Sandra, in her own words.

Companies once held accountable only for the direct, contractually specified or regulated consequences of their actions now find themselves responsible for alleviating hunger and disease — for issues as disparate as environmental sustainability, community economic development and child labour in sub-Saharan Africa. An increasingly interconnected world demands strong corporate leadership to strengthen governance, harness economic potential, alleviate global poverty and improve human conditions.

So what should the role of business be? As engines of growth and sustainable development, corporations have a responsibility to address poverty and underdevelopment, and to help the disadvantaged communities where they conduct their business, manufacture their products and employ workers. Here are some guidelines.

1. 01

   Innovate

   Create decent jobs and develop affordable products and services — especially ones that meet basic needs such as water, energy, nutrition, healthcare, housing and education — while leveraging your core business expertise and realising commercial success.

2. 02

   Invest beyond philanthropy

   Too often philanthropy is used as a form of public relations: writing the cheque to promote a company's image through a high-profile sponsorship. To answer competing pressure from investors, governments and activists, a company should approach its corporate giving strategically, to improve the business climate and infrastructure where it operates.

3. 03

   Leverage more than money

   Devote management capability and relationships as well as cash to solving development problems — in-kind donation of employee expertise for training, for instance. Use cause marketing too: engaging customers in both the awareness of these development needs and the funding of them.

4. 04

   Use your natural strengths

   Create products and markets that stimulate development in the emerging economies where future business growth opportunities are greatest. You can and should provide access to economic opportunity through jobs, property ownership, credit, new technologies and training.

Responsible conduct must increasingly become the guiding principle of overall business strategy. For private enterprise, international development is increasingly regarded as the quid pro quo for globalisation and market expansion. Companies that heed the call for alignment of their social and philanthropic missions with their core business strategies will succeed far into the future. Those that don't won't survive.