About 15 years ago I qualified as a facilitator of “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” based on the book by Stephen Covey, and of all the common sense this programme contains, one concept struck me then and keeps recurring, particularly during these difficult times; the idea that we are responsible for our actions and we are responsible for their consequences. I recall debating with the other people on the “train-the-trainer” course how far the responsibility for our consequences extended and the degree to which one’s actions can be attributed, for example if their impact couldn’t have been predicted.
Take the current financial crisis and the actions affecting many businesses such as the appalling behaviour of the banks refusing to lend or to continue to lend to customers of many years standing, whose businesses go under as a consequence – are the banks, and let’s get personal here, are the largely faceless individuals running the banks responsible for job losses, personal debts and all the other consequences of a failed business? Some might think they are. Does their responsibility extend further to the social consequences that might arise from those individuals who are made redundant subsequently experiencing financial hardship? And this is where the debate got both heated and convoluted – how far does this responsibility extend? If the child of someone who lost their job had to change schools and is beaten up on their first day for having previously been to the “posh” school should the banker be held accountable? And if this child becomes so traumatised that they can no longer continue with their education and ends up spending the rest of their life underachieving can Mr. Faceless be charged with this too? Like many a good debate no conclusion was agreed although we did reach a consensus that any consequence of an action that could have been anticipated is the responsibility of the individual. This of course allows the weasels to have the stock get-out clause, “how could I have known?” to which I would reply, “why didn’t you consider the possible outcomes?”
I’m concerned that many businesses are going to face some pretty unpleasant consequences of their current actions, for example from employees, suppliers and of course customers who have not been treated properly and will be off like a shot when the economy improves. I don’t think it’s just the banks that are acting inappropriately, nor do I believe it’s only extreme behaviours that produce extreme responses or consequences. Let me pose some questions for you to consider – if your supplier has managed to reduce their prices by 20, 30 or 50% what do you think of their historical pricing and will you accept a return to the old prices in due course? If an employee has been working extremely long hours, evenings and weekends, do you expect they will continue to do this, without reward, when things improve? If a supplier has reluctantly accepted payment stretching to 60, 90 or even 120 days will they allow this to continue when their order books are full?
I believe that the way we behave now will have a significant impact on our businesses in the future. By taking some small actions and making the time to communicate effectively we can do ourselves a power of good. For example, letting employees know that their current efforts are appreciated and when they can expect a return to normal hours and pay is a whole lot better than the view I’ve heard some people express that “they’re lucky to have a job”. Many of us have had to manage our cash flow very carefully but advising suppliers that they will get paid promptly, step by step, is so much more likely to retain their support than the attitude of “let them experience some of our pain”. Perhaps spelling out to clients that the discount they are receiving will be unsustainable in the long term, is one of the most important things to do now and then agreeing with them when prices can start to rise again – otherwise this recession is going to last even longer than the most pessimistic forecaster will have us believe.
Step 3 of HEMP, The Highly Effective Marketing Plan, is to consider the consequences of achieving or not achieving your desired result before the marketing communications commence. It’s always been an important step but currently it is possibly the most significant. I believe we need to ask ourselves very carefully, “what are the consequences of doing this?” and then ask again, “what are the possible unintended consequences?” before taking any action.
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