Until now.

My sister-in-law, Manira “Sam” David, was recently diagnosed with advanced stage breast cancer. Of course it was such a shock to our whole family, and to all those close to her. If you’ve ever had a trauma such as this happen to a family member or friend, you know the series of emotions that pass through your mind and heart very quickly: concern, confusion, anger, more concern, fear, helplessness.

And you ask yourself the questions: What do I do? How can I help? When should I call? What’s happening? You don’t want to call if she doesn’t feel up to talking, or if a lot of others are calling, too. If you’re in a different city, like I am, then you can’t go visit, or sit with her during a chemo treatment.

From Day 1, Sam started posting her progress and news about her treatments and doctor visits on Facebook. Every time there was an update, there was a post. With each chemo treatment I was able to see how she responded, if she did well, if she was sick. She documented the wonderful support system she had at work, when and if she was able to work, if the chemo was having the desired effect.  And she also had a text campaign going as well, sending a text update after each treatment or doctor visit.

At one point, when she knew she would start losing her hair, instead of asking everyone to shave their head, too, Sam instead asked that everyone send her a lock of hair for her scrapbook. The hair thing was especially traumatic for her and for all of us that know her. I’ve known Sam for over 30 years, and she’s only ever had very long, very thick, very gorgeous hair.  We all knew that might be the worst part for her.

But instead of not posting about it, or trying to hide it, she documented the whole process. It was beautiful! I saw a big, bright smile instead of someone feeling sorry for herself.

At first, I was selfishly happy to be able to see her progress and updates without having to worry about when to call. And, I was also happy to be able join the many, many comments of encouragement and love.  But then it dawned on me, that Sam was able to use a social media and text “campaign”, so to speak, to help her healing process. It took bravery and courage to publicize her sickness, every detail, for the world to see. With every post, came tons of comments, words of encouragement, love, and prayer. It seemed to me that it allowed Sam to receive all this good energy, and it allowed all of us who care so much to feel like we were contributing in some small way to making her feel better and offer support. What a beautiful use of social media. There are many Web sites out there where you can create a page and where people can go for updates, but with everyone on Facebook, and with a text-enabled smart phone, what better way to communicate?

Sam, you’re brilliant! You are going to come out of this strong and healthy. And I think that everyone who knows you appreciates, like I do, that we are able to share in your journey. It’s not quite over yet, but I look forward to hearing about the next steps. Thank you. I think your courage and bravery will be an inspiration to others. And from one social media professional to another…great job with that!

As I stopped to read and reflect on each of his quotes, I couldn’t help but realize that most of what he said then applies now. I’m as frustrated as every other American about the gridlock in Washington, the focus on campaigning and getting re-elected at the expense of forward progress, and the struggles of most citizens to find work, support their families, and keep their homes.

I think that Mr. Obama should take the next meeting of the politicians (notice I say “politicians,” not Congressmen and women, not Senators, not State Representatives—because really for the past few years they’ve only acted as politicians, not as representatives of the people). And he should hold session at the FDR monument, walking them by some of Roosevelt’s quotes, let them pause and consider the meaning, and then say “Let’s do that.”

“Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort.” ~First Inaugural Address, March 4, 1933.
As Mark Glover, Catalyst prc, wrote in a recent blog: Let’s start making things in this country again. Let’s retrain those that have skills from yesterday to be able to work today. Let’s imagine, innovate, design…and then build. Let’s do that.

“The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.”~Second Inaugural Address, January 20 1937.
Corporate leaders: instead of standing still, afraid to hire, how about being the one to take a step forward? How about not considering your bonuses, or what you’re reporting to the Board, or waiting for the economy to turn around, and figure out a way to train those who want to work, and putting them to work? How about designing a new product to make, discovering an alternative energy to develop, or simply taking the load off of those doing the work of three, and hiring two more? Let’s do that.

“But while they prate of economic laws, men and women are starving. We must lay hold of the fact that economic laws are not made by nature. They are made by human beings.”~Nomination Address at the Democratic National Convention of 1932, July 2, 1932.
Mr. President and all of you politicians: while you are arguing, campaigning, pointing fingers, and looking out for your own best interests, people are starving. Children are hungry. Families are homeless. Fathers have no means of income. Mothers are running out of ways to stretch a dollar. Try acting as human beings, in the interest of your fellow citizens. Let’s do that.

