The ‘Great Reckoning’: Work isn’t workingĪs Mercer pointed out, “the ‘Great Resignation’ is more of a ‘Great Reckoning.’” Work isn’t working. The exception? “It is the low-wage, frontline, minority and lower-level employees who are more likely to want to leave.” While opportunities for higher wages certainly influence their decisions, the compounding stressors of the pandemic are really driving change. On the other hand, in a recent survey, American consultancy Mercer found that the percentage of respondents who were giving serious consideration to resigning was about similar to pre-pandemic norms. And as you say, “Workers seizing new opportunities is a good thing: It demonstrates their confidence in a growing economy.” Second, you note that “The quit rate in the US and the UK is at historic highs.” Indeed, the ‘Great Resignation’ has commanded many column inches during the past year. Stakeholder engagement presents profound opportunities for leading companies. Open engagement with activists, advocates, and members of the media is precisely how corporate leaders can (re)build trust with stakeholders both outside and inside their organizations. You name that COVID-19 has “exacerbated polarization in many Western societies.” We suggest that CEOs have a fundamental role to play in redressing that polarization. On a closer read of your letter, we found a number of assumptions, assertions, and positions that we would invite you to reconsider-with a view to bolstering the long-term, stakeholder-centricity of your firm and to embracing the imperatives of the next economic paradigm.įirst, you suggest that “Political activists, or the media, may politicize things your company does.” You suggest such outside actors-read: stakeholders-may “hijack brand to advance their own agendas.” We’re concerned with the adversarial implication here, in the context of a stakeholder-centric company and economy. In short, we fear you’re trapped in an expiring paradigm…. Until business recognizes System Value, it will remain locked in an outdated world view-and create as many problems as it solves. But Shared Value is just the first step toward a new, stakeholder-centric framing of business. Certainly, your advocacy for purpose-based business marks a shift in thinking about the role of business in society. Yet you clearly convey in your letter that stakeholder engagement is a means to an end, and that the end, as you see it, is a free market with shareholders as the ultimate beneficiaries. We commend your commitment to the net zero movement. You acknowledge in your letter this year the importance of our global biosphere as an essential stakeholder in our companies’ operations. However, we take a broader view than yours on the ultimate aim of this stakeholder view of value creation: We disagree that it is only “in order to deliver long-term value for its shareholders.” Stakeholders include customers, employees, suppliers and resellers, investors, and the communities in which companies operate. We of course agree that “In today’s globally interconnected world, a company must create value for and be valued by its full range of stakeholders.” Indeed, Junxion Strategy is dedicated to helping leaders build the success stories of a stakeholder-centric paradigm of business-a ‘next economy,’ as we like to think of it. Media coverage of your letters ensures they are read by the business leaders to which they’re directly addressed, as well as by entrepreneurs, consultants and advisors, business students, and the concerned public. As a globally recognized thought leader, and as the CEO of the world’s largest wealth management firm, you are of course in a significant position of influence. Thank you for your recent correspondence.
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