Good Business: The Talk, Fight, Win Way to Change the World

by Bill Novelli, Jim Clifton (Foreword by), Jo Ann Jenkins (Foreword by)

Overview

An inspiring and practical look inside the mind of Bill Novelli, one of the founders of social marketing, Good Business challenges all of us to change the world for the better and is a blueprint for tackling today's critical issues.

From his humble beginnings selling soap in a sales training program to his rapid rise in the fast-paced New York advertising scene, Bill Novelli was well on his way to becoming a leader in the hypercompetitive business world. But it wasn't long before he became disillusioned with the drive for profits at any cost. He knew that his marketing skills made those companies successful, but what good did that success do for the world? That question sent him on a career path that involved taking the marketing and communication tactics long used by big businesses and applying them to social change. He found that this strategy was not only good for the world but also good for business.

In Good Business, Novelli begins with his early career success in Mad Men–era marketing, which left him feeling unfulfilled. He describes the process of changing career trajectory: how he helped reposition the Peace Corps; built Porter Novelli, a global PR agency for social impact; fought the Tobacco Wars; and became CEO of AARP, the largest nonprofit in America. Drawing practical lessons and principles from play-by-play stories of his experiences in large and small organizations, Novelli deploys his characteristic wit to stress the importance of building and maintaining connections with people—and engaging them in the cause.

Good Business, which is part behind-the-scenes look at crafting social and health policy, part inspirational guide, proves that you can do well (creating economic and financial success for yourself and your company or organization) by doing good (helping to solve the world's and society's major problems). Throughout the book, Novelli shows that you can make a positive social difference regardless of what business you are in or where you are in your career. Readers will come away with the message that anyone who wants to have a positive impact on the world can do it right now from where they are—or can be inspired by Novelli's story to make the leap to somewhere they can.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781421440422
Publisher:	Johns Hopkins University Press
Publication date:	02/02/2021
Pages:	392
Sales rank:	1,078,906
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.30(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Bill Novelli is a Distinguished Professor of the Practice in Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business, where he started and oversees the Business for Impact center, and is the cofounder of Porter Novelli, one of the first social marketing companies, and now a global PR agency. Formerly, he was the CEO of AARP, the president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, and the COO of CARE USA. He is the coauthor of Fifty Plus: Give Meaning and Purpose to the Best Time of Your Life, Managing the Older Worker: How to Prepare for the New Organizational Order, and editor of A Roadmap for Success: Transforming Advanced Illness Care in America.

Table of Contents

Foreword, by Jim Clifton
Foreword, by Jo Ann Jenkins
Introduction
Chapter 1. Finding My Purpose: From Selling Soap to Selling Causes
Chapter 2. Purposeful Work: Building a Purpose-Based Company and Applying Social Impact around the World
Chapter 3. Fighting the Tobacco Wars, Then and Now
Chapter 4. AARP and the Brawl to Get Prescription Drugs into Medicare
Chapter 5. The Best Offense Is a Good Defense: Battling over the Future of Social Security
Chapter 6. The Opportunities and Challenges of Our Rapidly Aging Society
Chapter 7. Blending Profit and Purpose: Building an Academic Center for Today's and Tomorrow's Leaders
Chapter 8. Your Purpose: People and Organizations Making a Difference
Chapter 9. What Do We Owe Our Grandchildren?
Acknowledgments
Index

What People are Saying About This

Bruce D. Broussard

Good Business perfectly captures a lifetime of Bill's learnings and successful strategies for not only running a financially successful business, but going well beyond that by creating value for all stakeholders. A critical starting point in Bill's philosophy is the need for leaders and organizations to be guided by purpose and values. This is especially important considering the next generation of the workforce places high on its list the desire to do business with, and work for, companies with a clear purpose and strong value system. Bill has compiled a compelling and practical guide that's a must-read for anyone interested in improving leadership and business performance by way of serving and creating value for others.