“No country, however rich, can afford the waste of its human resources. Demoralization caused by vast unemployment is our greatest extravagance. Morally, it is the greatest menace to our social order.”~FDR Chat, September 30, 1934.
In case you haven’t noticed, Occupy Wall Street has turned into Occupy Main Street, in cities across the country. We are on the verge of social disorder. How about considering what we can do in our companies, and not wait for the new administration, still over a year away? And for those of you that have a year left in office, you still have time to do something. You’ve argued and bickered away the past three years; let’s at least get something started and stop wasting our human resources. Let’s do that.

In his recently released book, Linchpin (Penguin Group Publishers, New York, 2010), Seth talks about how to become invaluable to your organization. When you are a Linchpin, you are not merely an employee, rather you are an artist. You:

• Provide a unique interface between members of the organization

• Deliver unique creativity

• Manage a situation or organization of great complexity

• Lead customers

• Inspire staff

• Provide deep domain knowledge

• Possess a unique talent

You are indispensable.

I strive to be a Linchpin with every client, and on every project. And I have proudly surrounded myself with Linchpins on my team. Each one of them creates art, speaks out, and is indispensable to me. We do great work—bold, progressive, thought-provoking, and effective.

I’ve also gotten fired from jobs for being a Linchpin. Leaders of organizations need us in their companies if they want to move forward and create amazing products and services. But very few appreciate the Linchpin traits once faced with them. Trust me, I know from experience! In an article from the Harvard Business Review (written quite a few years ago, but still oh so relevant) entitled “The Subordinate’s Predicaments,” by Eric H. Neilsen and Jan Gypen, the authors talk about differentiation vs. identification, with the dilemma being to come across as being very different from the superior in terms of skills, aspirations, values, and professional concerns, or to identify with the superior as someone to emulate. Linchpins typically come across as being very different. Which is okay (as the article states) as long as this is identified early in the relationship. The authors also imply that superiors many times embrace the difference. This might be so, but many subordinates, especially in these trying economic times, are so protective of their jobs that they would rather not risk it and fly under the radar. Our economy has stifled many would-be Linchpins. That’s the first thing that Seth misses.

The second, and more critical thing missing from his inspirational teachings has to do with Human Resources—H.R., you know, the ones that do the hiring. Becoming a Linchpin is way easier once you are secure in your position within a company. But it is virtually impossible to get hired in as a Linchpin with the radically broken recruiting and hiring system that has evolved in this country. Because, you see, unless the H.R. “manager” or “coordinator” is a Linchpin herself, and/or has been given direction from the leaders of the organization to seek and find the most innovative, interesting, forward-thinking, problem-solving, inventive employees, us Linchpins are doomed! We have to start our own businesses (which is what I did). Sadly, the recruiting process has been reduced to pulling only those applications from an online, standardized, electronic format that have the greatest number of keyword matches. Really? That’s who corporate leaders want? Imagine this conversation:
Boss: “We’re losing market share. Our products are not keeping up with what our customers want. Employee Number 85, what can we do to reenergize this brand?”
Employee 85: “Brand reenergizing wasn’t a key word on the job description. I don’t have that word on the key word section of my resume.”
Boss: “But you must be listening to what our customers are saying! What are the trends?”
Employee 85: Sorry, boss, listening to customers isn’t a key word match for me. But customer service is! Maybe we need better customer service?
Boss: “No, our customer service is fine, it’s our brand image that needs help. Our competitors are releasing new products, or being innovative about how they’re marketing the same products, or finding new customers. Maybe we should add an organic food line. Organic is big. We’re getting killed by Whole Foods.”
Employee: “My experience is in highly-processed packaged foods. You wanted an exact key word match for experience. I don’t know anything about organics.”
Boss: “Well, can you learn?”
Employee: “I had the required educational level based on the employment application. The employment application didn’t ask if I’d be willing to do continuing education.”

In his book, Seth recognizes this broken system and recommends that companies hire according to interesting projects that the candidate has done, or innovative solutions to problems or challenges. The problem is, that doesn’t fit within the current system; there’s no way to capture any of that in an online form, and H.R. needs to come up with a different way to screen candidates.  Instead of a multiple choice questionnaire, for example, how about a freestyle box that accepts media files, like a PDF, video, or photo portfolio?

