Management / Business Philosophy / Social Responsibility
Management / Business Philosophy / Social ResponsibilityTap Water Philosophy
Make good products abundant and cheap, like tap water.
Popularity
Usefulness
Aliases
Tap-water philosophy / abundance-and-service principle
Domains
Management, business philosophy, social responsibility, strategy
Definition
- The Tap Water Philosophy holds that a business should make quality goods as abundant and affordable as tap water — its ultimate purpose being not profit, but fulfilling its obligations to society and meeting the public's hopes.
Core Idea
- Make good products abundant and cheap, like tap water.
- The true purpose of business is service to society, not profit alone.
- Profit is a measure of how well that social duty is fulfilled.
How It Works
- Mass-producing quality goods at low cost makes them widely accessible.
- This serves society by raising living standards broadly.
- Profit follows as a byproduct and indicator of fulfilling that mission.
Usage Example
- A manufacturer drives down cost and scales production so that a once-premium product becomes affordable to ordinary households — treating wide access as the mission and profit as the result.
Famous Example
- Example: Konosuke Matsushita (founder of Panasonic/Matsushita Electric), whose "tap water philosophy" framed the company's mission as making goods abundant and cheap to enrich society.
- Why it fits this rule: It is Matsushita's own stated business philosophy.
Use Cases / Situations Where It Applies
- Mission and purpose definition.
- Social responsibility and access.
- Scale and cost strategy.
When Not to Use or Common Misuse
- Do not pursue volume and low price to the point of unsustainable losses.
- Do not treat "service to society" as a slogan disconnected from real value.
- Do not ignore that businesses must remain financially viable to serve at all.
Rule Invention / Origin
- Invented by: Konosuke Matsushita, founder of Matsushita Electric (Panasonic).
- Year of invention: Early–mid 20th century.
- Country / context of origin: Japan.
Evidence / Research Basis
- Reflects a documented business philosophy; consistent with social-responsibility and purpose-driven management thinking.
