It took me 10 tries to write this blog. Each time I began, an email popped up in the bottom right hand corner of my screen. Or someone stopped by my desk. Or my child asked me to read a book. Or I remembered something I hadn’t written on my list and did it. Or I was thirsty. Ten times, I was pulled away from trying to write a blog about finding the time and mind space to be conscious. And there in-lies the problem. I am too busy to focus on being conscious.
Or am I? I find that it is easy to let myself off the hook, given all I have to do. I have a career. I am a mother. I am a wife. I am a friend. I am an athlete. And the work that comes with those roles fills my entire pie chart of energy and attention. So where can I find more time in my day to focus on being conscious?
Here’s the rub. Being conscious doesn’t require a slice of the pie. I have finally learned that, thanks to the like-minded leaders I’ve met through Conscious Capitalism. Sure, finding the few hours a month to attend the panels and happy hours to engage with those lovely people takes time. But what I have found most freeing is the clarity that being conscious – and by that I mean really being present to the impact you are making in your business and the world – is not unique to any areas my life. It is the filling, the topping and the crust of the pie. And, to ensure I burn the metaphor to ashes, it should be baked into my entire life.
How am I trying to do that? And I assure you, I am still trying. Here’s my action plan. To live, make decisions, run my team, love my family, build a race schedule, constantly asking these questions of myself.
This is just my simple way of bringing consciousness into the busy hours of my life. How do you ensure you have time and mind space to be conscious?
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Delivering value to all stakeholders is one of the four pillars of Conscious Capitalism. This requires a shift from a singular focus on any one stakeholder group at the exclusion of others (such as the shareholder/investor or the customer) to a commitment to live out purpose and values for each stakeholder. In this pursuit, one stakeholder we often overlook is the community.
Like fish swimming unconsciously in water (water – what water?), we can be blind to the community (or communities) we impact. Starting almost 40 years ago, organizations began to undertake efforts in the realm of “corporate social responsibility” (CSR) – structuring intentional efforts to give back to the community and protect the environment. This frequently manifested itself as “bolt-on” programming separated from the company’s primary business. In the last decade or two, we’ve seen the rise of the B-Corp (Benefit Corporation) and Social Enterprise, movements to formalize businesses with a distinct purpose to better the world we live in.
What about the other 95% (I made that number up) of the capitalist enterprises out there? How can they impact their communities by fulfilling their core purpose and what are the possibilities? On Tuesday, January 19, we had a chapter forum inviting members to explore this question. As business becomes more conscious, what might be the impacts on the external community (Chicagoland in our case) and the internal community (organizational work environments)?
We surfaced a wide range of results – from people being happier and more fulfilled to better business results to reduced crime and litter. We envisioned improvements in traffic as people opened up to “giving way to each other”. We saw higher levels of engagement, both at work as well as in families and the community. More public art. Reduced boundaries among business, the community and education with greater collaboration. Reduced income gap… and more.
This inquiry will continue throughout our chapter events in 2016. We’ll share more detailed results from Tuesday’s session on this site and weave its themes through our speakers, panels and forums. Join us in the conversation.
Who is your community and how can you impact it through your business?
Holly Jordan on January 24, 2016 at 9:43 am
Who is your business community, how can you impact it and what does the result look like? These powerful questions can begin the change.
Rebekah Metts-Childers on January 25, 2016 at 4:32 pm
What a great thing to focus on. We often look far for those that need our help, but we can’t forget about those in our own neighborhoods who can use our support.
Earlier this month, Thea Polancic stopped by Impact Engine to work with our newest cohort of accelerator companies on positioning their social enterprises for growth. Thea is a leader in cutting-edge ideas to help Chicago companies increase their profits while not losing site of purpose. She is the Managing Partner of ClearSpace, LLC; a Chicago-based consulting firm that helps leaders, teams and organizations grow and thrive and also the Founder and Executive Director of the Chicago Chapter of Conscious Capitalism, Inc. Conscious Capitalism is a movement dedicated to elevating humanity through business. We connected with Thea after her seminar to learn about her purpose, how you can drive change inside and outside of organizations, and what entrepreneurs should consider the “north star” of their business.
