A Sweet Story—Conscious Capitalism Lifting Africans Out of Poverty

The prime minister of the island-nation of Sao Tome and Principe has been reported to have said, “Don’t send us any more aid, send us five more Claudio Corallos’.  The prime minister’s country, lying off the west coast of Africa, was used to receiving financial aid from generous countries in a position to do so.  His country, like many African communities, is quite poor.

Who, you ask, is Claudio Corallo? Claudio produces some of the world’s finest chocolate on the island of Principe. He is a conscious capitalist. Claudio emulates what I wrote about in The Power of Professionalism.  Said another way, he’s a professional. Never mind that he wears open-toed sandals and a Panama hat 99% of the time while traipsing up-and-down the steep jungle terrain of his plantation.

Claudio has aspired to bring to the world the purest form of cocoa production.  Having recently tasted his chocolate at a retail outlet in Berkeley, California, I’d say he has come pretty close.

His story is inspiring.  He pays his workers significantly more than the going (and dismal) wage-rate on Principe. To say he is an employer of choice is an understatement.

The prime minister came to see how capitalism (when done the right way) would lift people out of poverty better than aid ever could.  Aid was fine, but really only proved to be a stop-gap measure. The notion that capitalism should be considered a serious  solution to poverty has gained a lot of steam—especially with the inspiring successes associated with micro-lending. Interestingly, U2’s front man Bono (see National Review article, Capitalisms Triumph, Michael Tanner, 2014 ) came to the same conclusion as the prime minister.

Wanna lift people out of poverty?  It’s hard to beat conscious capitalism. Thanks Claudio for such a sweet example.

Is The US Stock Market Rigged?

Author Michael Lewis says it is. 60 Minute’s March 30th expose on the subject may be of interest to you. Lewis’s new book Flash Boys was released on Monday.

What’s the thumb nail version of the story?  Clever traders were manipulating the market by gaining a speed advantage over everyone else—including unsuspecting industry veterans. In the industry it’s called ‘front running’.  The advantage (pennies per trade) times gazillions of trades resulted in some serious money—measured in the billions.  The impact to the average investor was small but still ‘didn’t feel right’ to Brad Katsuyama the hero of the story.

Brad, a former employee of the Royal Bank of Canada, ran the New York trading desk for RBC in Manhattan when he discovered the problem.  Long story short, he eventually started his own exchange to counteract ‘front running’.  Big players in the financial services world are taking notice—with some having invested in the new exchange.

Katsuyama notes, “We’re selling trust.  We’re selling transparency. To think that trust is actually a differentiator in a service business is kind of a crazy thought, right?’  Arguably a number guy, Katsuyama learned first-hand how the absence of trust is like a cancer to an industry that depends on it.

When asked why he left his cushy (and very lucrative) job at RBC to start a risky new exchange, Katsuyama noted, ‘it felt like a sense of obligation” to fix a troubling problem that was negatively impacting millions of unsuspecting people.

Katsuyama is all about doing his part in restoring trust to the financial markets.  I’m really grateful he did. To many he’s a hero.  To me, he’s the consummate professional.  —the ultimate compliment in my book.

 

 

 

Keeping Focus When Things Go Sideways—-Mind-Set Three In Action

Mind-set #3 basically says ‘things get better when I do’.  My extended team holds this mind-set in spades. It allows us to really focus on the work—even when things go side-ways.  Allow me to illustrate.

Many of you know that we’ve been developing artwork in conjunction with the mind-sets that, once framed, clients can hang in their conference room, offices and the like. Without getting into the weeds, the customized images are developed in Vermont, printed in California, and framed in the mid-west.   (Yes, we know there are more efficient production methods than the one we’re currently using.  We do it this way to ensure quality control.)

Ron, my printing guy, calls me on Monday evening indicating that our latest print run looked odd—the artwork had a prominent red tinge throughout it. I went to see for myself and, sure enough, something was clearly wrong.

After about thirty minutes of diagnosing the problem, we eliminated every possible mechanical source associated with the printing mechanism.  From that, I concluded the problem was likely the files we were given.  I told Ron I’d contact the Vermont ‘file’ guys the next morning.  Ron, who was already perturbed by the situation, reluctantly agreed.

As I was departing, Ron says, ‘wait a minute’.  He continued, ‘you know maybe changing the paper option would make a difference’.  Ron went into the software, tinkered with some settings (none of which I understood)…and, viola, ultimately produced some stellar prints.  Problem solved.

Ron is a perfectionist.  His focus the entire time was on things that he might have done improperly that contributed to the problem.  Never once did he do the easy thing—namely point an accusing finger to the Vermont guys who produced the files.  In other words, he believed that he must look inward first to see what his contribution to the problem might be.  Ron epitomizes mind-set three.

Turns out, Ron had done nothing wrong.  Rather, a quirk in the programming software proved to be the culprit.  Yet, Ron’s approach saved all of us a lot of time and unnecessary aggravation.  Boy, isn’t it great  working with people like that?

Character: An Important Lesson From Peyton Manning

Yesterday’s Super Bowl was, arguably, anti-climatic—given all the pre-game hype.  Yet there’s a wonderful post-script to the game—the post-game reaction of Peyton Manning.

No doubt Manning was crushed (emotionally) after he and his team failed to match the skill and intensity of the Seahawks on football’s biggest stage.  Yet, he took the high road.

Manning has a well- deserved reputation of being a class act—win or lose. Yesterday was no exception.

