Businesses need to step up - they can't survive in societies that fail
Leaders must participate in a necessary, fundamental reimagining of business in order to future-proof their companies, argues Simon Mainwaring.
Today’s entrepreneurs must respond with honesty and clear eyes to the reality of the world: social inequality, a climate at “code red”, an economy serving only the 1%, and a global health crisis still threatening our stability. This coalescing of crises will continue into the foreseeable future if we keep practicing “business as usual.”
The solution is for businesses to lead with ‘we’. To take the lead – or at least participate – in a necessary, fundamental reimagining and re-engineering of business, rooted in recognition of our collective purpose. Where collaborative leadership moves us to live and work in ways that restore and protect the natural and living systems on which all our futures depend.
Pollyanna? Leading with ‘we’ is literally the only way our companies can stay relevant, make money, and shore up the well-being of society and the planet that makes business possible. Why leaders? Because only business has the resources, reach, and responsibility to right decades if not centuries of inattention and avarice.