You are a self-described “passionate advocate for the power of business to transform the world.” What sparked that passion?
TP: In 2008 after years of running my own business I felt I needed a be playing a bigger game than just trying to be successful. It felt repetitive to set goals and pursue them year after year. This set me on a path to discover my own purpose. Around that time I read an article by Elizabeth Debold entitled “Will Business Save the World?” In the article, she spoke of the incredible leverage that companies have to make a difference in the world – perhaps the most powerful potential force for good that we have. It was a radical concept then – certainly not what people thought about business at that time. This deeply resonated with me, and I realized that helping business be a force for good in the world was my purpose.
Tell us about your work at Conscious Capitalism and why it fits with your passion.
TP: In 2009, I began to convene a group of leaders who all felt the same as I did. We created an organization called the Chicago Transformational Leadership Exchange and gathered together 4-5 times a year to foster dialogue and spread these ideas. In 2010, we realized that we needed thought leadership and a larger platform to really make an impact. Synchronistically, I found out about the Conscious Capitalism movement not long after. Conscious Capitalism was founded by John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods and it’s foundational philosophy almost exactly expressed what we had created with the CTLX: that businesses should have a higher purpose as well as being unapologetically capitalistic, be values-driven, seek to create value for all stakeholders and be a forum to develop conscious, servant leaders. We reached out to them and in 2011 began to operate as the Chicago Chapter of Conscious Capitalism.
So my role at as the Chair of CC Chicago is a natural expression of my passion. We now are a registered non-profit with great leadership team who produce many events every year from informal social gatherings to CEO breakfasts and large-scale learning forums.
Having started as an “intrapreneur” at Caterpillar and then became and entrepreneur when you founded ClearSpace. What have you learned about driving change inside and outside of existing organizations?
TP: Advocating for a new idea, product, or service requires patience and persistence. If you’re truly innovating, you’re going to encounter resistance – it’s a sign that you’re really out there! So shifting the status quo is about change. And no matter what size the organization, change takes time and patience because it ultimately, it’s about helping human beings shift what they think and how they do things. It’s probably less about driving change than about guiding, supporting and facilitating change. These are more complex skills that most of us haven’t’ well developed.
You believe in being fully present in your interactions – how does that make you a better businessperson and leader?
TP: More and more, the world we face is complex, ambiguous and uncertain. It’s less about what we know, and more about how we respond to what appears or is happening from moment to moment. To be able to do that we have to be aware – of what we are doing, how we’re feeling, how we’re reacting, and how others feel, react and what they need from us in terms of leadership. That’s a lot happening in the present moment! To be really responsive we have to develop the ability to be here, in this moment, where it’s all happening – and not off in our minds, worrying about the future or obsessing about the past.
What is your advice to impact entrepreneurs to make their business “great from the start”?
TP: Get clear about your purpose and your value system from the start. This becomes your north star and your guidance system, helping you make decisions, choose what to pursue – and more importantly – what not to pursue; and retain a sense of self in pursuit of your passion.
Program Coordinator
Noelle Juengling is inspired by the challenge to fundamentally shift the way companies think about their role in driving societal and environmental change. She is responsible for marketing strategy, mentor and curriculum planning, and processes oversight at Impact Engine.
Republished with permission from the original post at Impact Engine: http://theimpactengine.com/thea-polancic-on-purpose-and-profit/
How do you engage the axiom, Walking the talk, when it comes to Purpose in your business practice?
Bob Knott, Chair of Business + Social Purpose Practice at Edelman, told us how and why. He shared his passion for social purpose and the data that underscores one of the core tenets of Conscious Capitalism. Namely, that operating with a commitment to Higher Purpose is not only an intuitively great idea, but an essential best practice in business today, “Purpose is not an optional sport anymore.”
Why? Because Purpose gives meaning to the core business. It’s about the difference a business is attempting to make in the world beyond simply maximizing profits.
In our lively, interactive session Bob shared key findings from Edelman’s recent research on Purpose in business. “As a group committed to seeing purpose flourish, we should strive to see more acutely how purpose impacts overall business performance.”