Nina Godles

Bill Novelli makes a strong case for the notion that businesses can be a powerful force for good. Professor Novelli's leadership and insights are invaluable at a time when students are, more than ever, demanding that companies deliver on both paycheck and mission. He convincingly argues that there is no reason to compromise on either.

Michelle Nunn

Reducing worldwide poverty increasingly demands new forms of partnership, with business, civil society, and government all playing key roles. This book, with Bill Novelli as a superb guide, shows how important it is to work together in new ways to solve the tough problems before us.

from the foreword by Jo Ann Jenkins

Bill Novelli discovered his purpose early in his career: to make significant contributions to solving the world's major social problems. And the pursuit of this purpose has guided his career, and his life, ever since. In this book, Bill shares his extraordinary journey to show us how we can use our own gifts, passions, and values in our work to find meaning and fulfillment while attacking the world's major social problems; in other words, how to do well by doing good.

Jeff French

Bill Novelli's long and distinguished career is fertile ground for many fascinating and insightful anecdotes and examples that illustrate the case he sets out for 'doing well by doing good.' This book is a crossover between an autobiography and a humanistic manifesto for modern management and marketing processes. Good Business makes a significant contribution to our understanding of marketing's development and its contribution to shifts toward a more purpose-driven approach to business.

Peter Cappelli

Figuring out how to do well by doing good—and really do it—remains a stumbling block for most companies. Good Business shows how Bill Novelli managed to do that in his extraordinary career.

Marc H. Morial

No one matches Bill Novelli's experience, insight, and know-how when it comes to the intersection of business, government, and civil society sectors. Any advice or wisdom he offers on the unique challenges of the twenty-first century will capture the ears of our nation's most influential leaders as they grapple with the aftermath of COVID-19, demographic shifts, globalization, and technological transformation. Where some see barriers and obstacles, Bill Novelli orchestrates solutions.

Victor J. Dzau

A mission to fulfill a purpose and do good should be every organization's mantra and not reserved only for nonprofits, charities, and advocacy groups. Bill Novelli makes the important point that the potential to improve the human condition can and should be found in any business or career path. Public-private partnerships and multi-sectoral collaboration are essential to achieve equitable health and well-being in a future shaped by rapid advances in science and technology and threats such as pandemics and climate change.

Jason Grumet

In Good Business, Bill Novelli makes a compelling argument that bridging partisan divides and rebuilding confidence in our democracy starts with pragmatic, purpose-driven leadership.

Philip Kotler

Bill Novelli would be my first choice in selecting a person to give a graduation address. I know that members of the graduating class will leave inspired and with purpose. Bill's amazing career and ideas have impressed all of us social marketers who care about making the world and life better for more people. I warn you, read Bill's new book and you will be changed and repurposed.

from the foreword by Jim Clifton

Through great real-life stories, this book makes a profound statement—that all organizations in America and the world need to take their mission to a higher level to meet the new will of the world's workplace. You are the one he is talking to. If you don't lead the charge to change the soul of organizations, no one else will.

From the Publisher

Through great real-life stories, this book makes a profound statement—that all organizations in America and the world need to take their mission to a higher level to meet the new will of the world's workplace. You are the one he is talking to. If you don't lead the charge to change the soul of organizations, no one else will.
—from the foreword by Jim Clifton, Chairman/CEO, Gallup

Bill Novelli's long and distinguished career is fertile ground for many fascinating and insightful anecdotes and examples that illustrate the case he sets out for 'doing well by doing good.' This book is a crossover between an autobiography and a humanistic manifesto for modern management and marketing processes. Good Business makes a significant contribution to our understanding of marketing's development and its contribution to shifts toward a more purpose-driven approach to business.
—Jeff French, CEO, Strategic Social Marketing

A fountainhead of insight about ways to transform our world, penned by a person who—from CARE and AARP to the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and beyond—has done just that.
—Kathleen Hall Jamieson, Director, Annenberg Public Policy Center, University of Pennsylvania

