Here is the biggest milestone in the evolution of companies in a long time...

The Chief Executives of the world’s largest public companies will shortly receive a letter from the largest investment company in the world - BlackRock. You'll find that letter here.

And instead of demanding greater returns (profits) on their investments BlackRock is demanding something quite different - the need to 'give back' to society.

The demand from Laurence D. Fink, founder and chief executive of the investment firm BlackRock, is they need to contribute to society as well as make profits if they want to receive the support of BlackRock.

“Society is demanding that companies, both public and private, serve a social purpose. To prosper over time, every company must not only deliver financial performance, but also show how it makes a positive contribution to society.”

Now that is a major milestone in the evolution of modern organisations and a clear indication of what the future of work looks like.

And will those organisations listen? Well considering that BlackRock has an "outsize influence on whether directors are voted on and off boards" we suspect so.

BlackRock’s Message: Contribute to Society, or Risk Losing Our Support - The New York Times

We will all now increasingly see a stronger focus on the purpose of the organisations we work for, and how they not only make good money (because they need to) but also how they play an active role in creating societies we all want to live in.

How well placed is your organisation to have conversations around what giving back means in your context?