WHEN he voiced the view, back in 1973, that “companies must start justifying their worth to society with greater emphasis placed on environmental and social impact rather than straight economics”, it could be said that Dick Dusseldorp was ahead of his time.

Today, the Lendlease founder’s words are truly ones to live by as we enter a new age of stakeholder capitalism where consumers and the society at large expect businesses to deliver more than sheer economic value. In other words, businesses should address the needs of stakeholders, not just shareholders, in the pursuit of long-term value creation.

There is cause for concern: Many global executives surveyed by management consultancy McKinsey are under pressure to cut their investment into long-term growth drivers in favour of meeting short-term earnings targets.