The Good Business Ecosystem
Social enterprise is a really interesting space, one that is still emerging and forming an identity.
It’s both new and old, with lots of facets, but isn’t quite mainstream.
Personally I find it fascinating, and I encourage a lot of people to join us in trying to create better ways of working and living.
That said, it can take a minute to get your head around how the ecosystem works, what we have in common and where there are niches with their own worldviews.
What We All Agree On
We generally all agree that there’s more to life than “making money at all costs”.
We also generally agree that businesses create useful opportunities, and aren’t inherently evil.
That’s the two halves of social enterprise right there.
If you don’t mind ruthless greed, you won’t see a need for more social change, and our ecosystem will make decisions that constantly confuse you.
If you resent the idea that people can sell products and services and make money, our ecosystem will make decisions that constantly frustrate you.
At its core, our fight is against greed.
You should not be able to exploit and exclude people in order to make more money.
You should not be able to pollute the environment and disregard the health of the planet in order to lower your costs.
This is counter to traditional business theories, which permitted atrocities in the name of “shareholder value”.
Look up the history of almost any large company and tell me I’m wrong.
A classic example is the life and work of John D Rockefeller, who became the world’s richest man through shocking ethical decisions, then gave away vast amounts of money as a philanthropist.
That’s the old approach – make money as ruthlessly as possible, then try and undo the damage when you retire.
Instead, we believe that a business can do good and make money at the same time.
What We Mostly Agree On
We mostly agree on what constitutes “good”.
There are two main streams of “good”, social and environmental.
Social causes generally involve treating people fairly and with dignity, particularly marginalised groups who have not been treated well in the past (or today).
Environmental causes generally involve reducing our effects on nature, from saving specific animals from extinction all the way to reversing climate change.
I don’t know of a list that contains all of the “good” causes in the world today, but I’d say that 98% of the social entrepreneurs I meet have a mission that sounds worthwhile and admirable.
There have definitely been a lot of causes that I have not properly understood, and this industry is pretty good at explaining why issues exist and what we can collectively do about them.
In Australia, we have begun to do a better job of recognising and celebrating our Indigenous people and their culture, and there is still a long way to go.
Australia is also one of the slowest countries to accept the seriousness of climate change in its policies – we cannot pretend to be world-leaders or progressive in these areas.
What We Definitely Don’t Agree On
While there might be clarity on what constitutes “good”, there is no unified understanding of “how much is enough?”.
This is a tricky one, since there’s a decent justification for every viewpoint.
For example, most social entrepreneurs would be annoyed to see tacky plastic merchandise given out at their conferences, while some would argue that the conference itself is an environmental waste (especially if attendees need to fly there).
Another controversial one is how much change is required in the school curriculum – everyone knows it is needed, but some are concerned about changing too much too quickly.
The other area of division is religious and cultural values.
This is an uncomfortable reality, but different cultures and religions often hold opposing views, which can lead to some awkward partnerships.
This is my opinion and not fact, but I’d suggest these topics include:
· Immigration
· Women in leadership
· The rights of the LGBTQIA+ community
· The urgency to reduce carbon emissions
· Who controls conflicted areas of land
· Who holds political office
· Reproductive rights
· Who should be allowed to own heavy weaponry
· The overlap between church and state
· The overlap between religion and education
There are “good” causes and movements on both sides of these issues, which can be particularly tricky when trying to unite large groups of people towards a common goal.
I do not tell people to take sides, and I don’t tell them which side to take.
I encourage people to be kind, compassionate and curious, to understand where each other is coming from.
It is possible to hold strong personal views and a strong religious faith AND be kind to people; that’s certainly what I’m attempting.
My approach has been to choose my clients and causes carefully, voting with my wallet and my time for what I believe is right, rather than starting fights in Facebook comment sections.
Types Of Good Businesses
There is a spectrum of “Good Businesses”.
On one end you have Corporate Social Responsibility (businesses who make gestures and contributions towards good causes), and at the other end you have sustainable charities (who can trade to secure their own funding).
There are a range of social enterprises in between.
· For example, an environmentally friendly coffee pod company can help customers recycle their pods and pay coffee farmers fair wages.
· A construction company can build low cost, high quality community housing in each of their developments.
· A charity can run corporate training programs to subsidise their other work.
· Muhammad Yunus describes “Social Businesses” that are forbidden to return a profit to investors, channelling all benefits to the poor.
There is merit to each part of the spectrum.
Personally, what I look for is sincerity – people who have chosen their approach based on what best reaches their social/environmental goals, rather than scoring political points and agitating their peers.
If you’re new to this field, here’s my summary:
· Good businesses are cool
· You can make money and do good at the same time
· Focus on finding good people rather than the famous people
· We are generally all on the same team
· Get your sincere, talented friends to join you
