Service Above Self

February 28, 2012   /   by Collaboration   /   in Ethics, Leadership
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By Michael Gunther

“Service above self” is an easy concept to understand, but harder to implement on a consistent basis. Recently, after hosting a social event for the local Rotary club to which my partner Steve belongs, I realized that there are many individuals here who are truly dedicated to not just improving our community but improving communities around the globe. Many of the people I met that night have been volunteering for years, assisting those less fortunate and enhancing our local community.

This got me thinking about the growing number of socially responsible businesses—increasing at an exceedingly fast pace. Organizations like Tom’s Shoes and Life is Good are using their businesses to not only provide jobs and make profits, but also focusing on making a positive social impact on our world.

Is this rise of socially responsible businesses a symptom of something larger within our social fabric? I believe that once again small businesses are leading the way improving our communities by understanding that Gordon Gecko’s “greed is good” motto of the 80′s hasn’t really benefited society as a whole.

But before I continue, I do want to distinguish between small businesses and major corporations. I see major corporations as the billion dollar+ multinational organizations where small businesses are those with 100 or less employees (according to the Small Business Administration this group makes up 98.2% of all businesses in the United States).

Major corporations continue to get bigger and more profitable, the financial institutions continue to gain financial strength, and yet the basic needs of our communities (education, arts, recreation, support for small businesses, etc.) are not being met. At some point these organizations must realize the value of investing back into communities—and not just by sponsoring charity events, but by fostering serious changes needed in our educational systems and cities.

If not, society will rebel against those institutions (i.e. the occupy movement and the tea party). Remember, history shows a pattern of uprisings when the wealthy sector becomes isolated from the real issues going on within society. I find it interesting as well that more people are not standing up and saying, “Hey, this system is out of whack!”

All you have to do is look at the PACs supporting the current election—with no limits to what an individual can spend to support a candidate—really? The wealthiest class and major corporations then are truly controlling what’s happening in Washington, which in turn impacts all of us in our local communities.

As small business owners, do we really believe that a society with so many fundamental cracks in it is going to sustain us in the long term? It will get harder and harder to find quality employees, build profitable businesses, and support our communities.

The American dream is defined by many people in as many different ways, but isn’t it fundamentally about securing enough wealth to support you, your family, and your community as well? I think of Dale Carnegie, one of the earliest multi-millionaires who dedicated his life to giving back to the world by funding libraries and schools. He understood the importance of creating a strong social fabric for our society.

Bottom Line

Why my rant today? I hear politicians saying that the people who want to tax the wealthy are just envious, and yet these politicians will be the first to provide tax incentives for corporations, furthering our national debt. At the same time, they state that the poor have safety nets, yet both the elderly and the poor have fared worst in this recession as the wealthy continue to gain momentum. At some point, you can accumulate only so much, and if we don’t take care of the fabric of our society, we will make it harder for both individuals and small businesses to survive.

This is another article in a series on Michael’s entrepreneurial story and how being raised in a large family has influenced his career. To read the previous articles in this series, visit his blog at www.Collaboration-llc.com.

Michael Gunther is Founder and President of Collaboration LLC, a team of highly skilled business professionals who are dedicated to assisting proactive business owners to build profitable, sustainable businesses through results-oriented education and consulting services. Learn more at www.Collaboration-llc.com.

Values and Ethics: Are You Walking Your Talk?

April 9, 2010   /   by Collaboration   /   in Ethics
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By Michael Gunther

Over the past few years, it has become common for businesses to promote their core values and their ethical practices as part of their marketing strategies. They may be promoted directly to employees in mission statements, in training manuals, or in employee newsletters; they may also be promoted to clients in websites, in industry publications, or in printed marketing materials.

But when the rubber hits the road and it comes time to make business decisions and set company direction, are these values and ethics reviewed and utilized? Is staff expected to uphold these values and ethics in their code of conduct even if the leaders of the company neglect them?

Sadly, we can just turn to the news to see many examples of companies that are neglecting their own code of conduct. Most recently, Toyota has stepped away from their core values. For years they had built a culture around quality, safety, and service; yet when it came time to decide how to handle their issue of faulty gas pedals they seemingly didn’t review their own core values. They chose to be secretive, withhold information, and react slowly. Now they have damaged their reputation – perhaps irreparably.

By contrast, Johnson & Johnson has a strong set of core values that they live and operate by – that their first responsibility is to provide the highest quality products to their clients. When the Tylenol poisonings occurred back in the early 1980s, Johnson & Johnson took one look at their core values and reacted within them. With their number one concern being consumer safety, they pulled all of their products off the shelves across the world (not just in the impacted areas) at the cost of millions of dollars. Their quick response in recalling the product and their swift action in reaching out to the victims’ families were part of their core values and ethics. By doing the right thing, they saved their brand reputation and in the long run saved millions of dollars.

