Socially responsible business leaders face issues that other business leaders never have to grapple with-problems that are never anticipated or addressed in MBA textbooks. In fact, the whole experience of running a vales-oriented business can be incredibly isolating and draining.

Birkenstock founder Margot Fraser and former Vermont Bread Company CEO Lisa Lorimer have been there, and they’re here to help. In Dealing With the Tough Stuff: Practical Wisdom for Running a Values-Driven Business, they offer the kinds of personal insights and seasoned advice that isn't taught in business school. Reading it is like being mentored by some of the nation's top socially conscious entrepreneurs.

Each chapter tackles a particular challenge. How open and honest can you really be with your employees and still run an efficient business? At what point do you seek outside expertise? What do you do when things go terribly wrong? When is it time to leave? The authors share their experiences-not just what worked, but sometimes what spectacularly didn't.

Some of the stories shared in Dealing With the Tough Stuff are harrowing: a worker getting killed by factory equipment, a supplier embezzling funds, a false accusation of intellectual property theft. Others are simply day-to-day conundrums: meeting payroll when you're always in debt, deciding how to expand in a responsible way, balancing business needs with your commitment to the triple bottom line. At the end of each chapter, Lorimer and Fraser offer "survival suggestions" that can guide readers through similar situations.

Dealing With the Tough Stuff is a book that socially responsible business leaders and entrepreneurs can look to for affirmation, hope, and tools.

About the Authors:
Margot Fraser is the founder, former CEO, President, and majority shareholder of Birkenstock USA.

Lisa Lorimer is the former CEO, President, and majority owner of Vermont Bread Company, at one point the largest woman-owned business in Vermont.

About the Social Venture Network Series:

The Social Venture Network Series is an ongoing partnership between Berrett-Koehler Publishers and the Social Venture Network (SVN). This series of guides walk readers through the practical steps of starting and growing a socially responsible business. It represents the merger of the Berrett-Koehler mission of "Creating a World That Works for All" and Social Venture Network's commitment to building a just and sustainable world through business.

Berrett-Koehler Publishers

Berrett-Koehler Publishers

Berrett-Koehler Publishers is a mission-based, independent publishing company located in Oakland, CA. Berrett-Koehler’s (BK) mission is - Connecting People and Ideas to Create a World that Works for All. BK publishes books in the areas of sustainable business, corporate social responsbility, leadership, social justice, politics, economics, and personal development. BK is both a B-Corp and a Benefit Corporation.

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