…and definition
Companies shall act in the interests of people, and the biosphere.
As we’ve mentioned in recent episodes, from the standpoint of the biosphere, humanity’s existence is felt primarily through industrialisation. Resource extraction, pollution, as well as much monoculture in agriculture have taken their toll on both the biosphere and many of the people it supports. Indeed, while populations have been increasingly “farmed” over the decades, the characterisation by technology companies of humanity as end-users to be addicted and data to be mined is an obvious extension of this outlook. And these exploitations are often the preserve not of individual people but of companies, with their diffuse networks of responsibility and “the corporate veil.”
But things could be different. In this episode we re-imagine the role of companies in our world as inverted: from the current slavishness to the global monetary system and its obfuscating pipework of corporate ownership – to something that privileges human value in the context of our life-support system, the biosphere.
Talking points:
- Picking apart the principle: the real is almost the reverse of the ideal
- The corporate veil as central to the current version of capitalism
- The ethical drift in corporate behaviour over the last several decades
- Free-flowing capital before and after WW2: neoliberalism
- This is not an insurmountable problem: we can reinvent the system
- Crystallising public opinion
- Tomorrow’s Company – since the 1980’s
- A case in point: demutualisation of AA and RAC, submission to global monetary system
- Design- and Systems thinking vs the pressures of neo-liberalism:
- Other “tomorrow’s companies” – The Body Shop – hinges on structures of ownership
- Japanese management in manufacturing: raising the global standard through competitive pressure
- W Edwards Deming
- Consumer power, shareholder power and greenwashing
- Paying the true cost is possible – if you can afford it
- Flooding brought people together, and they never felt happier
- What is it to be human? Community is a big part of it
- But also: diversity of experience within the community – or company
- Aligning the word Company with what it means
Links:
Alternative search engine to Google: Ecosia. They plant trees:
https://www.ecosia.org
W. Edwards Deming: “Deming’s teachings and philosophy are clearly illustrated by examining the results they produced after they were adopted by Japanese industry:”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._Edwards_Deming
Limited Liability – brief history:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limited_liability#History
The Corporate Veil (wikipedia)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piercing_the_corporate_veil
Global Monetary System: “Leading financial journalist Martin Wolf has reported that all financial crises since 1971 have been preceded by large capital inflows into affected regions:”Context of Breton-Woods conference and ascent of the (neo-liberal) Washington Consensus:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_monetary_system
Tomorrow’s Company – https://www.tomorrowscompany.com
Still interesting and forward looking, although their prioritising away from society and toward the embrace of disruptive innovation diverges from our ideal of systems thinking:
“[…]In 2016, in the light of all the organisation’s learning and experience in working with companies and investors, Tomorrow’s Company report, UK Business: What’s Wrong? What’s Next? restated [their definition of a Tomorrow’s Company as three principles.These are:
- A purpose beyond profit and a set of values that are lived through the behaviours of all employees to create a self-reinforcing culture;
- Collaborative and reciprocal relationships with key stakeholders – a strong focus on customer satisfaction, employee engagement and, where possible, collaboration with suppliers, alongside working with society; and
- A long-term approach that embraces risk – investing long term and embracing disruptive innovation.
Quakers Businesses – “Quakers didn’t wring every last penny out of a business so they were appealing companies to be taken over.” [ie – with the dawn of neoliberalism in the 1980’s]
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-17112572
Quaker Companies. Predictably enough, Quaker Oats was never a Quaker company.”This is a list of notable businesses, organizations or charities founded by Quakers. Many of these are no longer managed or influenced by Quakers. At the end of the article are businesses that have never had any connection to Quakers [3, to be precise – the first being Quaker Oats], although some people may believe that they did or still do.”Couldn’t find a list of Quaker company principles – rather, it seems they held each other accountable in the context of their social and religious meetings.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Quaker_businesses,_organizations_and_charities
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