As referenced under the 12 Myths of Economic Development, the jobs-saved-versus-jobs-created debate makes for some rather creative accounting.
Now, though, the concept is making its way into the public psyche, given the prevalence of the stimulus bill:
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2009/10/30/cbs-white-house-stimulus-jobs-numbers-hard-believe
http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2009/10/160000-per-stimulus-job-white-house-calls-that-calculator-abuse.html
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20091029/D9BKMVMG0.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/28/AR2009102804540_pf.html
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&sid=aUuHhaDx8Hr8
Friday, October 30, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
Perspective: Theodore Roosevelt Malloch
Attending a luncheon today, hosted by the winners of the most-interesting name contest, American Values Investing.
"To be sure, there have been a number of robber barons - perhaps 2% - to allow a continual perpetuating of the claim against capitalism," said Theodore Roosevelt Malloch, PhD. "But I ask you if this the norm, and does it negate the qualities that we and others around the world enjoy from capitalism?"
"Which is it? This is, as my friends in logic are keen to say, this is a key decision mechanism," said Malloch. "Is it possible that a key number of businesses can be constructed in a way that counters the narrative of anti-capitalism?"
Malloch said he was motivated to write Spiritual Enterprise by Sir John Templeton, his mentor, who comes from a town I lived in for a few years, Winchester, Tennessee. Templeton in his later years founded a research institute close by, on Sewanee Mountain, adjacent to the University of the South.
"I feel defenders of capitalism have missed the key concept of virtues," said Malloch, a"nd the concept of calling - a theological concept whose basis has been forgotten - of which we need to remind ourselves. Those who question the benefits of capitalism must also be shown examples where an ethical implementing of capitalism is wholly consistent with moral, ethical and spiritual reasoning."
Social capital is enhanced by interactions and relationships within society, according to Malloch, while spiritual capital is enhanced by a completely different relationship with a higher power.
"A business flush in spiritual capital will generate the virtues of faith, hope and love," said Malloch, listing several of the more than 60 examples of servant leadership from Chick-Fil-A and Herman-Miller to Interstate Battery and several public firms.
He also spoke of the differentiation of the hard virtues of perseverance and leadership, as well as the softer virtues of humility and compassion.
"These softer virtues exist," said Malloch, "in American business. My mentor, Sir John, taught me the virtue of gratitude, saying that it does not represent weakness, but rather lightness, openess and strength."
Additionally, the concept of primary and secondary virtues, as well ad Plato's heirarchy of virtues, are gaining merit within organizations - and even the lecture hall.
A second edition of the book will be forthcoming, after the release of Thrift in early Novmeber, which Malloch calls one of the forgotten virtues.
"The companies with spiritual capital have been around for a long period of time," said Malloch, noting that about 40% of the companies in the examples were privately held. "There may be more strength or ease to keep the founder's virtues within the company's long-term DNA in a private company, but I hope to use the additional research to explore leadership as a virtue as well."
Malloch posits that leadership is a a quality potentially contained in everyone in an organization, but stressed that a leader must equally be a "good listener and follower"to actively maintain leadership.
iPhoned
"To be sure, there have been a number of robber barons - perhaps 2% - to allow a continual perpetuating of the claim against capitalism," said Theodore Roosevelt Malloch, PhD. "But I ask you if this the norm, and does it negate the qualities that we and others around the world enjoy from capitalism?"
"Which is it? This is, as my friends in logic are keen to say, this is a key decision mechanism," said Malloch. "Is it possible that a key number of businesses can be constructed in a way that counters the narrative of anti-capitalism?"
Malloch said he was motivated to write Spiritual Enterprise by Sir John Templeton, his mentor, who comes from a town I lived in for a few years, Winchester, Tennessee. Templeton in his later years founded a research institute close by, on Sewanee Mountain, adjacent to the University of the South.
"I feel defenders of capitalism have missed the key concept of virtues," said Malloch, a"nd the concept of calling - a theological concept whose basis has been forgotten - of which we need to remind ourselves. Those who question the benefits of capitalism must also be shown examples where an ethical implementing of capitalism is wholly consistent with moral, ethical and spiritual reasoning."
Social capital is enhanced by interactions and relationships within society, according to Malloch, while spiritual capital is enhanced by a completely different relationship with a higher power.
"A business flush in spiritual capital will generate the virtues of faith, hope and love," said Malloch, listing several of the more than 60 examples of servant leadership from Chick-Fil-A and Herman-Miller to Interstate Battery and several public firms.
He also spoke of the differentiation of the hard virtues of perseverance and leadership, as well as the softer virtues of humility and compassion.
"These softer virtues exist," said Malloch, "in American business. My mentor, Sir John, taught me the virtue of gratitude, saying that it does not represent weakness, but rather lightness, openess and strength."