Several months ago I received a phone call from a recruiter in the wood flooring industry who had my name come up in her search for a Director of Sales for her client’s division in Seattle. I was happy to talk with her. After I did, it didn’t appear that the company was as progressive as I would hope, but they convinced me to talk with the Vice President that I would report to. After a series of rather mundane questions, and those that had already been covered several times in previous conversations, I noticed that the VP wasn’t really saying anything. He wasn’t asking any questions. Since we were on Skype, I could see him, so I knew he was present. Finally, as we were wrapping up, he asked, “Do you have experience with P & L statements?” I was pretty paralyzed, caught off guard by not only the irrelevance of the question, but that it was the only one he could come up with. Had I been thinking clearly I would have responded with, “Wouldn’t you rather know how I would go about motivating my sales team in such a difficult time for the building industry?” or “Can I tell you my ideas for incorporating sustainability initiatives into your company so that you can compete for LEED projects?” or “Here are some suggestions for innovative and engaging customer retention strategies we could try.” As soon as he asked me the question, I knew that a Linchpin would not be appreciated in his company.

So, to Seth Godin I make the plea, for your next book, inspire H.R. managers and recruiters to be Linchpins themselves, so they can then pick them out of a crowd and hire them!

After TIME magazine featured Mark Zuckerburg on their cover as the 2010 Man of the Year, Fast Company magazine followed with an article about the power of Facebook as part of an overall marketing strategy.  “By any measure, 2011 is the year Facebook must be taken seriously by each and every brand. Not because of what it’s worth as a company, but because of how that valuation reflects the potential impact of Facebook on every industry including entertainment, advertising and sales of all types.”

But while I will always answer the question, “Do I really need to do social media with my business?” with a resounding “Yes!”, you must commit. Worse than not including social media in your  marketing mix, is setting it up, and then not being consistently and frequently engaged.  Because marketing is no longer about “telling” your customers what you think they should know; it’s about being actively involved in a conversation.

Social media allows you to listen to what your customers are saying, about you, about your products, and about your competitors. More often than not, when they ask you a question they are really telling you something. And the more you respond to their comments and inquiries, the more you appear to really care about what your customers want. It’s almost like free market research!

This from the Razorfish Digital Outlook Report “Current media mix models are falling down; they are based on older research models that assume media channels are by and large independent of one another. As media consumption changes among consumers, and marketers include more digital and disparate channels in the mix, it is more important than ever to develop new media mix models that recognize the intricacies of channel interaction. Since online media is often linked closely with other media (TV can drive search, search can drive magazine usage and so forth) we need to  adopt new ways of measuring to account for the true complexity of media in the digital age.”

For small businesses in particular, there may still be room for radio, tv, and newspaper ads. But paid media is still just that―paid.  If you are going to include this type of marketing in your mix, make sure that you are driving product and brand awareness through social media.  When you offer a coupon in the newspaper, offer the same coupon through your Facebook page, and then tweet about it! Think about offering a Groupon instead of a traditional coupon, and offer points on FourSquare when someone shows up at your place of business to use their Groupon that they learned about through Facebook!  You may find that your marketing spend becomes smaller and smaller as you become more proficient at using various social media platforms.

Connecting Content With Consumers

At a recent digital media training workshop sponsored by the American Marketing Association, and featuring one of my favorite trainers, Dana VanDen Heuvel, a.k.a. the Marketing Savant, he reminds us that in this new economy: We’re not product companies. We’re not service companies.  We’re INFORMATION companies.

“We live in a conversation driven world. Even if your brand is not an active user of social media, your customers and your potential customers are. This is revolutionizing the way brands have to think about themselves and how they choose to compete. In a conversation driven world, the real threat is not  conversation itself, but commoditization. Unless customers have reason to talk, they won’t. And a brand that generates little or no conversation will be killed by one that does.”~Paul Worthington, Fast Company magazine.

And Seth Godin, marketing thought-leader and best-selling author of The Purple Cow, Linchpin, and Poke the Box, counsels us to create something that is worth talking about.  When, and only when, you can determine what is different about your product or service, and then get the word out through social media, can  people determine if it’s worth talking about. And if it is, then that’s all the marketing you need! If it’s worth talking about, people will talk, all over the Internet!

