How to Shrink Inequality

"Some inequality of income and wealth is inevitable, if not necessary. If an economy is to function well, people need incentives to work hard and innovate. The pertinent question is not whether income and wealth inequality is good or bad. It is at what point do these inequalities become so great as to pose a serious threat to our economy, our ideal of equal opportunity and our democracy." A classic article by Prof Robert Reich in The Nation.

Economics, in the last decades, has been harmful for most people?

As Chang  had put it in Guardian: “Economics, as it has been practised in the last three decades, has been positively harmful for most people.” !! “Economists are not some innocent technicians who did a decent job within the narrow confines of their expertise until they were collectively wrong-footed by a once-in-a-century disaster that no one could have predicted.” Far from being an inward-looking, hermetic discipline, economics has been a hugely powerful – and profitable – enterprise, shaping the policies of governments and companies throughout much of the world. The results have been little short of disastrous” . A great book, a must read, for all thought leaders. Ha-Joon Chang, Prof at the University of Cambridge,  is one of the leading heterodox economists and institutional economists specialising in development economics . 

A Professor at Cambridge that  is analytically debunking the myths of capitalism in his book “23 Things They Don’t Tell You About Capitalism”. A must read.

See more here. 

Strategy for Good: Inspiration and advice for young social entrepreneurs

The goal of the initiative, called “Strategy for Good”, is to make it easier to young social entrepreneurs to develop  a strategy and produce  an effective business plan, through a mentoring program, at no cost to all selected applicants.

The initiative that was  launched by the Costas Kataras Organisation ,  supports young social entrepreneurs - involved in the marriage of good business principles with the desire to solve social problems, improve the environment, and empower communities- that need advice and / or  mentoring in order to develop proper Strategy and/or Business Plans. Applicants could send email to: info@costaskataras.org

Brands in the Edge of Ethos : You Want Success? Start a Mass Movement.

There’s a new talk in the marketing world now and it has to do with… movements. The goal is to use people as Media, exploit their causes  and , ultimately, find and  push their buy button in their brain . How? This is where  the book ‘Uprising: How to build a brand and change the world by sparking cultural movements’ explains how brands can become part of something that is changing the advertising industry. Author Scott Goodson is founder and chairman of the agency, StrawberryFrog. Perhaps a good read for selfish  brands with a vision to become tiny hidden persuaders  and manipulators, exploiting the so-called Social (?) Media.

After Capitalism? “Nice Capitalism” ... of course !!

Economist Jayati Ghosh has seven dreams for an ideal society, which would root out inequality but preserve cultural differences. You can see the relevant video in Guardian here. She is one of the world's leading economists, professor of economics at Jawaharlal Nehru university, New Delhi, and the executive secretary of International Development Economics Associates (Ideas). What a pleasure to see today such leading figures in economics to embrace ideas presented in a book published in 2008 , before the economic crisis, that forecasted the turmoil .. Have you read the book “Nice Capitalism” ? The book was proved prophetic, since with his own way ( and with it’s underlined message “Nice Capitalism…WANTED! ) forecasted in time the collapse of the American economic hegemony and it’s model of “Selfish” Capitalism - characterized by greed, arrogance but also indifference for the increasing inequalities in the society - and the supremacy of “Nice” Capitalism that is adopted mainly in countries of Europe , based on the ancient Greek – centric idea of “metron” (measure) in life. 

Brands in search of a more enlightened form of capitalism?

 “Conventional capitalism is dying with yesterday’s industrial era model of growth in permanent decline. Increasingly, the advantage will cede to companies that practice a more enlightened form of business, paying more than just lip-service to environmental and social agendas. According to the Irish Times, that’s the central premise of Umair Haque’s thesis in his book which offers a blueprint for a better form of capitalism.

Capitalism, he says, is founded on the equation of creative destruction. The cornerstones of capitalism as we know it systematically and chronically undercount the costs of destruction and over-count the benefits of creation. The result is an oversupply of “bads” with too much economic destruction for too little creation. The sum of over-destruction and under-creation is the deep debt a society incurs. Umair Haque  is clarifying the goal of the 21st Century brand, which is to create what he calls “thick value”—value that matters, value that lasts and value that multiples, not the “thin value” of the 20th Century firm that is artificial and unsustainable, often gained through harm to or at the expense of people, communities or society. It is about making a positive difference in people’s lives, not merely having a differentiated product and brand. The New Capitalist Manifesto by Umair Haque is  also available at Amazon.

Restoring Confidence in Brands: What’s your Big Idea?

”Business (and brands ? ) is a necessary evil in society… only the worst sorts of people are involved”, Plato,  the ancient Greek philosopher used to say.