Tuesday, Oct 27 Bob Knott spoke at Conscious Capitalism Chicago event: Purpose – Walking the Talk.
Chair of Business + Social Purpose Practice, Edleman
As Bob engaged with our questions he shared a set of actions that will serve businesses to build and keep trust, to stay in alignment with a Higher Purpose, these behaviors are intertwined. You can’t do one and not do the others:
Big takeaways from Bob and Edelman’s research shared with us at our Conscious Capitalism Chicago event:
Innovation seems to be a great thing, until it starts causing problems e.g. privacy, environment, security
“People don’t want to work for a great company, but to work for a company that does great things.” In answer to the question, what drives the increase or decrease of trust in business, survey responses revealed that nearly 1 in 2 highlighted the contribution to a greater good as the reason for an increased level of trust in business, while the converse is also true—a lack of contribution decreases trust in business. In fact, fully 8 of 10 surveyed believe business can make a profit *and* have positive impact.
While consumer intent reflects a strong interest in Purpose, are people really willing to put their money where their mouth is?
Hot-off-the-press data from the Nielson Global Survey of Corporate Social Responsibility indicates that apparently Millennials do, though will this hold up over time as Millennials age, while the rest of us hold varying degrees of skepticism about the purity of business intentions, thereby impacting our trust with them.
Purpose has strong promise – to attract talent, to support a willingness to pay more for purpose goods, resulting in consumers being more likely to develop a relationship with a company’s brand over time.
Yet, consumers aren’t fully convinced.
Less than 1 in 3 believe that business innovations are motivated a desire for personal and societal improvement. In fact, consumers question the motives that drive business to innovate in the first place.
Two in three consumers, 66%, believe that brands are innovating simply to make more money for the company, apparently a universal experience around the globe. Consumers everywhere seem to believe that the real driver behind brand innovation is to make more money, versus having a positive societal impact or solving bigger problems like childhood hunger, climate concerns, food sourcing, etc.
In fact, consumers even tell us they have some real concerns about where innovation is leading us in the future. Innovation seems to be a great thing . . . until it starts causing problems – e.g. issues with privacy, safety and security, and its impact on the environment. Crucially, 87% tell us that because of these concerns, they’re hesitant to trust.
The way forward for business is through building trust.
Engagement, authenticity and integrity were cited as the most important values critical to enhancing trust-business innovations in the marketplace.
Fully, eight in ten consumers want greater transparency, even to the point of asking business to make test results available to view. They’re looking for academic endorsements, strong clinical trials, beta tests—tests that are done comprehensively and frequently-to ground the belief in businesses espoused Purpose.
Colorful awnings and flags waving in the breeze greeted our group when we arrived at METHOD’s new North American manufacturing headquarters in the historic Pullman Park neighborhood of Chicago’s south side. Thirty intrepid members of the Chicago Chapter converged on the site to get a private tour of the facility, and spent the next hour with our great tour guides.
Method is a $150m soap company, founded by Eric Ryan and Adam Lowry in San Francisco, now owned by the Sorenson family, founders of the Ecover brand. METHOD have been participants in the Conscious Capitalism movement for a while – some of us remember Eric Ryan, Founder and then CEO, from the annual conference in San Francisco in 2013 – and how we entertained us with his live enactment of the white jumpsuited “people against dirty” video. METHOD has also been leading the way in the B Corp movement. The values and discipline of being a B Corp were really evident as we toured the plant. Method’s motivation for building this new manufacturing facility was driven by their desire to improve their B Corp ratings and to demonstrate their ongoing commitment to sustainable business practices.
In seeking a site for their new state-of-the-art facility, Method specifically sought out a brown field site – one that was condemned due to contamination and was considered beyond repair. It’s worth noting that prior to starting construction, Method was tasked with cleaning up the 22-acre site, formerly occupied by Ryerson Steel. Their commitment to the clean up, as well as the construction the manufacturing facility, was done without receipt of any tax breaks.