Many small business clients will say, “I don’t have time to do all that!”  In this day and age, you don’t have time not to. Really, if you want to reach your customers, then you have to reach them where they are. And they are on Facebook, Twitter, Groupon, and Foursquare.  Especially Facebook. You can’t argue with over 5 million users! And your customers are some of them!  Like managing your e-mail and everything else, plan your strategy, execute it in a systematic manner, and you can accomplish what you need to in an hour a day.

I always recommend starting with a blog, because a blog is where you can write about any topic, with any number of links and images, without length restrictions.  From there, create a series of Facebook posts, excerpts from your blog. And a few times a day, choose short, key phrases from the blog and post as tweets. And then scroll down your twitter feed to see if there are any other relevant news articles or posts to share with your followers.

The key is to engage in a conversation. Take that literally. Listen. Learn. Respond.

Terri Thornsvard, docent MMoCA

During my recent docent training, I shadowed a docent whose personal style somewhat reflects how I like to dress. She was wearing a casual jacket with jeans AND a pair of black suede sport shoes with what I like to call “hardware,” metal shoelace loops. They seemed to fit her well and looked very comfortable, so I searched until I found a pair and bought them. And they, indeed, are comfortable—a good fit.

So to all of my new docent friends—you have chosen to be part of this museum family. Find your comfort level, relax, adopt and adapt the style of others. But above all, find the shoe that fits and wear it proudly.”

Consider Terri’s advice with your personal or product brand. You don’t have to keep changing it for the sake of changing. (See my recent blog, With Branding, Less May Not Always Be More.)  Find the brand image that is comfortable for you, and that your clients or customers respond to.  When Tropicana and the Gap changed their logo and packaging, the backlash from the customers cost them not only money but brand integrity.  Customers were uncomfortable with it.

Another great lesson from Terri’s blog is that you don’t want to copy others. Be your own brand. I disagree with T-Mobile’s current television ad campaign. It’s direct, but way less cool, copy of the brilliant and innovative Mac/PC ads. It doesn’t work for T-Mobile. They’re trying to hard to be clever. It’s not comfortable for me to watch it. I like the Mac and PC guys!

I’m certainly not suggesting that individuals, companies, or products never change. It’s important to evolve with the times. But when you do, think about what’s comfortable—or at least as fabulous as a pair of Louboutins!

From "An Ocean of Plastic"

The ocean is one “away.”  The recent PBS “Need to Know” piece is haunting, but needs to be broadcast frequently and aggressively.  Most people have seen horrific images of plastic and other trash washed up on our shores; but, you have to know that there is a much greater amount that ends up floating around our oceans, suffocating our marine life, and being preserved for infinity amongst the natural habitats.

Other examples of where “away” might be: our parks, our landscape, our forests. Even when we think we’re throwing something away, it might escape, and infiltrate our environment.  This mini-documentary about the epic life cycle of a plastic bag is so well done, and says so much with very little narration.  Here, a plastic bag takes on a life of its own and ends up in “an ocean of plastic” amongst its friends.  Is there humor in this? Yes, in a sad, very true, and poignant way.

It would be nice, and certainly convenient, if our trash would simply disintegrate into nothing, and really go away. But, it doesn’t. And the fact of the matter is that our “away” is “someplace” to our planet’s lifeforms.

But the recent debacle with the Gap trying to change its logo was a testament to the fact that when it comes to your brand, less may not be more. Several companies, including the ones I named above, have tried to…i don’t know…appear more contemporary? Cleaner?  Minimalistic?  Whatever the motivation, none of these things were accomplished.  The result in all cases was an insultingly simple design that was not only  generic, but also an insult to the consumer [and fellow marketers, I might add.]

We are all aware of the impact that social media has on news and business.  Everyone has a voice. Good as well as bad spreads…like a giant global wildfire.  If companies are smart, they will pay attention to the feedback, and in this case, the backlash.

Tropicana was the first to make this very public mistake. Their original, familiar logo was brilliant: a straw stuck in an orange, and a font for the wordmark that spoke of tropical. This worked so well for several reasons. In a split second, the consumer understood that what was in the carton was:

Tropicana's familiar vs. new packaging.

1. Pure—nothing added to the juice from the orange.

2.   Orange juice—not a blend.

3.  Warm, sunny, feel-good—like being in a tropical place; or even on vacation.

4. You will get the same taste and experience from pouring the juice out of the carton as you would from sticking a straw right into the orange and sipping the juice out.

