For practising business leaders and professionals, the growing social responsibility of companies, which is becoming an increasingly common topic of discussion, is probably a more interesting issue than the details of business theory. It should not be overlooked that companies are an integral part of the wider society and that there is a growing expectation that they should stand up for certain social issues and increase their social engagement alongside their business activities. Nowadays, programmes and events organised by multinational corporations and startups targeting broader social groups are very popular, going far beyond their core activities. In fact, there are a number of so-called social enterprises in the economy that are specifically aimed at solving social problems, with the express goal of overcoming a particular social challenge while achieving profitable operation. A good example of this is the story of the Hungarian company Biofilter Kft., which has built a successful business model over the past 25 years based on the collection and processing of used cooking oil from households. Another example is Munch Kft., a startup company founded in 2020 that operates a platform aimed at stopping food waste.

However, not all economists and schools of economics view corporate social responsibility as a positive thing. A notable example of this is the view of Hungarian-born Milton Friedman, a Nobel Prize-winning liberal economist, who wrote in an essay in 1970 that the primary purpose of business is business ("the business of business is business") (Friedman, 1970). In everyday language, this means that a business best fulfils its fundamental purpose and contributes most to the well-being of society when it focuses solely and exclusively on business, efficient corporate operations and profit maximisation. Building on this logic, proponents of the concept of shareholder value emphasise that a company should only engage in activities that create the greatest value for its owners. In other words, a company is most useful to society when it sticks to its core business and only does what it knows how to do. On the other side are the advocates of the stakeholder value concept, who take the view that the most important task of companies is to promote the general increase of social welfare.

It can be said that a well-formulated corporate mission statement can fundamentally distinguish one company from another. It is therefore worth taking the time to develop it, because ideally it should define the company's activities and not the other way around, where the mission is determined on the basis of the activities. In practice, many companies, especially smaller ones, make the mistake of having their management or owner formulate a grandiose mission statement because that is what the "rule book" says they should do, but the words it contains do not really provide direction for either employees or partners. The importance of formulating a mission statement is well illustrated by the much-quoted management story of John F. Kennedy's visit to Cape Canaveral on 11 September 1962. The space programme announced by the president was in full swing, with preparations for the moon landing underway, and the president was greeted by a crowd of NASA leaders, local politicians and civilian staff who had come to see the work being done at the space centre. According to the story, after the president got out of the presidential limousine, he greeted those who had come to honour him, then approached a woman standing a few steps away who had just finished sweeping the road. President Kennedy asked her, "What are you doing?" The lady proudly replied, "We're sending a man to the moon." We cannot verify whether this story actually happened, but it certainly illustrates how the mission of a company, an institution or even one of the most significant projects in human history should be formulated in such a way that all employees can understand and communicate it.

Based on this, it is worth considering whether the company you lead or the company you work for has formulated its mission in line with the above example. Of course, you may smile and dismiss this as unimportant, since it is only a matter of one or two well- or poorly-formulated sentences. However, the importance of the mission should not be underestimated, as evidenced by the fact that the full-time and part-time students we teach, the future leaders and intellectuals, openly say that they want to work for companies that understand their mission and agree with it, given the growing challenges of environmental pollution and sustainability.

Of course, the formulation of the mission and the text of the mission statement itself are only a starting point, an indication that can also be seen as a litmus test, i.e. it reveals how the organisation treats innovation. Does it even consider giving it a role? We emphasise this because it matters whether a company proactively initiates new products and services on the market, for example by continuously testing and then introducing them, or whether it just waits for customers to tell it what they need and then tries to deliver it in the best possible quality, on time and at the right price. Many small businesses – and sometimes large ones too – operate on this belief and are surprised when they are outcompeted and do not get the order.

In order to achieve the goals set out in their mission, companies must successfully carry out a number of activities, among which marketing and innovation connect them directly with consumers. Innovation can be seen as the satisfaction of consumer needs through new and higher-quality approaches. This definition serves as the starting point in this book, but we also provide further definitions of the concept.

Returning to the basics of business economics, it should also be emphasised that marketing and innovation are approaches and perspectives that express the market orientation of a business enterprise, and that specific activities are required for them to be implemented. However, our own research and company surveys conducted by other researchers show that not all companies engage in active marketing and innovation activities, if at all. Consequently, we can also say that a higher level of corporate operation is achieved when a company is able to continuously scan consumer needs, channel new needs and expectations, and develop some kind of new solution to them, for example, by bringing new product variants to the market in terms of quality, design, and functionality. Of course, these development activities require significant investment. In addition to the costs, another challenge for management and owners is whether they will be able to find and retain customer- and innovation-oriented employees.

This is not to say that there is no future for companies based on traditional production, contract work and supplier activities. There certainly is! However, it does matter how the various basic functions of a company, namely production, resource management, sales and research and development, operate. Is there a continuous pursuit of excellence or superiority? In the second part of this chapter, we explore how excellence and success are related and how the latter concept can be interpreted.

Hundreds of specialist books and scientific articles are published worldwide on the process of innovation, its mechanisms of action, management methods and practical implementation, not to mention the fact that everyday news reports constantly harp on about the paramount importance of innovation. In many cases, however, the use of the word innovation is not backed up by adequate knowledge; few people are aware of the differences between the various types of innovation, and its frequent use inflates its significance. This is hardly surprising, as it is a rather complex and ambiguous concept, and if we do not want to get lost in the various definitions, it seems much more expedient to learn about its mechanisms of action through different corporate cases and stories, and how it can be used to significantly increase the competitive position and effectiveness of businesses.