Corporate power, accumulated by the “Arrogant Capitalism” of the inequalities, is dramatically deteriorating, also as a result of the economic crisis. “Disaster Capitalism”(see Naomi Klein’s latest book) and the School of Chicago failed. Now  “Nice Capitalism” is wanted (see at Amazon Costas Kataras latest book here). Long before the crisis, a number of studies showed a growing lack of trust in business and their leaders,. For example, only ¼ of the public trust them. Further on, brand importance goes also steadily down. For example, brand loyalty today is only 9%, from 40% some years ago. The crisis also showed that the notion of “Powerless State” is a myth. Society is now pressing harder for a new “corporate social contract “ and the new issues for the businesses are endless, including: regulation, environment, unions, privacy, safety, off shoring, civil society, governments as owners, consumer activists, NGOs and others. How modern corporations and brands could respond to these strategic and organizational challenges, beyond simplistic CSR, “Green Wash” practices and the recently invented by brands concept of “social missions in the supermarket shelf? . And this, at a moment where “shareholder value is growing increasingly irrelevant as government and society take a larger role in shaping business and industry. This discussion is about sharing ideas. So I am very pleased to ask you what is your big idea on how to restore confidence in brands. Please join the conversation by providing your best idea by sending an email at: costas@costaskataras.org

Focus on “Nice Brands”:Patagonia - Nice Lessons from a Reluctant Businessman

Before the recent global interest in  corporate social responsibility (CSR), there is already a  sustainable company called Patagonia. Yvon Chouinard, the founder and owner of Patagonia, Inc is one of the few business leaders who understand that if your business is not part of the answer, then your business is part of the problem.

Patagonia grew out of a small company that made tools for climbers. Alpinism remains at the heart of a worldwide business that still makes clothes for climbing – as well as for skiing, snowboarding, surfing, fly fishing, paddling and trail running. These are all silent sports. None requires a motor; none delivers the cheers of a crowd. In each sport, reward comes in the form of hard-won grace and moments of connection between us and nature.

The company’s values reflect those of a business started by a band of climbers and surfers, and the minimalist style they promoted. The approach it  takes towards product design demonstrates a bias for simplicity and utility. Patagonia, amongst others,  uses a portion of  its sales to support grassroots groups working to make a real difference .  To make it short , Patagonia is one of the most representative Nice Brands that are emerging in the new brand ecosystem.

Find out more about Patagonia’s environmental initiatives here. In 2001, Yvon also co-founded 1% for the Planet, an alliance of businesses that contribute at least 1% of their net annual sales to approved environmental organisations.

Arrogant Brand? You're Dead To Me!

It’s almost three years now, and before the economic crisis, that I wrote my book “ Nice Capitalism- A Secret Journey to the Death of the Arrogant Brant”. Since then, continuously and steadily new research data and studies are confirming my theory. Recently, I was very pleased to read an article in S+B magazine presenting fresh data from a survey in the context of Young & Rubicam’sd Asset Valuator (BAV) . According to the article “among the once-prized brand attributes that declined in this period were:“exclusive” (down 60 percent), “arrogant” (down 41 percent), “sensuous” (down 30 percent), and “daring” (down 20 percent). On the opposite side of the scale, the brand attributes Americans found more important as they began to sense the impending recession and then suffered through the crisis were: “kindness and empathy” (up 391 percent), “friendly” (up 148 percent), “high quality” (up 124 percent), and “socially responsible” (up 63 percent). But if the Death of the Arrogant Brand is an inevitable reality, which are the new emerging species in today’s Brand Ecosystem? The book explains why a number of emerging forces could have devastating effects on brands and lead to the rise of a new species of brand, “Nice Brands” and “Nice Capitalism”, two developments that are clearly interrelated, as the book explains, which usually lead to happier people and more “Happy Nations”, particularly in Europe. Find more in my book here!

The two pillars of any successful Community investment

Financial commitment and active engagement are the two pillars of any successful community investment according to experts. . And Bell Canada seems to know well this rule.
The largest communications company in Canada, has just published its 2010 Corporate Responsibility Report online. The report meets the Global Reporting Initiatives GRI–G3 A+ reporting level.
Among other things, the report details Bell’s leadership in sustainability including the company’s recognition from the FTSE4Good Global Index, the Jantzi Social Index and Oekom Research.
The report features detailed performance data and qualitative descriptions of several key corporate responsibility initiatives. The five main sections of this electronic report address the issues that are most relevant to the company’s business and to its stakeholders.
However, of particular interest is the company’s Community program : a five-year, $50‑million Bell Mental Health Initiative and other community investments. Bell people are actively engaged in their communities. In addition to giving time and money to worthy causes, many employees are playing leadership roles, mobilizing themselves and others by getting involved. The company encourages community involvement through internal campaigns, volunteer grants, payroll and credit card deductions, and organizing volunteer teams. See more and download the report here.

Harvard now(?) wonders how to fix Capitalism: Replace it with … Nice Capitalism stupid!

Anna Farmery of the Engaging Brand is producing another top class podcast, talking about how business can help create social value. This time in an interview with Mark Kramer, founder and managing director at FSG and a Harvard CSR fellow, who co-authored the article with Michael Porter of Harvard Business School. So sad that Harvard was not aware about the research work and the book “Nice Capitalism” by Costas Kataras ,published before the 2008 financial crisis, that was prophetic. Do not miss this podcast, click here.