The new carton represented…a glass of orange, or something, juice? Not only was it easy to miss on the shelf, it didn’t say anything about what was inside the carton. And people were looking for Tropicana, not this new generic product. Was there high-fructose corn syrup in it? You wouldn’t know by looking at the carton. Tropicana’s sales plummeted. It was a marketing disaster that cost the company millions of dollars and perhaps their reputation, even if temporarily.

Familiar vs. new Gap logo.

This was a recent enough event that the Gap should have never even gone there with their new logo. And the timing could not have been worse:  In the blockbuster newmovie about Facebook, The Social Network, Mark Zuckerberg’s character spends most of his time in his signature Gap sweatshirt. Gap sweatshirts are cool, or were. Their logo worked as sewn-on letters on a sweatshirt or hat, or a sign for that matter. The new logo design was created with Helvetica Neue font. Really? So I could have designed a new Gap logo in a Word document? I’m going to apply for a job in the marketing department at the Gap.

The Gap’s brand is already suffering as it is.  It is no longer that cool, hip, store where you can always find the perfect t-shirt and pair of jeans, and that was referenced in a Seinfeld episode. It is getting overpowered by the budget retailer, Old Navy, and the slightly more upscale Banana Republic. So, they couldn’t exactly afford a faux pas such as this. They would have been better off to launch a new campaign to reinvigorate the brand, instead of releasing a new logo. Consider the success that Old Spice has had with their viral ad campaign with “the Old Spice guy.”  The brand has been revitalized exponentially, and they haven’t changed the logo or package design a bit. [Gap has listened and pulled the new logo. But the recovery will be painful.]

New MillerCoors logo.

And I have to throw in the new logo from Miller Coors’s merger. (Is that Arial font?) Thankfully, it has not made it onto their beer labels yet, but it’s almost as if someone said, “Hey guys, now that we’ve merged we need a logo for the company. Here’s one that sort of looks like the top of a beer can, and guess what? It can be created in a Word document, so anyone can replicate it!”

If you’re going to rebrand, make sure that the new brand is current, not generic. Simple, not simpleton. Protects your brand, not sacrifices your brand. Says something, not nothing. Can be replicated on a sweatshirt, not in a Word document.

Connie Glover, sustainability advocate

I’ve lived in Charlottesville, VA for about 3 1/2 years, and most people that live here, have gone to school at University of Virginia, or have visited find that this is a really pretty city. I agree, but I must say, it’s also pretty trashy! And I mean that in a literal sense. There is a lot of litter here, everywhere: trash, broken bottles, food, dog poop. And it’s on the downtown mall and public sidewalks where people walk, run, bike with their kids, or push their babies in strollers. I’m ashamed and embarrassed about it, annoyed, and quite frankly, confused. In this day and age where the environmental and sustainability messages dominate the print and airwaves, who litters? Who purposely rolls down their window and throws out their McDonald’s bag, or tosses their beer bottle on the sidewalk, or allows their dog to do their business without picking it up? Who is that unconscious?

I’m a Texan—one of the obnoxiously proud ones—and love the phrase we coined in the 1980s, “Don’t Mess With Texas.” It became the anti-littering campaign for the state, but it also started a movement, giving rise to a new consciousness about what it means to not trash our state, our neighborhood, our country, our planet. And that was over 25 years ago, before “green” became the most common word in the English language.

And when I moved to New Hampshire clean living and respect for the earth was a lifestyle; not because it’s the “in” thing, but because it makes sense. Why would you trash the environment that gives us our food, our air, and our water? The general commitment to recycling, local food, and protecting that which is precious is evident and can serve as an example for the rest of the world. In fact, I featured Keene, NH as a case study in my final Capstone project on Sustainable Communities for my graduate program in Sustainability through Arizona State University. Residents would never dream of throwing away a bottle or can in the trash—it gets recycled—much less on the sidewalk or in the park!

