purpose, defining purpose as "a company' s fundamental reason for being".
