Martin Luther King Jr. Day
In honor of MLK Day, I want to share Corporate Hartz’s dream for the world. It is based on his words that “the arc of history bends towards justice.” Today, the word justice refers to all kinds of goodness and fairness – to people, planet, and profit.
In essence, I would like to put myself out of business!
Going Out Of Business
Consider the evolution of modern health care – hospitals and treatments were created to fix the sick or injured. Now, there is a large portion of preventative work throughout the system, and new offerings proliferate to serve that need, ex. vaccines, wellness programs, dietitians, and a zillion ways to exercise, meditate, and stretch. In theory, the hospital is working to put itself out of business.
My Wishes
When I talk with clients, volunteers, students, professionals, I share this [pipe] dream with them:
I wish that one day nobody will need Corporate Hartz to evangelize the power of Corporate Social Responsibility, Sustainability, and good Governance and create collaborative programs that repair the world, and generate shareholder return.
I wish for no more LEED-certified buildings – they will just be ‘buildings’ built and renovated with minimal environmental impact.
I wish for no more Diversity and Inclusion officers – we will embrace and leverage the power of different backgrounds, preferences, perspectives, experiences, and ideas of others.
I wish for no more regulations (OK, maybe some), but in general, enterprises will heed their greater purpose and do the right thing throughout their supply chain.
I wish for no more prisons that simply ‘punish and house’ people who break laws – they will be part of the education, rehabilitation, and training solution.
I wish for no more waste initiatives – ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ and ‘cradle to cradle’ design and engineering will someday just happen – person by person – without thinking about it (like brushing our teeth).
I wish for no more ‘affordable’ housing – there will be enough (there already is) margin for the residential industry to be profitable in all types of living places.
I wish for no more ‘golden parachutes’ – companies will re-purpose that savings to invest in worker salaries and/or training.
I wish for no more volunteer programs – people will simply step-up to help.
A Simple Example of Small Businesses Raising Awareness
Around the world, small businesses have taken to the “Take a Coat. Leave a Coat” idea. It’s simple even for a small cafe or store to do. Put up or wheel in a coat rack, ask customers to leave one or take one. Baby steps like this do make a difference – for people in need, and for the people giving something to them.
If we live, work, and recreate in ways that bend the arc of history towards justice, it’ll make a sea change.