Which brings me back around to Charlottesville. There is no more beautiful place on earth than Charlottesville in the spring, when everything is in

Preston Avenue, Charlottesville, VA

Near the Downtown Mall

bloom with the colors and brilliance of the flowers and leaves.  Unfortunately, many natural plants and shrubs are interrupted with a drink cup or fast food bag, and you may not be able to lift your eyes off the sidewalk where you’re walking for fear of stepping in dog poop to even notice the  cherry blossoms on the branches above you. I’ve heard the term “sustainable city” sort of loosely thrown around here at times; but before we can even begin to spell it, we must start with the very basic environmental concept of not littering! It’s not for lack of trash and even recycling receptacles. And it is certainly not up to waste management or city personnel to clean up after the city’s residents. Have some respect, and “Don’t Mess with Charlottesville!”…or any other city in the world for that matter.

Mark Glover, President, Catalyst prc and guest blogger

By Mark Glover, Guest Blogger

After 45 days and millions of gallons of oil flowing into the Gulf of Mexico I continue to see the focus of criticism, blame, and anger directed at British Petroleum. It is my opinion that this environmental crisis goes far beyond BP. This is not a BP issue, it is an industry issue, a global issue, an environmental issue, and most importantly, a leadership issue.

Like everyone else I have followed closely the events surrounding the oil spill in the gulf, the sudden acceleration of motor vehicles, the contamination and recall of food products, the emergency landing of aircraft in the Hudson River. These events do not happen by accident; they happen because businesses and industries are not in what I call “organizational equilibrium.” By this I mean that there are not as many people or resources ensuring the safety and effective production of goods as there are people and money needed to sell and distribute them. Every industry and business within that industry has responsibilities to uphold a standard of ethics, good manufacturing practices, and to play a role in developing regulations that safeguard the public and environment from catastrophe.

What I expect to see with a catastrophe like the one in the gulf is for leaders not just from BP, but ExxonMobil, Gulf, Chevron, Texaco, Shell, and CITGO to pool their vast technical and financial resources to execute a solution. Instead, what I witness are companies in the same industry going out of their way to distance themselves from the issue and hoping somehow to capitalize on the misfortune of a competitor. Don’t get me wrong here, I have no sympathy for BP or any other oil company that has for decades been taking resources from the earth and reprocessing these materials into products that hurt the earth. But, what I am saying is that this oil spill, the 24 hour news coverage, the underwater video stream of the oil leak that is digitally counting up the number of gallons spewing into the gulf is the beginning of the end for big oil in the U.S. If the other oil producers who are sitting back strategizing about potential increase in market penetration haven’t figured it out yet, they have just lost more than they will ever gain back.

The world is becoming ever more cognizant of the growing environmental impacts we as humans are having on the planet. Events like these drive the need for change and act as the catalyst for the development or refinement of new technologies. At a time when battery operated vehicles, and solar and wind technologies are within the grasp of large scale use and production I do not see any way that this event will not tip the balance of thinking towards the acceleration of alternative energies. I guess there is always a silver lining! This oil spill is not over, and before it is we may see as much as 100 to 150 million gallons of oil dumped into the Gulf. With ocean currents, hurricanes, weather patterns, and animal migrations it will spread far beyond the current confines of the Gulf and consequently have global impacts. Its destruction to the environment, ecosystem, economic vitality, and the cleanup needed to correct it will take decades and cost trillions. Yes, I said trillions.

What is most alarming to me however is not the leak itself, not the lack of industry support, but the lack of true leadership. There always seems to be plenty of time, money, and leadership to clean up after a crisis. Again, this is no longer a BP issue and due to the delay of oil industry leaders to band together and to through their full resources behind, this is it no longer a industry issue. This is national Issue! On Day One the President should have authorized FEMA to take over jurisdiction and create a focused leadership team with BP, Transocean, and oil industry leaders to bear down and execute a solution to this situation. After all of the criticism by our current administration during the election of the former president on his handling of Hurricane Katrina, it is amazing to me that so little effort to expedite a solution or to hold those responsible to task has been done. Here is my message to President Obama, “There is nothing more important going on in the nation than this spill. If you are unable to show the American public that you can lead and deliver results to end this crisis now, like big oil in the U.S., it is the beginning of the end for you and your administration. “

The WFM apron...left behind.

In my first blog in this series, I addressed my experiences at Whole Foods Market from the perspective of  talent management.  This post will address my question, How Sustainable are the Whole Foods Sustainability Initiatives?

