Recently AOL, whom I pay to host one of my websites, has begun treating its customers so badly it’s almost unbelievable. I won’t go into details, but the bottom line is that I need to find a new hosting service. The search led me to the company BlueHost.com, where, among other things, I saw with interest that the CEO Matt Heaton keeps his blog for everyone to read. Not only that, but he uses the same humble provider, WordPress, that I use for this blog. It’s hard not to be impressed by that — the CEO of a large and growing company who’s also a regular person like the rest of us.
In one of his recent entries, “Money, money, money…” Matt, while deploring the self-defeating greed of companies like — well, AOL (he does not mention names) — also affirms the common-sense principle that the way to succeed in business is to supply a good service and keep customers happy.
I think this view is a big step in the right direction, but would like to suggest the principle can be taken still further. I’ll explain, but first let’s tie in a few other things.
I often hear people complain about how “multi-national corporations are ruining the country.” While this may be partly true, one also has to consider how much good corporations accomplish. The computer I’m writing on, and yours, the software we’re using, and the internet are all the products of corporations. Without corporations, human beings could not work together collectively to produce such marvels of technology.
In fact, since I have some interest in religion and culture, let me present the potentially novel and radical suggestion that corporations are related to the God image in man. The God-image, for those of you who aren’t theologians, refers to the fact that we are made in God’s image and likeness. Latently, we are divine beings — we just don’t do a very good job of acting that way. The standard religious view is that our job on earth is to glorify God with good works; to renew the face of the earth; to use our human intelligence in harmony with nature to produce something new and better than either of these could by itself. Through corporations, individual human beings pool their efforts and talents to accomplish far more than individuals can alone. Corporations accomplish things on a vast scale that uniquely reflects our divine roots.
Consider the pharmaceutical industry as a case in point. Yes, we can easily identify a few instances of greed and very poor judgment. But the fact remains that there are now many important medicines available, and new ones continually being developed. This would not be possible without private corporations. There are other ways human beings work collectively: governments, universities, non-profit organizations, and charities, for example. But it seems that none of these are as efficient as private corporations when it comes to making and distributing things or providing services.
Consider, for example, what happened when the federal government tried to sequence the human genome. They had a plan to do this in 10 years. Then a single entrepreneur came along, founded a company, and managed to do the same thing in a fraction of the time.
While I think of it, there’s another thing I wanted to mention. I live in Brussels now — right in the middle of the city. Every day I see the people there — what their lives are like, what their concerns are. When I left the U.S. to pursue professional opportunities five years ago, I also hoped to learn a lot of good social ideas in Europe — things I could later bring back to the U.S. with me. But what’s mostly happened is the reverse. I see better now how much America has to offer the rest of the world. And, believe it or not, part of this is our corporate know-how. Corporations, first of all give people jobs. But beyond that, they inspire people; they motivate them to apply their talents; to learn. They generate enthusiasm, energy, vitality, and excitement. Those are the things I see missing in the lives of so many people.
One more side issue. It’s significant that I learned of Matt Heaton’s views reading his blog, that I’m commenting on them here, and that you’re here reading them. This means we’re involved in a collective, social enterprise of a different sort. We’re networking: comparing notes and trying to advance society at a grass-roots level. This is a whole lot better than taking our marching orders from the cultural propaganda machine and weapon of mass negativity that the news media represent.
Now back to Matt Heaton’s article. At one point he says, “We are in business to make money!” That’s ok for me, but I would want to adjust the emphasis a little. Corporations should make money. It is an appropriate goal, per se. Money is often society’s way of telling you that you’re doing something valuable. But this goal must be properly ordered and prioritized. Profit should not be the ultimate goal. Otherwise, one ends up reasoning like this:
1. We should treat customers well, because we want to make money.
Rather, the reasoning should be more like this:
2. We should try to make money, because we have a passion to serve people, and the money is a sign that we’ve succeeded.
See the difference? The two models reverse the ends and the means.
You see the latter at work in some pharmaceutical companies. What keeps people motivated is knowing that, as a result of their hard work and long hours, somebody somewhere halfway around the world is going to get a medicine that may extend their life 10 years. People will work much harder for that goal than to make money.
Is that true only of making medicine? Of course not. This is where companies like BlueHost.com comes in. These corporations empower other people. I have a biostatistics website that shares technical information with clinical-trials statisticians around the world. In other fields — medicine, education, political science, environmental engineering, to name just a few — thousands of other people are doing the same thing. The information revolution is happening, and BlueHost and countless other technology companies are making this possible.
The Unique Role of Corporations
Corporations have the potential to transform our society into a futuristic utopia that far exceeds anything people dreamed of in their “Tomorrowland” visions of the 1950s. Already computers have launched launched a second information revolution, potentially greater than that of the Renaissance.
Corporations turn our inspired visions into reality. Moreover, many of these visions can only be materialized by means of corporations. What is a corporation but a body of people working together. That’s where the word comes from — the Latin word, corpus, or body. A corporation is a body of people working together to accomplish a noble purpose.
We have to believe that God has a plan for all this. These tools are put into our hands today, and at the same time we’re born into this world with the skills to use them rightly. If God is good and providential, suppositions few doubt, then it follows from reason that if we align ourselves with this plan we should be in good shape. Imagine what we might do, dare to believe it. Trust that this is what God wants: collective, ‘corporate’ activity used rightly.
Corporations can and should be at the forefront of renewing America.
First, corporations have to provide genuinely useful services. That much is a given.
Second, corporations should pay more attention to improving the quality of life of their employees. In short, an ideal corporation would have two more-or-less equal goals: to serve society profitably, and to advance the lives, careers, and happiness of the employees.
The collective nature of a corporation leads to many opportunities to promote employee quality-of-life. Examples include a company-sponsored van pool to relieve commuters, and a company cafeteria with nutritious, affordable food. Such programs help the employees and promote productivity. It’s a win-win situation and is demonstrably cost-effective. Why isn’t it done more? The main reason that corporations don’t see it as part of their working model; it’s outside their current self-image.
Ultimately, that’s what needs to change: the self-image and the philosophy of the corporation. Matt Heaton and others like him are saying good things, but we need to carry this positive thinking still further. Let’s divest ourselves of the inherited, obsolete myths (1) that money (not happiness) is what really matters; and (2) that corporations have nothing to do with our spiritual natures and humanitarian concerns.
Here’s an excellent example of how a modern corporation can be uniquely insrumental in promoting social justice:
Google Provides San Francisco Homeless with Free Phone Service and Voicemail
Finally, it should be mentioned that we should not hesitate to pray for God’s help with this. There’s little point going to church services on Sunday and being dismissed with the words, “now go to love and serve God” if we don’t put them into action in our daily lives. And a lot of this time is spent working in corporations. Nobody is suggesting commencing board meetings with a benediction and scripture. But privately, people can and should pray for God’s guidance and help. I’d venture to suggest that this alone would be the single biggest step we can take to put us on the right track.
Heavenly Father, you made all things and a proper use for each. Show us how to do your will, glorify you, and serve others, using our talents to work collectively to help bring about your kingdom on earth.
Filed under: Cultural psychology, Culture of peace, Economics, Renewing America, religion