They then proceeded to turn that site into a LEED platinum certified plant that has an urban rooftop farm (operated by Gotham Greens) that cools the building without air conditioning and uses less energy than the standard building footprint.
Method is one of only two companies in the United States to carry the LEED platinum certification designation.
We learned that Method’s environmental commitment didn’t end with the construction of the building. Method does all of its manufacturing, bottling, labeling, packaging, and distribution onsite. For example, the company also looked to its supply chain to reduce its environmental impact. These partnerships include Amcor Rigid Plastics and JB Hunt. Amcor Rigid Plastics operates an onsite bottle facility to manufacture all of Method’s corn-based plastic, post-consumer recyclable bottles. And, JB Hunt operates four dedicated bio diesel trucks to fulfill Method’s low-emission transportation strategy for delivering its products to market.
Method’s vision for this manufacturing facility extends far beyond its ecological benefits. Contributing to the economic and social well being of the community is also critical to the company. Currently, Method’s manufacturing facility employs 66 full-time employees, 30% of which live within the zip code of the plant. Method emphasizes the importance of hiring employees based on personality and values versus specific manufacturing or technical experience. Their philosophy is to utilize employee cross-training to help their people learn their roles.
Our tour guide is one of these new local hires – and her joy in working in such a special place was obvious.
On the wall in the stairwell was a mural that the employees created ,“Together we can: Make a difference Change the world! Believe in each other Keep it weird Pullman Redux – but better.” That said it all.
On the wall in the stairwell was a mural that the employees created ,“Together we can: Make a difference Change the world! Believe in each other Keep it weird Pullman Redux – but better.”
That said it all.
After the tour we gathered together to connect and enjoy lunch. It was great to see new faces, and rewarding to hear “this is my tribe!” Thanks to all of you who came out. What did we miss? What was your favorite moment?
A big thank you, Andrea Spudich, for your contributions to this post and photos. Andrea is a long-time advocate for sustainability-oriented leadership development.
Written by Chelsea Slaggert
Our August 27th event was something a little unique for us. We partnered with Notre Dame’s Stayer Center for Executive Education and Program Faculty Member Mel Dowdy to explore how to make purpose stick. We gathered in Notre Dame’s classroom space downtown for a night full of insights, discussions and practical applications.
Mel Dowdy opened the evening by discussing John Mackey’s book, Conscious Capitalism. He defined two key points that stood out in the book, setting Mackey apart in his concept of leadership:
The qualifying word in Conscious Capitalism is conscious; this is a call to wake up as leaders! It’s a call to be mindful of what we’re doing, be less reflexive and more intentional, less dependent on what we know or are taught to work conventionally. But how are we to do this in the midst of an increasingly complex business environment?
Mel introduced us to the Integral Leadership model, used in Notre Dame’s leadership programs, which is a holistic approach and methodology that can help us navigate complexity by helping us define and align our values with our actions so that we may step into conscious leadership. It takes into account interior and exterior factors that affect leadership, as well as individual and collective forces:
INTENTIONAL
What are my values?
What sacrifices am I willing to make so as to not stand in my own way of realizing my purpose?
BEHAVIOR
How are my actions, skills and practices aligned to the purpose I intend?
CULTURAL
How do you create a “we” in an organization that has a sense of a shared meaning?
SOCIAL
How will achieving results change organizational/community capabilities?
*Graphic adapted and used with permission.
Mel challenged us to “wake up” and understand that we can be skillful but, if our actions and practices, or the culture we strive to create, or the sacrifices we make don’t align with our intentional inner purpose, we are wasting our time as leaders. He stressed that the way we add value through our leadership is through consistent practice of aligning our behaviors with our values.
Mel concluded the evening by guiding the group in a thought-provoking exercise meant to help us identify our purpose and the things in our lives that hold us back from realizing and executing on that purpose – in other words, making it stick.
For more information on Notre Dame’s Executive Education programs, visit http://mendoza.nd.edu/programs/executive-education/executive-integral-leadership/
To learn more about our next Conscious Capitalism Chicago event visit our Web site.