No one matches Bill Novelli's experience, insight, and know-how when it comes to the intersection of business, government, and civil society sectors. Any advice or wisdom he offers on the unique challenges of the twenty-first century will capture the ears of our nation's most influential leaders as they grapple with the aftermath of COVID-19, demographic shifts, globalization, and technological transformation. Where some see barriers and obstacles, Bill Novelli orchestrates solutions.
—Marc H. Morial, President/CEO, National Urban League

Bill Novelli discovered his purpose early in his career: to make significant contributions to solving the world's major social problems. And the pursuit of this purpose has guided his career, and his life, ever since. In this book, Bill shares his extraordinary journey to show us how we can use our own gifts, passions, and values in our work to find meaning and fulfillment while attacking the world's major social problems; in other words, how to do well by doing good.
—from the foreword by Jo Ann Jenkins, CEO, AARP

Figuring out how to do well by doing good—and really do it—remains a stumbling block for most companies. Good Business shows how Bill Novelli managed to do that in his extraordinary career.
—Peter Cappelli, The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, author of The New Deal at Work: Managing the Market-Driven Workforce

There came a time in the tobacco wars when the industry, the government, and the public health community needed to find a way out of the bitter confrontation. That is what Bill Novelli's book is about: fighting smartly and talking thoughtfully to find the best way forward.
—Steve Parrish, Senior Vice President, Corporate Affairs (retired), Altria Group, Inc. (formerly Philip Morris Companies, Inc.)

Bill Novelli would be my first choice in selecting a person to give a graduation address. I know that members of the graduating class will leave inspired and with purpose. Bill's amazing career and ideas have impressed all of us social marketers who care about making the world and life better for more people. I warn you, read Bill's new book and you will be changed and repurposed.
—Philip Kotler, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University

Good Business perfectly captures a lifetime of Bill's learnings and successful strategies for not only running a financially successful business, but going well beyond that by creating value for all stakeholders. A critical starting point in Bill's philosophy is the need for leaders and organizations to be guided by purpose and values. This is especially important considering the next generation of the workforce places high on its list the desire to do business with, and work for, companies with a clear purpose and strong value system. Bill has compiled a compelling and practical guide that's a must-read for anyone interested in improving leadership and business performance by way of serving and creating value for others.
—Bruce D. Broussard, President / CEO, Humana, Inc.

A mission to fulfill a purpose and do good should be every organization's mantra and not reserved only for nonprofits, charities, and advocacy groups. Bill Novelli makes the important point that the potential to improve the human condition can and should be found in any business or career path. Public-private partnerships and multi-sectoral collaboration are essential to achieve equitable health and well-being in a future shaped by rapid advances in science and technology and threats such as pandemics and climate change.
—Victor J. Dzau, MD, President, National Academy of Medicine

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David A. Walker

Good Business will inspire executives at all levels to extend their social justice conscience and to become more effective managers. Bill Novelli's success in many positions proves that the same management principles apply in the for-profit and nonprofit sectors of a competitive economy.

Steve Parrish

There came a time in the tobacco wars when the industry, the government, and the public health community needed to find a way out of the bitter confrontation. That is what Bill Novelli's book is about: fighting smartly and talking thoughtfully to find the best way forward.

Kathleen Hall Jamieson

A fountainhead of insight about ways to transform our world, penned by a person who—from CARE and AARP to the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and beyond—has done just that.

Editorial Reviews

Good Business—a blend of autobiography and plea for corporations to have and heed a conscience—evokes the Novellian drive, clarity, and respect.
—The Pennsylvania Gazette

From the Publisher

Good Business shows how to make a career in communications both a way of making a living, and of making the world a better place.

O'Dwyer's

Good Business—a blend of autobiography and plea for corporations to have and heed a conscience—evokes the Novellian drive, clarity, and respect.

The Pennsylvania Gazette