Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz: 'Profitability Is A Shallow Goal'

Howard Schultz's business concerns extend far beyond his bottom line, the Starbucks CEO says.

In a Thursday interview on CNBC's Mad Money with Jim Cramer, Schultz attributed his company's success to a business model that balances profitability and social consciousness. Although Starbucks's stock value has grown more than 12,300 percent since it first went public 21 years ago, Shultz said that putting employees and communities first has always been central to the coffee giant's success.

"Profitability is a shallow goal if it doesn't have a real purpose and the purpose has to be share the profits with others," he said. "We are equally proud of what we are doing in the community, what we are doing with our people and how the company has built itself around a purpose that is not just about making money. "

Starbucks has demonstrated such a commitment to the communities they serve in recent years. In 2012, the company sponsored more than 600,000 hours of community service completed by employees and customers. The brand seeks to expand its service commitment to 1 million hours by 2015.

The world's largest coffee-shop operator has also been at the forefront of many employee-related issues. All Starbucks workers are offered healthcare, for example, and employees that serve more than 20 hours a week are offered equity in the company in the form of stock options.

Schultz is not the only CEO currently promoting the concept of conscious capitalism. Panera CEO Ron Shaich recently wrote that investors benefit from companies that are working to solve societal problems. He pointed to his own company's attempt to fight hunger with pay-what-you-can cafes as one such example.

Whole Foods co-CEO John Mackey also recently wrote a book outlining his belief that capitalism can both improve the economy as well as serve as a social good.