Lee Capps on September 14, 2015 at 3:44 pm
Here’s a little more on the “immunity to change”. The exercise from Robert Kegan and Lisa Lahey had us consider what we are committed to and other – potentially hidden – commitments that might be getting in the way. For instance, if I’m committed to leading in an empowering way, but I am also committed to being in control or being right, I have competing commitments that derail my primary purpose or intention – making me “immune to change”. For each of us as leaders, where are we declaring a purpose (personal or organizational) that might be in conflict with other, deeply held intentions? For our purpose to be “sticky” or fulfilled, we need to surface those competing commitments, test them and potentially let go of them. Thanks, Mel. Great session.
Thea Polancic on September 15, 2015 at 5:31 pm
Thanks, Chelsea, for the great summary!
I think it’s important to add a note about John Mackey since he’s an outspoken guy and has some controversial opinions. Representing Conscious Capitalism Chicago, I often get questions about whether his perspectives are those of the Chapter – or the movement as a whole.
Here’s what I’d say: in the context of Conscious Capitalism, we’re not holding up John as a the model for all aspects that are ideal in a leader or human being. (None of us could aspire to that.)
However, we are saying that John is a model to look to for these two capacities of conscious leaders that Mel highlighted in his talk: John had the courage to stand for his convictions and took action to engage his fellow peers and his organization in making a difference in the world; and he stays in the game of his own growth and development. Rand Stagen frequently says “leaders get the organizations they deserve.” John lives this and has been known to say “I know I need to have a breakthrough when there’s something about Whole Foods that’s bothering me.” And then he does the work – and the business gets the benefit.
It takes incredible courage and commitment to start a movement – to start anything. We’re deeply grateful that he did.
Collaboration is often seen as a result of more conscious leadership and culture. With greater collaboration, organizations can leverage collective strengths, achieve greater results and grow with more resilience.
My question is this: Are human beings naturally collaborative or is collaboration something that requires training, development and reinforcement?
On one hand, it seems that we are each governed by our individual needs for survival and success. Every day we are faced with constant opportunities to choose – do we work for the whole or for our own self-interest?
We have examples even driving to work: When we see that the lanes will narrow, do we race ahead to jump in front of the queue? Or take our turn to blend in early and endure a few extra minutes of waiting?
Collaboration requires a healthy tension between self-interest and the greater good. Both are required. I do need to survive and be successful – and the team or organizational needs to succeed as well. These two “poles” are interdependent.
What is our natural state?
I say we are naturally collaborative. Here’s my evidence: I watch my grandchildren. Early on, children are totally dependent on those around them for everything. As they develop their own competency – feeding themselves, walking, mastering language – they begin to assert more independence, while remaining open to help and challenge. They don’t see falling down as a problem. At some point, though, their identities begin to form, creating a sense that “I can do it” or – perhaps more accurately – “I should be able to do it”. The old “looking good” attitude makes the scene.
We each develop attitudes early in life that begin to erode our natural openness to collaboration.
“I’m smart.” “I’ll show them.” “They’ll think I’m stupid.”
These are not bad attitudes, but they inhibit our openness to asking for or offering help and admitting mistakes or acknowledging weaknesses. When are we naturally collaborative?
When we feel safe and free to be ourselves. When our environment feels threatening, we focus on self-preservation. When we feel cared for, we take the risk of counting on others.
Hence the importance of conscious leadership and culture – to create an environment that will help us each feel free to be ourselves, to focus on the greater good and to contribute from our strengths.
What do you think?
Conscious Capitalism – “Do Both”
Rand Stagen, CEO of Stagen, founder of the Integral Leadership Academy and founder and board member of Conscious Capitalism, Inc., was in Chicago this past week. Lucky for us, he agreed to spend some time with our executive members at our Q2 Executive Breakfast on June 26th.
At one point in the conversation he said – “It’s not enough to be a conscious company. You have to have a great business model and be able to execute. Conscious Capitalism. DO BOTH.” I just love this. So much so that we’re going to get some t-shirts printed with it. Meghan and Maren, co-founders of Conscious Company Magazine were there too. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see an issue devoted to this in the future.
