Social Venture Network

How do you build the kind of company you've always wanted to work in-one that serves people and the planet while being financially successful, too? What do you do when you believe that business should serve the common good, but everyday business pressures-meeting payroll, battling competition, keeping customers and investors happy-are at a fever pitch? Leading a small business when you measure success more broadly than with a single financial bottom line is no easy task. True to Yourself is a practical guide to doing just that. It provides tools you can use to combine profit with purpose, margin with mission, value with values.

Growing a successful business is about meeting the needs of customers--and, by extension, the needs of the entire community. Turn your business into a good citizen and you can help ensure its success and contribute to making your community a great place to live and work. Growing Local Value shows how to build a values-driven business that is deeply embedded in local life. Drawing on real-world examples from Greyston Bakery, Wild Planet Toys, Powell's Books, and many other companies, Laury Hammel and Gun Denhart show how you can leverage every aspect of your business--from product creation to employee recruitment, vendor selection, and raising capital--to benefit both the community and the bottom line. Growing Local Value explores in depth how your business can contribute to its community--and the benefits it will receive when it does.