"In business, we forget that we are human. Many strong leaders think they should not be friends with their colleagues. I like to be friends with my colleagues," says Nokia's CEO Risto Siilasmaa. "You get through a crisis because you care so much."
"The way I used to think was: he who cares wins," echoes Paul Matthews of Standard Life. At the time, the company was severely underfunded and needed to change its business model, doing away with the high commissions it was paying. What got them through?
"Longevity matters. I was inspired by the people around me. When people have worked with you for a long time, they know you and trust you—and when you're in a crisis, you've got that!" Says Matthews. The exact opposite of the gig economy.
These are just two brief stories I've found in Maragaret Heffernan's Uncharted. They both talk to the need to shift culture, along with the business model. Going into a crisis with a high level of trust makes a company incredibly resilient. You can draw energy from social capital. History sets standards, it can make people feel they belong.
Contrast this to the gig economy, where super efficient systems have eliminated direct contact between people. Even as they exact a monetary, along with the emotional toll. The fact that some people benefit from the efficiencies, is not a license to kill human solidarity and trust.
Italy’s anti-trust authority has fined Amazon 1.13 billion euros, saying the company is exploiting its dominant position against independent sellers on its website in violation of European Union competition rules. That alone won't do. It's also important for independent sellers to up their game and evolve their business.
This past week I tried sending a basket of Christmas goodies to my mother. I first tried the lovely box I sent her last year, thanks to the many readers contributions to my tip jar here. Bonus points for buying local to her and products she uses. Plus, the box has part of her name on it. But, this year I did not have enough PayPal funds, and their site does not accept credit cards. Bummer.
So I picked an international company. A B-Corp. Fratelli Carli produces a delicious evo oil panettone. The company ships both in the US (see link above) and in Italy. Though their product selection is somewhat limited, they accept credit cards. However, in the system I was unable to indicate I should get the receipt, while my mother should get the box at her address in Italy. Crossing fingers she gets it. I have no update on the order.
Even if I were to order from Amazon Italy, I would have to create a separate account. So while the company might have figured out the technology, the bureaucratic walls are still up because it's a different country. The person and company that figures out how to be on the side of people and families has a special place in my heart.
What if it's a country? Estonia is way ahead of the pack. As you'll see below, when it comes to digital, they are truly modern. What about companies and people? The question requires a cultural shift.
Two examples in this letter: Airbnb and United. The first provides a case study in cryptic "offer" language that lacks clarity. The second went from broken guitars and noses to working on treating customers right. Early in the pandemic, every single airline encouraged pilots to claim early retirement. Hence the pilot pipeline issue.
Companies rely heavily on forgetfulness. This is a fundamental misunderstanding of the opportunity.
Because the opportunity at hand is
to help society move forward
constructively.
I could say much more. But I believe the best way to learn and make progress is to do it together. This is why I created two membership options. It's an experiment, so it may not work. You always learn something when you step forward and propose a path. This is called lateral learning below.
Rainer Maria Rilke has the perfect ending for this note. In the Ninth Duine Elegy he says, "Oh, not because happiness exists, that too-hasty profit snatched from approaching loss. [...] But because truly being here is so much, because everything here apparently needs us, this fleeting world, which in some strange way keeps calling to us. Us, the most fleeting of all."
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"In science one tries to tell people, in such a way as to be understood by everyone, something that no one ever knew before. But in poetry, it’s the exact opposite." – Paul Dirac
As always, I welcome your comments, tips, membership sign ups, and am grateful we crossed paths.
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1
THE LAW OF KARMA
What you give is what you get. "Karma is a very just law which, like the law of gravity, treats everyone the same. The law of karma puts a person at the centre of responsibility for everything he or she does and everything that is done to him or her. And like the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad sums up so beautifully, it all starts with our desires and ends with our actions, which come back to us, sometimes instantly but often with a time lag." Safal Niveshak, The 43rd Lesson.
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LATERAL LEARNING
"One humbling take-away from any tour of our cognitive filters is how warped our perspectives all must be. Today it’s common to talk about the information environment as “post-truth” or “post-fact.” These phrases imply a past golden age of information purity that never existed. We have always filtered and twisted. We have always lived in our own information silos. In the past, those silos were more geographical in nature. News was more local. Now, the silos are more identity-based – which is different, but not altogether new." Chris Kutarna, From Tunnel Vision to Lateral Vision ( Neue Geo.)
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FAST SHIPPING
Is not an accident. "Amazon is one of the best ways to get your goods to customers. The key thing is that this capacity is not due to last minute ship charters or airplane leases, but rather investments and initiatives Amazon undertook years ago." The Amazon Empire Strikes Back ( Stratechery.)
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MODERN TIMES
Where there's a will, there's a way. "Starting a business in the United States is hard and complicated and full of all kinds of expenses. Trust me, Spectacles has taught me that lesson at least. As an e-Resident or citizen of Estonia, however, it’s incredibly simple and inexpensive." One of the many digital conveniences. Philip Brain, What I Learned in Becoming an e-Resident of Estonia.
+ "Modern times in Estonia. A robot which had become stuck in the snow, saw me coming, and asked with a synthesised voice whether I could help out. So I did, and both of us carried on with our day." llimarLepikvonWirén.
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THE SALARY TRAP
"Once you have that salary on your mental scoreboard, anything that goes blow that feels like a loss. We are hardwired to see loss much worse than any potential gain. If a 10x learning opportunity comes along with only 50% of the salary, your brain sees it as setting money on fire." Never mind that value is greater than money. George Mack.
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CULTURE SHIFT
United CEO Scott Kirby is never shy about giving his opinions. In this recent podcast, he talks about omicron, "closing the borders is not an effective tool, given this virus has a longer, asymptomatic incubation period." United has been a strong advocate of vaccination. Then the conversation veers towards how operational performance is not being measured right in the industry—United uses customer metrics—and the future of regionals. The strategy is to treat customers right, and create a pipeline for pilots, and the rest is tactics, he says. The Cranky Flier Interview: United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby.
+ If you recall, United was here just a short while ago. "It started simply. United Flight 3411 was sold out (not overbooked) and all passengers were seated. At the last moment, four United personnel needed to be ferried from Chicago to Louisville and the ground staff dutifully asked for volunteers to cede their seats." United CEO Oscar Muñoz had an incomprehensible handling of Dr. Dao’s brutal removal. Jean-Louis Gassée, United: Broken Culture.
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BETTER BUSINESS PRACTICE
The last two years have brought fundamental structural changes to society. Any company thinking these changes don't apply to them is either naive or in denial. Inertia takes you only so far.
+ Rarely, we think about the conversation we have with ourselves—how we negotiate meaning, clarity of purpose, and even our take on personal power. Distance in Conversation.
++ See if you're a good fit.
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