Additionally, the concept of primary and secondary virtues, as well ad Plato's heirarchy of virtues, are gaining merit within organizations - and even the lecture hall.
"The book, which sold 25,000 copies in its first version, is being translated into French and Chinese, as we speak," said Malloch. "Additional research has been done in the meantime, including cross-discipline work being done between Yale's school of business and its school of divinity, to look at 24 real case studies of the benefits of spiritual capital."
A second edition of the book will be forthcoming, after the release of Thrift in early Novmeber, which Malloch calls one of the forgotten virtues.
"The companies with spiritual capital have been around for a long period of time," said Malloch, noting that about 40% of the companies in the examples were privately held. "There may be more strength or ease to keep the founder's virtues within the company's long-term DNA in a private company, but I hope to use the additional research to explore leadership as a virtue as well."
Malloch posits that leadership is a a quality potentially contained in everyone in an organization, but stressed that a leader must equally be a "good listener and follower"to actively maintain leadership.
iPhoned
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Kingsport wins small business award
[Update Nov 3, 2009, 3PM Eastern: Ugh. CNN Money made an error. Apparently this has happened before, and the community took a proactive approach.]
[Update Oct 14, 2009: A growth rate of almost 44 percent over four years seems a little high, even for a “most improved” award. The methodology of the numbers deserve a second look to confirm, which I’ll do when I return from my business trip to San Francisco and London. Still, congratulations to Kingsport for getting national recognition of the City and the Chamber's joint program!]
Kingsport, TN, my adopted home town since late 2002, is number 1! The new CNN Money small business poll ranks Kingsport first—by a long shot—in the Fastest Small Business Growth category, which measures growth from 2004–2007.
The national recognition for Kingsport is especially exciting for me, personally, because I worked with the Kingsport Area Chamber of Commerce from 2004 to 2006 to create and implement a business plan for the Kingsport Office of Small Business Development and Entrepreneurship (KOSBE).
The Chamber sought my participation partially for my work with tech startups and small business incubation and partially for my work in technology transfer and assisting large businesses looking to provide additional benefits for employees being downsized. (The KOSBE plan was funded both by the City of Kingsport and a local Fortune 500 company in the process of offering early retirement lump sums to a number of executives and senior managers.)
In June 2004, when we completed the initial business plan, the Chamber's CEO asked me to become a Chamber employee to implement it. Instead, we agreed on a twelve-month contract to launch the program and find a permanent successor to run it.
The KOSBE program experienced significant growth over the initial 20 months (I extended my contract to 20 months at the request of the CEO, who was called up for a year in Fallujah). In mid 2006, we found a successor, Aundrea Wilcox, who has continued to grow the program, and I went on to help launch the MountainSouth World Trade Center (the first non-metropolitan WTC).
The KOSBE program has been a great success, and I’m glad to have been a part of it. Is Kingsport the best place in the country to start a business? I would say “yes!” It’s great to see the city get the recognition it deserves, and I can attest to the quality of Kingsport as a place to run a small business, which I've done now for almost 8 years.
[Update Oct 14, 2009: A growth rate of almost 44 percent over four years seems a little high, even for a “most improved” award. The methodology of the numbers deserve a second look to confirm, which I’ll do when I return from my business trip to San Francisco and London. Still, congratulations to Kingsport for getting national recognition of the City and the Chamber's joint program!]
Kingsport, TN, my adopted home town since late 2002, is number 1! The new CNN Money small business poll ranks Kingsport first—by a long shot—in the Fastest Small Business Growth category, which measures growth from 2004–2007.
The national recognition for Kingsport is especially exciting for me, personally, because I worked with the Kingsport Area Chamber of Commerce from 2004 to 2006 to create and implement a business plan for the Kingsport Office of Small Business Development and Entrepreneurship (KOSBE).
The Chamber sought my participation partially for my work with tech startups and small business incubation and partially for my work in technology transfer and assisting large businesses looking to provide additional benefits for employees being downsized. (The KOSBE plan was funded both by the City of Kingsport and a local Fortune 500 company in the process of offering early retirement lump sums to a number of executives and senior managers.)
In June 2004, when we completed the initial business plan, the Chamber's CEO asked me to become a Chamber employee to implement it. Instead, we agreed on a twelve-month contract to launch the program and find a permanent successor to run it.
The KOSBE program experienced significant growth over the initial 20 months (I extended my contract to 20 months at the request of the CEO, who was called up for a year in Fallujah). In mid 2006, we found a successor, Aundrea Wilcox, who has continued to grow the program, and I went on to help launch the MountainSouth World Trade Center (the first non-metropolitan WTC).
The KOSBE program has been a great success, and I’m glad to have been a part of it. Is Kingsport the best place in the country to start a business? I would say “yes!” It’s great to see the city get the recognition it deserves, and I can attest to the quality of Kingsport as a place to run a small business, which I've done now for almost 8 years.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)