It’s time to pay some attention to the second “C” in Conscious Capitalism. It feels like much of what’s out there about Conscious Capitalism emphasizes the importance of having a purpose, values and mindful culture – yet forgets that we have to have a great strategy, market differentiation, products and execution too. Doug Rauch, CEO of Conscious Capitalism, Inc. said to me earlier in the month, “Is it enough to have a great culture? Will that absolutely cause you to do better than your competitors? Not necessarily. You have to have a great business model too.”
Not long ago, I had the good fortune of spending some time with Jay Goltz, Founder and CEO of The Goltz Group, which includes Chicago Art Source and Jayson Home. Jay is a sought after speaker about entrepreneurship and conscious business. It was a Friday afternoon and I was meeting Jay for the first time and introducing him to Conscious Capitalism. Jay is an energetic guy and jumped right in challenging the ideas as he tried to get a sense of what we were talking about. When he read our description of what the movement is about that said, “Business can and should be done with a higher purpose in mind, not just with a view to maximizing profits” He said, “Hey wait! It should say, business should have a higher purpose as well as maximizing profits!” I loved his unapologetic enthusiasm for the business of conscious business. If we’re really seeking to make a lasting difference in the world, we have to last.
Rand Stagen’s message to our CEOs last Friday morning was about the awesome responsibility and complexity of conscious leadership – that it’s no small feat to be able to be a great businessperson and an enlightened person. That’s the essence of the fourth pillar of Conscious Capitalism – “Conscious Leadership.” It’s not just about servant leadership, but also about being able to balance opposing ideas like thinking and feeling, freedom and responsibility, purpose andprofit.
Holly Jordan on August 19, 2015 at 3:33 am
As we work with clients on sales development we find that this gap isn’t unusual. That when “Conscious Selling” includes metrics and measures and sales process it doesn’t mean it excludes allowing employees to feel empowered. That in fact these measures and metrics and process are mile markers on the road to sales success and keep you on target. Balancing clear sales strategy and enlightenment is the path to true “Conscious Selling”. We are interviewing companies now for our research paper on this topic. More to come. #consciousselling #balance
Caption: This image is of the Vulnerability Wall from the 2015 Conscious Capitalism conference in April.
CCC Slide Deck – 6-17-15
The goal of our June event was to provide a small group venue to talk about the theories and ideas put forward at the national conference in April. The presentation is posted above.
Holly Jordan, Chicago Chapter Program Committee Member, presented the most inspiring points from Simon Sinek at the April conference.
Additional thoughts from the group included:
Thea Polancic, Chair of Conscious Capitalism Chicago, and Paula Golub, Principal at Golub & Company, showcased 15 personal principles shared from Melissa Reiff, President & COO of The Container Store. 1. Security 2. Confidence 3. Positive Attitude 4. Maturity 5. Focus 6. Courage 7. Sweet 8. Communication 9. Tenacity 10. Humor 11. Agility 12. Creativity 13. Commitment 14. Inspiration 15. Passion
Lee Capps, Program Chair for Conscious Capitalism Chicago, presented the ideas from Bob Chapman, Chairman and CEO of Barry-Wehmiller about how to lead a conscious business every day, and what goes into his secret sauce.
RESOURCES
The group talked about a myriad of great resources.
Did you miss the April Conscious Capitalism 2015 Conference?
This is your opportunity to hear highlights and key takeaways about the importance of purpose in organization – and human – effectiveness. We’ll review some of the key discussions from keynote speakers Bob Chapman, Simon Sinek and Raj Sisodia.
Did you attend the April Conscious Capitalism 2015 Conference?
This is your chance to relive inspirational moments, pull out your notes, and plan to put the ideas into practice. Bring your notes and come for a great practical discussion!
REGISTER NOW!
We’ll start with an overview of the themes and then break out into small group discussions led by local strategic facilitators.
When: June 17th, 5:30-8:00 pm
Location: Edelman Chicago Offices
200 E. Randolph St, 63rd Floor, Chicago, IL 60601
Cost: $35 general admission; $25 for members
(Light appetizers and refreshments included.)
Join the Chicago Chapter today and receive $10 off the price of this event!
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