During my recent graduate studies through the School of Sustainability at Arizona State University many of my research projects and areas of study focused on global food issues, sustainable agriculture, urban agriculture, and global organic farming practices. So I am able to look at this from a perspective that includes the importance of WFM’s impact on the food industry worldwide!

According to the 1983 Brundtland Commission Report from the United Nations, the true definition of Sustainability is “Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”  While most people think of “sustainability” as environmental, the environmental piece is only one of three. Sustainability in organizations involves environmental operational practices, economic health, and social responsibility―concerns for employees and the community.

Compare this to the Core Values that Whole Foods has built its company on since 1980:

1. Selling the Highest Quality Natural and Organic Products Available
2. Satisfying and Delighting Our Customers
3. Supporting Team Member Happiness and Excellence
4. Creating Wealth Through Profits & Growth
5. Caring about our Communities & Our Environment
6. Creating ongoing win-win partnerships with our suppliers
7. Promoting the health of our stakeholders through healthy eating education.

On the surface, the Whole Foods philosophies and business practices are perfectly aligned with the definition of a sustainable organization. But there are several areas where I found that they may not be:

Whole Foods Market was the first and remains the only certified organic grocer. So you would expect to find a larger selection of local and organic foods. Thanks to WFM other conventional grocery retailers, including WalMart, have started offering a wider variety of organic foods. And it has been a saving grace for so many people with food allergies. Those with dairy, gluten, wheat, and nut allergies, as well as those that are vegetarian or vegan, can meet all of their needs here. Yes, it’s expensive, but after studying the process and expense that farmers must go through to get the certified organic label, it’s explainable.

But, comparing how WFM has traditionally packaged and sold its food, and I’m speaking primarily about the produce, and how it does now, the line between being a “whole foods organic grocer” is becoming quite blurred with that of a conventional grocery store. It’s especially felt in their newer mega-stores. (They have since decided to not go back to a smaller model.) When I shop the produce department, I see the same vegetables wrapped in plastic (so much plastic!!) and stickered with the same UPC code as in any other grocery store. For example, you can no longer buy spinach in bulk (is it the health code, or just that people aren’t buying it as much?). Rather, you must buy the large plastic tubs, reinforced with a plastic band wrapped around it. And I witnessed many shoppers who actually put these plastic containers in an additional plastic bag! Why not? It’s there!

And in the bulk section, there is an equal number of offerings in individual plastic packaging as in the bulk bins. Certainly it’s easier to just grab something already wrapped. And in the bulk offerings, you are putting your selection in a plastic bag anyway.  Same with the water: they have an option to refill your own container with filtered water, but right next to that is an entire aisle of a multitude of water in plastic bottles.

From an environmental standpoint, yes, they do a good job of promoting the “reduce, reuse, recycle” mantra. But any good that does is completely negated when there is an equal offering of plastic-wrapped options.

I understand that in order for a Fortune 500 company that has a responsibility to its shareholders to maintain its value, it must cater to the masses. What a shame for a cool company like this one to lose what it made it so interesting and different in the first place! But, my original question was, is it sustainable? From an economic standpoint, yes. Is it unique? Not so much anymore.

From a standpoint of responsibility to employees and the community, let’s look at community first, and it is a resounding “yes!” But when you look at the development of its people, its talent management, its training and advancement opportunities, it is an equally resounding “no!” And this will hurt them more than they realize. Every year when WFM shows up in the top 25 of Fortune’s Best Companies to Work For, the company description always includes: “Over 1/3 of the workforce is under the age of 25.”  So, is it only a good company to work for if you’re under 25? Everyone knows that WFM allows for individuality, and to the extreme in my opinion. This is one reason that WFM attracts younger employees. The other reason is because the hourly wage is so low, and not many middle-aged workers with families to support can afford it. (See my first blog in this series.)

And while the initial orientation for new employees is comprehensive, it falls apart after that. There is no real opportunity to develop and advance except to just work there for a really long time.

As I described in my first blog in this series, I have witnessed example after example of talented, educated, experienced people with so much to offer be passed over for no apparent reason. Even those of us willing to work for the low wages just to work within the company! I can’t imagine that this doesn’t lead to tremendous turnover, which is expensive to say the least, not to mention difficult to gain momentum for new and interesting initiatives.

For the most part, Whole Foods has a sustainable business model. I would caution that they not become a more expensive Kroger, and that they pay more attention to who and how they hire, train, and promote their people.