The New Green Economy

Preliminary Reading: The Sustainable Vaue Set Series - Part I

VALUES, ETHICS AND THE WORLD SHIFT

Values: The Long View - Part II

THE DRIVE FOR EFFECTIVENESS

As humanity continued its development and trading became a stronger part of every tribe's and village's life, new values were required to ensure success. Groups learned the benefits of cooperating with other groups through trade and exchange. This development required moving beyond basic survival and protection posturing into the adaptation of a new value set: Effective Values.

The drive for effectiveness is concerned with autonomy and making the most out of every situation. Groups using effective values assume an amount of risk and work to mitigate it - not avoid it. They have a long-term view, but look for freshness and new opportunities. They are about utility and not convention (in contrast to groups using the Protective Value Set). They are about working together as equals instead of working from rank and hierarchy.

The Effective Value Set provides the backbone of most modern business models. Developed and implemented in the early civilizations of humanity, these values still dictate how business is conducted and how it affects the lives of every human on Earth.

The Effective Value Set

When one engages strangers and wants to be safe, being open and transparent are necessary qualities. Consequently, the values that support effectiveness begin with; Promote Comfort and Convenience, Be Optimistic, Be Open to Inventiveness and Novelty, Compete, and Shun Force. These values allow for connection and the creation of new relationships. To develop those relationships, the following values come into play; Collaborate, Come to Voluntary Agreement, Be Honest, Use Initiative and Enterprise, Be Effective, Be Industrious and Be Thrifty. Additional values for maintaining a productive on-going relationship include; Respect Contracts, Invest for Productivity and last but not least, Dissent for the Task. People want to know, before there is an issue, if something is not right or could go wrong. This approach differs markedly from the Protective Value Set's "Deceive for the Task."

The Effective Value set is all about just that, being effective under trying and risky situations. It addresses how to work with strangers and create long-term relationships with people that are not seen often and that may have been enemies in the past. It has a focus on how to "make do" when resources are scarce and situations are difficult. The value set is concerned with encouraging others to value one's offerings time and time again, an intent that forms the foundation of business in the modern world.

Tribes traded, not for everyday needs, but for luxuries. They traded for those things they did not have, but that having would enhance their lives, for example: salt, regional foodstuffs, tools and clothing made by different tribes in different areas. This desire to enhance human life is at the core of the purpose of business. The core purpose of business is not profit in and of itself.

This desire to enhance human life is at the core of the purpose of business. The core purpose of business is not profit in and of itself.

Profit acts as food for a business, providing sustenance, but not the vitality and excitement which is Life itself. If a human being lives for food, for eating, then they are said to be guilty of the sin of gluttony; not a healthy or life enhancing approach to living. The same can be said of companies. Profit is necessary to life, but is not the reason for living. Forgetting this truth, organizations and even entire cultures can become captured by greed, acting as if money itself is a reason for existence. This distorted focus corrupts the approach to business and masks its real purpose and goal.

Traders did not trade only for themselves, for their own material needs. They acted as a conduit of good things for many different tribes, including their own. Their status increased as they contributed to the benefit of others. The experience of wealth was a shared experience and one of accretion. The focus on profit, to the exclusion of almost anything else, has created cancer-like growth that no longer understands its place in the larger system. The issue is exacerbated and compounded when corporations are granted the status of people, yet without the same responsibilities. "Business" as a whole is made up of individual companies and organizations however, which can change their methods, perspectives, and values at any time.

Maintaining the Integrity of Value Systems

Integral parts cannot be removed from a system or exchanged with another system without compromising the overall integrity of that system. The values within value sets are integral parts, therefore removing or exchanging them at will generates corruption.

In the workplace, because both value sets are in play, individuals sometimes experience feelings of conflict and indecision because more than one value set is present. Is the company trying to protect itself? Is the company trying to be effective?

In many situations, companies may be trying to do both at the same time. Through a lack of clarity, organizations may attempt to create a hybrid Value Set by pulling values from the Protective Value Set and the Effective Value Set using whichever values are found to be more convenient to the moment, or using those values they are closest to emotionally. Unfortunately, in choosing values that they care about and identify with, individuals and organizations can create corruption without intending to do so.

Because the values in each set are integral parts of the system, they cannot be exchanged at will. Doing so creates corruption and confusion due to the loss of integrity. The loss of integrity prevents the presenting set from achieving its purpose. Exxon is a case in point. When the Valdez ran aground and spilled oil in Alaska in March of 1989, the Exxon leadership was widely seen as corrupt and uncaring. Loyalty was a strong value and as they met in secret to try and "protect" themselves and the company, they lost sight of the Effective Values that enhance business practices and in doing so created a perception of corruption.

Johnson & Johnson, in 1982 addressed the tampering of Tylenol by adhering to the values that support business practices. They were open and honest. They bent over backwards to recall product to underscore the trust consumers had in their product. In doing so they became an icon of integrity and did not lose the business share they feared. Businesses can often avoid value related issues by hiring ethical consultants who have a clear understanding of how values and ethics affect business practice and how, when used consciously, they can play a significant role in business success. This is particularly true for new, entrepreneurial businesses, who can create enhanced alignment from the beginning by learning how values impact the way they do business.

Values Evolution

As humanity achieves globalization in the twenty-first century, a new value set is developing out of necessity, just as the Protective and Effective Value sets did. The emerging value set will allow humanity to live in harmony with itself and the Earth. Businesses on the leading edge have already begun to discover and gravitate towards these values and are poised to experience tremendous economic growth while creating value for themselves, their communities, and humanity itself.

In the next installment of the Sustainable Value Set Series, The New Green Economy will present the new, Sustainable Value Set and begin the exploration of its component values and how they apply to emerging business models as well as how they show up in the everyday life of individuals in the 21st century.

The Sustainable Value Set Series by Kathryn Alexander is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at www.newnewgreeneconomy.com.

The author, Kathryn Alexander, has been working with values and developing the work of Jane Jacobs for over ten years. Kathryn is an author, public speaker and consultant focused on bringing The New Green Economy to life.