The holiday season is a time to remember that many of today's business executives don't define the success of their business simply by the bottom line. They also measure their achievements by their impact in the community.

Frank Roby is a good case study of the relationship between business success and community involvement.

As CEO of Holmes Murphy Texas, one of Texas' largest business risk advisory firms, he actively serves his community while averaging a 20 percent compound growth rate. Roby attributes that growth to the corporate culture created by an attitude of service to customers and to the community.

Frank serves as a board member for the World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth and as a member of the Dallas Committee for Foreign Relations. In addition, he works closely with Vision Africa, an African mission, and with two programs dedicated to neighborhood revitalization in Mexico.

Locally, he serves on the executive committee for the Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce and as chairman of the executive committee for the North Texas Food Bank.

When asked to share his perspective on the importance of community involvement, Frank emphasizes expanded perspectives on life, business growth and personal growth.

On life...
"We grow faster when we learn from everyone," he says. "I've learned life lessons from prominent CEOs and from people humbled by life's experiences. But being less fortunate isn't an economic term at all, it's an attitude. The less fortunate are those whose perspectives are so narrow they miss the insights gained from a broader set of experiences. I've seen rich people who are sad and poor people who are happy."

On business...
"Businesses prosper when they learn the importance of stewardship--serving the needs of customers, employees and owners. Community service gives you a broader perspective on balancing these competing stewardships and allows you to see things not visible before. You can learn 'just in time' inventory spending time with someone living at a city dump in a foreign country. You begin to learn about marketing watching the way a store comes to the people in rural Mexico. Businesses grow by making the pie bigger, growing markets and making room for others, not just by taking more of what's already there."

On personal growth...
"We each have one life to live and we do not have the luxury to wait to do it. We need to improve the quality of life for people now, and business is the perfect platform. How individuals and businesses spend time and money is the key measurement of who we have become."

Frank Lloyd, Associate Dean, SMU Cox Executive Education, sees that same community involvement trend in executive development programs. "Increasingly, companies are looking to affiliate with community organizations such as the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for the 'action learning' components of their executive development programs. And they recognize individual core values and beliefs as key components of executive leadership."