"It Couldn't Be Done"
Next time someone tells you something can't be done, remember this inspiring poem by Edgar Guest (1881-1959).
Somebody said that it couldn't be done,
But he with a chuckle replied
That "maybe it couldn't" but he would be one
Who wouldn't say no till he'd tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.
Source: The Manager's Book of Quotations (New York: Amercian Management Association, 1989).
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Somebody said that it couldn't be done,
But he with a chuckle replied
That "maybe it couldn't" but he would be one
Who wouldn't say no till he'd tried.
So he buckled right in with the trace of a grin
On his face. If he worried he hid it.
He started to sing as he tackled the thing
That couldn't be done, and he did it.
Source: The Manager's Book of Quotations (New York: Amercian Management Association, 1989).
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Greenspan's List of Corporate Villians
Federal Reserve chief Alan Greenspan delivered this spring's commencement address to graduates of the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School in Philadelphia. In stressing the need to preserve the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, Greenspan reminded the audience that corporate greed is not new, and he referenced three notorious scoundrels who were the forerunners to the likes of Bernard Ebbers, Hank Greenberg, and Jack Grubman. "To be sure," said Greenspan, "the history of world business, then and now, is strewn with Fisks, Goulds, Ponzis and numerous others treading on, or over, the edge of legality." So who were these three early believers that, in business, anything goes?
James Fisk was a one-time cotton smuggler and circus worker. Jay Gould worked as a store clerk and a surveyor's assistant before becoming a railroad speculator. Together, the two men tried to corner the gold market in 1869 and were responsible for the original "Black Friday." Fisk and Gould bought huge amounts of gold and gold futures, driving up the commodity's price, and they enlisted President Grant's brother-in-law to convince him not to interfere with the scheme. On Friday, September 24, 1869, after realizing the men had duped him, Grant ordered the sale of $4 million of government gold, causing gold prices to fall sharply. The crash ruined thousands of investors.
Carlo "Charles" Ponzi was an Italian immigrant living in Boston in 1920. He promised investors that he could double their money in ninety days by purchasing U.S. postal coupons in Italy for a fraction of face value, and then selling them for full value in America. He rewarded early investors with "returns" that were actually the cash of later investors, and the ploy convinced even more people to give him their money. Forty thousand people invested over $15 million in his scheme before it collapsed.
Greenspan told the Class of 2005, "Our system works fundamentally on trust and individual fair dealing." But like Fisk, Gould, and Ponzi, too many of today's business leaders lack those values. Without mentioning names, Greenspan said, "We need only look around today's world to realize how valuable these traits are and the consequences of their absence."
"Material success," said Greenspan, "is possible in this world, and far more satisfying, when it comes without exploiting others. The true measure of a career is to be able to be content, even proud, that you succeeded through your own endeavors without leaving a trail of casualties in your wake." Amen to that.
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James Fisk was a one-time cotton smuggler and circus worker. Jay Gould worked as a store clerk and a surveyor's assistant before becoming a railroad speculator. Together, the two men tried to corner the gold market in 1869 and were responsible for the original "Black Friday." Fisk and Gould bought huge amounts of gold and gold futures, driving up the commodity's price, and they enlisted President Grant's brother-in-law to convince him not to interfere with the scheme. On Friday, September 24, 1869, after realizing the men had duped him, Grant ordered the sale of $4 million of government gold, causing gold prices to fall sharply. The crash ruined thousands of investors.
Carlo "Charles" Ponzi was an Italian immigrant living in Boston in 1920. He promised investors that he could double their money in ninety days by purchasing U.S. postal coupons in Italy for a fraction of face value, and then selling them for full value in America. He rewarded early investors with "returns" that were actually the cash of later investors, and the ploy convinced even more people to give him their money. Forty thousand people invested over $15 million in his scheme before it collapsed.
Greenspan told the Class of 2005, "Our system works fundamentally on trust and individual fair dealing." But like Fisk, Gould, and Ponzi, too many of today's business leaders lack those values. Without mentioning names, Greenspan said, "We need only look around today's world to realize how valuable these traits are and the consequences of their absence."
"Material success," said Greenspan, "is possible in this world, and far more satisfying, when it comes without exploiting others. The true measure of a career is to be able to be content, even proud, that you succeeded through your own endeavors without leaving a trail of casualties in your wake." Amen to that.
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JAL Restores Profitability While Risking Passenger Safety
On May 8, a Japan Airlines flight from New York to Tokyo made an emergency landing in Sapporo, Japan. The Boeing 747, carrying 355 passengers, lost cabin pressure and went into rapid descent. There were no reports of injuries, but the incident was the latest blemish on the airline's safety record. In January, a JAL flight attempted to take off from a Korean airport before obtaining clearance from air traffic controllers. In recent months, Japan's transport ministry has issued reprimands to the airline for operating a flight without working escape slides and for repairing landing gear on a plane using the wrong parts.
On May 9, JAL's chair Isao Kaneko announced his resignation, and the airline admitted it had focused too much attention on punctuality at the expense of safety. A JAL internal analysis of recent incidents blamed increased emphasis on on-time performance and a fall in overall safety awareness. The airline has promised to refocus attention on safety.
