2024 Volume 21 Pages 15-34
The contemporary era has been called the “age of VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity)”. Sustainability is a collective concern, and companies are expected to create value through clear purpose.
This paper surveys Dentsu’s history and its founder Hoshio Mitsunaga’s entrepreneurship, focusing on purpose management. Founded in 1901, Dentsu served as both a news agency and advertising firm, facing instability and social disregard. With insights from Mitsunaga’s philosophy, company creed, and credo, Dentsu’s core mission is delivering accurate information globally via communication and advertising.
Purpose management is pivotal in modern corporate governance, requiring companies to reevaluate their significance and embed purpose within the societal context. To genuinely practice purpose management, companies must earn stakeholders’ support by aligning historical background, management principles and the sentiments of employees and other stakeholders.
