HEROIC Organizations as Global Role Models

EXEMPLARY ORGANIZATIONS engage all stakeholders in co-authoring a higher and more meaningful purpose. Operating from love and respect rather than fear-based consciousness, they reorganize society according to human and planet well-being.

The Covid crisis in the spring forced many of us to scramble to reinvent the way we do business.  In June, together with Sekaten, we talked to 160 business people from around the world to better understand what they had learned from the crisis, how confident they were that they could continue to learn and adapt and what insights they had gathered about the changes needed in the way we do business.

Six systemic themes emerged from this dialogue, which we organized under the acronym ‘HEROIC’ or ‘Human, Empathetic, Role Model, Open, Innovation and Courage’.  Today, I am going to discuss the third – acting as a role model.

Less time commuting + less time at lunch + less time at the water cooler = more time to think about what we are doing and why.  Are we working just to make money and sell products or can we work together to also add value to our community and the environment?  Is it not time to translate our values into deeds?

The 160 people we spoke to apparently had spent quite a bit of time on thoughts like these, and many had come to the conclusion that it was time to ‘walk the talk’ and lead by values.  The main themes that emerged were the following:

• Co-author a Higher Purpose Exemplary organizations engage all stakeholders in co-authoring a meaningful higher purpose – discovering their reason for being and their contribution to the world. They are connected to their purpose and values, and they make choices grounded on the broader idea of the common good.
  

• Lead with Values (not just numbers)  Value-driven leadership implies a higher level of awareness and a walk-the-talk mindset. Leading with values (not just numbers) means leading from the heart as well as from the head.
  

• Act as Exemplary Global Citizen  Exemplary organizations are citizens of the world and acknowledge their role in promoting human wellbeing and protect the planet. They are committed not to harm biodiversity and to use natural resources wisely.

The Covid crisis has given us more time for reflection — for thinking about the purpose and impact of the work we do.  These findings demonstrate that many people see an opportunity to move away from leading by numbers and output to leading by values and contributing to the betterment of society.

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