JAL lists five basic principles in its mission statement. The first is to prioritize safety and quality. The second is to think and act from their customers' standpoint. Both are noble values. But apparently, while trying to think like its customers, JAL believed they would rather arrive on time than have the airline take precautions to ensure that they arrive safely.
Perhaps customers and employees will forgive JAL's leaders for these safety indiscretions--after all, the leaders were only trying to please passengers with on-time service. But, in the same press release announcing Kaneko's resignation, JAL reported a 10 percent growth in revenue and a return to profitability. Clearly, on-time performance is more profitable than safety.
I'm willing to bet, if JAL had asked their customers what they were really thinking, passengers would have preferred arriving safely to arriving fast. But more importantly, to truly Live By the Values They Profess, organizations must adhere to all of their values, not just those that help turn a profit.
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On May 9, JAL's chair Isao Kaneko announced his resignation, and the airline admitted it had focused too much attention on punctuality at the expense of safety. A JAL internal analysis of recent incidents blamed increased emphasis on on-time performance and a fall in overall safety awareness. The airline has promised to refocus attention on safety.
JAL lists five basic principles in its mission statement. The first is to prioritize safety and quality. The second is to think and act from their customers' standpoint. Both are noble values. But apparently, while trying to think like its customers, JAL believed they would rather arrive on time than have the airline take precautions to ensure that they arrive safely.
Perhaps customers and employees will forgive JAL's leaders for these safety indiscretions--after all, the leaders were only trying to please passengers with on-time service. But, in the same press release announcing Kaneko's resignation, JAL reported a 10 percent growth in revenue and a return to profitability. Clearly, on-time performance is more profitable than safety.
I'm willing to bet, if JAL had asked their customers what they were really thinking, passengers would have preferred arriving safely to arriving fast. But more importantly, to truly Live By the Values They Profess, organizations must adhere to all of their values, not just those that help turn a profit.
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Why Newspaper Circulation is Really Down
According to the Newspaper Association of America, circulation fell 1.9 percent at major U.S. newspapers in the six months ending in March. When things take a turn for the worst, the first question any good diagnostician asks is, "What changed?"
Newspapers were quick to blame one change: the establishment of the National Do Not Call Registry for the decline in circulation. In 2000, telemarketing generated 43 percent of all new newspaper subscriptions sold. Last year, that figure dropped to just 31 percent. But is that the real cause of weakening circulation?
Last week, Tampa Tribune reporter Brad Smith resigned after admitting to making up parts of a story published by the newspaper. Smith was just following in the footsteps of Jack Kelley of USA Today, and Jayson Blair of the New York Times: both reporters lost their jobs after they were found to be plagiarizing and fabricating their stories. Newspaper management expressed outrage. After all, scandals involving the accuracy of newspaper reporting are bad for circulation.
Then, six months ago, the Securities and Exchange Commission began investigating reports of fraudulent circulation reporting practices in the newspaper industry. Last year, the Dallas Morning News disclosed that it had overstated its 2003 newspaper sales. Then, New York tabloid Newsday had to revise its circulation figures, acknowledging improper reporting practices. And, the Chicago Sun-Times admitted to having inflated its circulation numbers for years, and reduced its published circulation by 23 percent. Now, not only are reporters making up stories, but the newspapers themselves are inflating circulation numbers to justify charging higher advertising rates.
Newspaper circulation is falling because reporters and management are losing credibility. And newspapers should not be surprised if employees mistrust their leaders, are ashamed of their organization's behavior, or begin to leave. Today, more than ever, leadership credibility means consistency between an organization's spoken values and its leaders' actual behavior. So even the keepers of the free press must Live By the Values They Profess.
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Newspapers were quick to blame one change: the establishment of the National Do Not Call Registry for the decline in circulation. In 2000, telemarketing generated 43 percent of all new newspaper subscriptions sold. Last year, that figure dropped to just 31 percent. But is that the real cause of weakening circulation?
Last week, Tampa Tribune reporter Brad Smith resigned after admitting to making up parts of a story published by the newspaper. Smith was just following in the footsteps of Jack Kelley of USA Today, and Jayson Blair of the New York Times: both reporters lost their jobs after they were found to be plagiarizing and fabricating their stories. Newspaper management expressed outrage. After all, scandals involving the accuracy of newspaper reporting are bad for circulation.
Then, six months ago, the Securities and Exchange Commission began investigating reports of fraudulent circulation reporting practices in the newspaper industry. Last year, the Dallas Morning News disclosed that it had overstated its 2003 newspaper sales. Then, New York tabloid Newsday had to revise its circulation figures, acknowledging improper reporting practices. And, the Chicago Sun-Times admitted to having inflated its circulation numbers for years, and reduced its published circulation by 23 percent. Now, not only are reporters making up stories, but the newspapers themselves are inflating circulation numbers to justify charging higher advertising rates.
Newspaper circulation is falling because reporters and management are losing credibility. And newspapers should not be surprised if employees mistrust their leaders, are ashamed of their organization's behavior, or begin to leave. Today, more than ever, leadership credibility means consistency between an organization's spoken values and its leaders' actual behavior. So even the keepers of the free press must Live By the Values They Profess.
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Author George Brymer's comments about the leaders who get it, and those who never will.
