In my last article, I explained why I quit my job to focus on what I think is a better way to work in the world. To focus on having a positive impact on the world, not on profits… or growth.. or power. Very idealistic, and my recent experience shows that this way of working in the world can be very liberating. However, in order to jump in wholeheartedly, I needed “data”. In order to better define “better”, I will share with you the “data” that gave me the confidence to jump!
The fact that nearly 9 of every 10 Fortune 500 companies in 1955 are gone, merged, or contracted demonstrates that there’s been a lot of market disruption, churning, and Schumpeterian creative destruction over the last six decades. Mark J. Perry @Mark_J_Perry October 20, 2017
My experience as a change leader in a large multinational corporation taught me many things. Being the person tasked with improving productivity, I quickly learned the games played in order to give the impression of improved productivity without really changing anything. At the same time, I started to learn about hedge funds which is easily the worst possible way to ruin productivity…. and oddly enough… is considered to be a form of productivity by investors. In both cases, no REAL value is created, but power is retained or gained and inequality is expanded. Something didn’t seem right to me, and I began to search for a better way.
So the research began. I started by google searches on buying local, supporting local businesses, and giving back to the community. One study by The New Economics Foundation based in London, compared the impact from money spent directly with local producers vs. supermarkets. They found that twice the money spent at the local producers stayed in the local economy. According to author and researcher David Boyle, “That means those purchases are twice as efficient in terms of keeping the local economy alive,” Aha! Finally, I found something that talked about REAL productivity! Today, there are hundreds of studies that give me the courage to keep on keepin’ on. Just look here: Key Studies why Local Matters.
With the current form of capitalism, we are told that money is the primairy purpose of business. Stock value, P/E ratios, growth, blah blah blah… All of this is why businesses exist. While without money we cannot order ingredients, pay employees, or invest in the community, I fundamentally disagree with money as the primairy purpose of business. It is very hard to run a business without thinking about money every day. But this does not mean that money has to be the primairy purpose! Money is the result of a productive activity, just like the quality of the product, the waste created, the energy consumed, the physical effort expended, even the creative energy invested. Why do we see money as the only positive result, while the others are seen as costs to reduce? Because doing more with less is the way of the world today. Well I have an idea on how we can do it all, AND participate in a better way.
The power of “and” is, for me, a very powerful way of thinking. Technically called “systems thinking”, it is a way to achieve multiple objectives at once. It is the idea that if we focus on the system, we can improve many aspects at the same time with less (or more concentrated) effort. That means that focusing just on profit is sub optimal. In order to improve the system, you must look at the interactions and work towards improving these interactions that make the whole system better. Why are we off on this tangent? Because the hardest part of working in a better way is changing our way of seeing the world (system) and acting in a better way for the greater good of the world (system). Sometimes we make decisions systemically and do not see benefit directly, or we see those around us who work in the traditional money first way and get quick results. We are required to have patience, and confidence in our approach.
“I have never in my life been faced with so many ethical dilemmas which force me to constantly question my way of thinking.”
For someone who really loves change, and the idea that we can always do better, I have never in my life been faced with so many ethical dilemmas which force me to constantly question my way of thinking. In the beer industry, it is commonplace to buy customers. Our competitors pay money to bars and restaurants in order to have their products in exclusivity. Distributors do the same. So, if the distributor doesn’t sell your product, you cant be in the establishment. Legal? No! But there are ways to bend the rules. Since I choose to act with integrity, I cannot play this game. Even if it means that I cannot have my beer in a bar that is a 5 minute drive from my brewery. This is an ethical dilemma that presents itself daily. You might say, “Well thats how it is done, so if you want to play… pay!” Wrong! We are here to make the world a better place, which means that we must change the system. There are many many restauranteurs out there that pride themselves on independence and the use of local products. These restauranteurs deserve all of our attention! So, we say NO to those who want money in order to limit consumer choice, and we say YES to those who understand that money spent locally is 2 times more productive for the local economy.
And now for my definition of what is “better”. Better is a company that looks at its impact on the world systemically . A company that makes decisions for the greater good of the world, and has the patience and integrity to see them through. What is the result? Time will tell. Personally, I am convinced that the result will be a wonderful product, happy customers, happy employees, happy neighbors, lower and lower environmental impact, and the opportunity to do even better tomorrow!