The Direction of Intention

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Mark is traveling the United States and Canada this summer with a documentary film crew. He is asking about changes in the way people are doing business, about how the changes in the world are impacting the way business is done. He is on a quest looking for a heart in a world of business that denies the existence of heart.

His quest might at first seem a fools errand until you consider that old assumptions like “business is business” or “time is money” are outdated industrial era notions. Admittedly, these old saws are still held everywhere by CEO’s and political leaders; it is not uncommon for the leadership, invested in conserving, to be the last to let go of what was and notice that the world has changed. It has changed.

In fact, change is the only constant. Efficiency is now an aspect of relationship, not of the clock. Revolutions are facilitated through Facebook. Disgruntled customers and employees tweet their discontent. Happy customers and employees tweet their satisfaction. Social responsibility is profitable (there are departments of social responsibility with vice presidents of social responsibility in many large companies). People buy green, buy free range, and attempt to be carbon neutral.

Business can no longer afford to pretend that it operates in an ethical free zone. Business is not just business anymore. It impacts people’s lives, the environment, and the future. The world has eyes and ears as never before: cameras in every phone, networks of individuals that know no borders, and an insatiable 24 hour news thirst that delights in sharing scandal.

The smartest thing business can do is to loosen its tie, unbutton its shirt, and check to see if something is beating in there. Mark believes contemporary business is like the Tin Man following the yellow brick road; it can’t go on living without a heart.

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