Said another way, Manning is a real ‘pro’—defined primarily by how he conducts himself, not because of his skill on the football field. He’s a professional worth emulating.

Here’s an article that gives an insightful first-hand account of Peyton’s post-game activities.

How many mind-sets do you see in action?

Your Organization—Is Your Experience There Helping You Become A Better Person?

As part of a recent consulting engagement, I had the privilege to interview a number of employees from one of the world’s best managed companies.  The company—both what they did and how they did it—was really impressive.  They pushed their people—but not in a manipulative or punitive way.  Employees had near-complete autonomy.  The level of responsibility within the employee ranks was off-the-charts.

The intent of the interviews was to find out what the ‘employee experience’ was like.  Virtually every employee said they ‘couldn’t go back’ to the types of jobs they once held before coming to their current employer.  Despite the high expectations, morale was especially high.  The way the company managed was not only admirable; it was a model to emulate.

For context, the company wasn’t solving world hunger.  In fact, the company’s agriculturally-based products were arguably commodity-like.  Nonetheless, employees found their work especially meaningful.  Almost to a person (and regardless of where they served in the organization) each employee’s level of engagement was high—really high.

At the close of our session one of the more seasoned (yet reserved) employees quietly approached me on his way out of the conference room.  He looked me straight in the eye, and said, “you know, I’m a better person for having worked here”.  This gentleman had privately put a bow on the gift (think: feedback) that had been revealed through our ‘public’ employee meeting.  With that, he went back to work.  I was struck, not only by what he said, but by how he said it.

I thought to myself, ‘isn’t that the ultimate for employees…to feel that their work experience has made (or is making) them a better person?’  What a powerful indicator in assessing (among other things) organizational health.  And if the company needed further validation that it was on the right track this gentleman gave it to them in spades.

Fast forward to last week…I received an email from a client; a tell-it-like-it-is, seasoned company president who has been integrating professional values into his organization for some time. (BTW: he was unaware of the experience I just shared.)  After sharing some company updates and some personal niceties, he closed his note with, “…since reading your book and trying to live what it says has made me a much better person as well as an [much better] employer. Thank you.”

This president knows all-too-well that living up to professional ideals isn’t always a bed of roses. Yet he does what needs doing.  Because of it he grows and becomes a better person as a result.

Personally, this is especially rewarding.  Organizationally, it helps validate our approach.  We’re on the right track. Onward!

A Professional Joins the Competition—and Feeling Good About It.

A colleague friend of mine just recently jumped ships–having left one major accounting firm for another. He was very loyal to his former employer, having made significant sacrifices over many years. During his time with his former firm, he clearly had the firm’s best interests at heart—just as a professional would. Think: mind-set two.

Yet, he never made partner—the holy grail for most in these types of firms.

He’s one now! As integral to the offer, his new firm offered him a partnership. He followed his own self-interests, he took the job. Good for him.

As we pointed out in The Power of Professionalism, being a professional doesn’t mean being a door-mat. It doesn’t mean adopting blind, mindless, loyalty.  And it doesn’t mean abandoning your own self-interests.

Keeping balance between your own interests and your organization’s is sometimes tricky—it requires judgment and discipline.  It’s been said that “professionals create more value than they extract”. My colleague friend did just that while at his former firm. I hope he feels good about his decision. As professional, he should.

Honoring An Amazing Men’s Room Attendant

I love hearing of stories about people in non-tradition jobs or situations that really put an  exclamation point on what it means to be a professional.  Lorenzo Robinson, a men’s room attendant at the posh 21 restaurant in Manhattan, is one such person.

To most, his work wasn’t glamorous.  In fact, some might consider his work demeaning. Not Lorenzo.  He glorified his work. Those he served loved him.

Lorenzo’s story reinforces that it isn’t what we do but how we do it that determines whether we are a professional or not. There should be no doubt, Lorenzo was a professional.

Lorenzo Robinson passed away prematurely in late October.  Even though we never met, I’m honored to share his inspiring story.  Here’s a nice article from the New York Times about him.

   

The Ultimate Paradox— When A Leader Voluntarily Steps Down

President George Washington started a precedent, Pope Benedict XVI broke one—both stepped down.  Both did so on their own volition—neither was pushed (think: fired).

Relinquishing one’s responsibilities at the height of one’s power goes against the grain of human nature.   In fact, many may believe that stepping down is a sign of weakness in a leader. That’s not always the case.

I chose to believe that Washington and Pope Benedict did so for the greater good of the entities they led—Washington for the United States; Pope Benedict for the Catholic Church.

In Washington’s case he believed that over time the country would be best served by having a number of people serve as the country’s leader—rather than one person serve indefinitely (as a King would in a monarchy).  Washington was revered; he could have served far beyond his initial two terms. Yet he chose not to.

In Pope Benedict’s case the Catholic Church currently faces many substantive issues.  To effectively deal with those issues, the church’s leader must be both focused and energetic.  It’s no secret that Pope Benedict’s health has deteriorated—largely due to his elevated age (85) —at the time of his resignation.  Today Emeritus Pope Benedict turns 86 with some reporting that he is suffering repeated falls and is nearly blind in one eye. His energy is reportedly waning.  Is it any wonder he chose to step down?

Did these two leaders shirk their responsibilities in stepping down? Not from my perspective! Rather, they did what they felt was in the best interests of the entity they had been entrusted with.  Both were willing to withstand the inevitable second-guessing and criticism that came with their decision.  Isn’t that what we’d expect from someone who realized that “it wasn’t all about them”—consistent with mind-set two?