This question of values and ethics brings to my mind the old adage, “The way you do anything is the way you do everything”; meaning if you are willing to cheat, lie, or take advantage of people in one area, why would anyone believe that you would do any different in another? Business owners or leaders who are dishonest about defects in their product or service even when they know they exist; who expect their employees to take ownership for their actions and mistakes yet do not do the same for their own actions or mistakes; or who talk negatively about customers, employees, past employees, etc. yet expect others to treat them or their customers with respect, create a lack of confidence in their integrity and in their leadership ability.

To be a truly credible business leader, you must live by your core values or code of ethics within your business; you must walk your talk. Your employees and clients will know when you don’t. If you want your employees to operate within the values you put in place for your business, you need to lead by example and live by those values.

The Bottom Line

Walk your talk. If you operate from a set of core values and ethics and want your employees to as well, keep yourself in check to make sure you are truly living by them. Values and ethics are not optional. “The way you do anything is the way you do everything.”

Don’t Let Your Business Become A Victim: Prevent Employee Fraud

September 28, 2009   /   by Collaboration   /   in Ethics, Financial / Legal
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By Suzanne Atkinson, GBP&B Tax and Business Advisors

While we would all like to believe Confucius philosopher Mencius’ premise that human nature is good, the high number of employee fraud cases disputes his theory. Fraud is no longer rare, it is not just happening to the big companies and it is not masterminded by sophisticated criminals. Most cases involve first time offenders who have been presented with a golden opportunity to “earn” some extra cash.

Fraud is common, the 10/10/80 rule states:

• Ten percent of the population will never steal
• Ten percent of the population will always steal
• Eighty percent of the population will steal when presented with opportunity.

That’s ninety percent of the population that you need to protect yourself from!

When fraud happens, we aren’t talking about small amounts; the average loss to small businesses is over $185,000, enough to put you out of business.

Very few of these offenders are ever charged or imprisoned.

So, how can you as the business owner prevent fraud?

Don’t worry, fraud is easy and inexpensive to prevent!

Simple changes such as screening employees, reviewing your bank statements and having final say on all financial payments will significantly decrease your chances of being affected by fraud. It seems too easy, right? But letting your employees know you are there and watching will deter them from stealing.

Take back control of your finances and take away the golden opportunity for others to leave you devastated.

Layoffs: Improving a Bad Situation for Business Owners

July 9, 2009   /   by Collaboration   /   in Communication, Ethics, Relationships in Business
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By Michael Gunther

Layoffs. There, I wrote it. They’re never pleasant, no matter the reason, not for owners or for employees or for the person communicating the layoff. Layoffs, by their very nature, are emotional events. And as we know, humans are emotional beings. So as business owners or managers, how do you deal with the emotions that come along with layoffs? How do you preserve relationships, both with the employees you layoff and with your current employees? How do you maintain your positive image and reputation in the midst of layoffs?

THE LAYOFF : be responsible

Don’t play the blame game – be responsible. Inform the employee of the facts behind the layoff – whether it relates to the economy or the company’s overall performance. For example, you may discuss steps the company has taken to avoid layoffs, and how this is a business decision necessary for the company’s survival.
State the facts, keep it basic, and allow the employee to respond, which will lead to the grieving process.

THE GRIEVING PROCESS: be empathetic

The layoff of an employee is felt as a loss, and with any loss comes the grieving process, which consists of five steps: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. All persons affected by the layoff will go through some level of grieving in their own way, depending on the amount of loss they feel.

As a leader or business owner, it is important to understand the grieving process, allow employees to express themselves, and empathize and show sensitivity towards their feelings – whether they are the one being laid off or not.
When people leave, it changes the dynamics of an organization. People feel frightened for their own job security, concerned for the person who lost their job, and sometimes guilty because they are still employed – grieving does go both ways. By simply offering ongoing and open communication to your active employees, you can be proactive in acknowledging and addressing their concerns too.

THE OUTCOME: offer guidance and resources

It is important to let the employees who are getting laid off know that you care about their well being. There are many ways to communicate this to the employee and assist them through their transition.  When my sister Sue was laid off last October, her employer contacted her three different times over a three month period to check in with her and see how her job search was progressing. They offered to be a reference for her and sent her a written letter of reference. Their simple actions went a long way for Sue, and allowed her to maintain a positive view of the company that laid her off.

Since most people do not know what to do once they lose their jobs, you can provide them with resources, such as a list of local career centers and employment agencies or tools to help them claim unemployment insurance. Although you may not be able offer a severance package, you can consider providing a one hour session with a career coach or maybe you can pay for them to attend a resume writing workshop.

The Bottom Line:
When your company is forced to make tough decisions regarding layoffs, you can still maintain healthy employee relationships and your company’s positive image and reputation by tapping into the human element – take time to listen to your employees and show them that you truly care.