The Role of Business Leaders in Creating a World of Co-Prosperity and Lasting Peace in the 21st Century

Jim Edgerly

Who are the architects in building a world of lasting peace? The contribution of business leaders is essential and significant in three specific ways. First, through transfering to the realm of government and religion, the practices of openness, efficiency, accountability, and service to others that characterizes the culture of world class business management. Secondly, through responding to economic opportunities that emerge when obsolete economic, religious, cultural or national barriers can finally be penetrated. Thirdly, by proactively participating in projects that contribute to the elimination of barriers to peace and prosperity.

First - Transfer of Business Practices

The stereotype of the businessman may once have been that of a shady character clutching a secretive black briefcase. However, in the rapidly evolving global economy, such stereotypes have long been obsolete. The realm of investment management within efficient global financial markets, and the realm of business management within competitive global markets for goods and services may well be the most sophisticated, creative and efficient of all human activities.

That is not to say that these arenas are without waste, corruption or inequities. However, the requirements of success in global markets served by business managers have been chastening. The barriers and biases that remain standing in most other spheres of human endeavor (and particularly in the realms of politics and religion) fell away long ago in the competitive world faced by business leaders.

In industries facing truly competitive markets, biases and barriers based upon race, religion, nationality, and culture have, for the most part, given way to the ruthless discipline of low cost, high quality, responsive customer service, teamwork, continuous technical innovation and continuous process improvement.

Additionally, a type of religion has become virtually universally established within the world of business. That is the “religion” of customer service, customer focus, customer satisfaction. This highly principled ethic of focusing every activity within the firm to benefit the customer has become deeply ingrained among business managers. As a consequence, it has become difficult for business leaders to respect the management culture that exists within government, church, public education, health care, or academia that is so often based primarily on self preservation rather than service to others. Furthermore, the convergence of global markets is now leading towards an increasingly unified business world - with essentially one international language (English), two global currencies (the US Dollar and the Euro), one communications network (the internet), and one measurement system (metric). Increasingly, it is only differences in local labor costs and natural resource endowments that enable supply-side advantages to remain in place.

These continuing advances in modern business management are consistent with the essential principles of our leading religious traditions – principles of service, personal sacrifice, stewardship, and universal values. In fact, this recognition of the broad commonality between Judeo-Christian values, principles and behaviors within the market driven economy is the underlying thesis of the ground-breaking book Wealth & Poverty, written by George Guilder. The management ethics and disciplines practiced by business leaders can make an important contribution to building a world of co-prosperity and lasting peace. These ethics and disciplines are already impacting other areas of human endeavor that are committed to building a unified world of peace. For instance, religious leaders throughout this country attend seminars lead by business executives that are designed to teach such skills as team leadership, continuous process improvement, strategic planning, institutional learning, and project management.

The critical factor that prevents business leaders from taking a leading role in building a world of co-prosperity and peace relates to underlying motivation. The underlying motivating factor in the world of business remains unchanged – that is personal financial gain, whether it be for the investor, the business manager, the worker, the supplier or the customer. The world of co-prosperity and lasting peace must be built by leaders motivated by a vision which embodies the principle, “living for the sake of others” so as to transcend mere personal benefit.

Furthermore, the paradigm that motivates the thinking of the business leader is the competitive marketplace, where there are continuous winners and losers, successes and failures. The paradigm that motivates leaders in the world of co-prosperity and peace is not based on competition. It is the paradigm of the family, which is the ultimate model of unity motivated by a transcendent love for God and one another. We should expect the culture of business to evolve in this century, and as it does, the motivation and sense of responsibility of business leaders will mature. During this century, we can expect an ascendancy of spiritual values and spiritual leadership that can have a profound impact on the underlying motivation of our business leaders.

Second - Responding to Economic Opportunity

With the continuous advance of prosperity in certain segments of the advanced economies, there has been a corresponding increase in economic inequality, both within the advanced economies, and between the advanced economies and the so called “developing economies” which in most cases are not really developing at all. This increasing disparity must ultimately be appreciated by business leaders for what it really is, -a LOSE-LOSE outcome. Having spent about fifteen years working in so called “developing economies” and “transition economies”, I do not ascribe the cause of this growing inequality to any particular economic system. I have seen too much corruption and graft, too many civil wars, too many failed governments, too much religious and nationalistic bigotry all leading to massive, wholesale economic inefficiency and waste and to a systematic lack of savings and investment to believe that the cause of poverty resides in an economic system.

The fact is that personal values and morality are a more fundamental driver of human behavior than physical needs and desires. Therefore, politics absolutely trumps economics. The role of business leaders is NOT to absorb the cost of reforming dysfunctional political systems and battling religious ideologies. We all know that one of the basic laws of nature is that investors abhor the risk associated with political and economic instabilities.

Conversely, business leaders love opportunity. Opportunities exist where there is inefficiency and asymmetry. The massive flow of capital and factors of production to China over the past twenty years, and the corresponding global redistribution of labor and management opportunities is a dramatic example of how co-prosperity can be established where there is both economic opportunity caused by asymmetry (in this case an asymmetry of quality adjusted production costs) in an environment of perceived political stability.

As China has opened itself to the global economy, we hope the widespread interpersonal exchange and sharing of information will lead this previously isolated country to lasting peaceful and prosperous relations with its trading partners. While this may not occur in this generation, it may occur in the next.

There may be no other economic opportunity on the scale of the privatization of the Chinese economy. However, each time business leaders are allowed to take advantage of economic disequilibria, an overall increase in welfare can occur.

One example is the massive welfare gain, both to Mexico and to the US of the freer flow of immigrant labor from Mexico into the United States. Stay tuned for another demonstration of this phenomena - occurring in our own hemisphere – when the stampede of capital, technology and managerial expertise begins to overrun Cuba the day after Fidel Castro finally expires.

In a world that is tragically divided by national boarders, ethnic rivalries, and religious barriers, there await countless opportunities for business leaders to foster lasting co-prosperity and cooperation as these tragic and temporary barriers continue to erode.

Third - Proactive Projects for Peace

Business leaders have access to scarce resources and expertise that can have a great impact on creating a world of co-prosperity and peace. The vision and inspiration behind specific peace initiatives-be they in the US, in the Middle East or in Africa, may come from outside the business sector. UPF is one such source of visionary initiatives. However, the execution of such initiatives is often beyond the capability of that visionary. Business leaders bring with them access to financial resources, project management capability, and networks of influential leaders who can turn vision into reality. Of course, most business leaders are primarily focused on business survival, not building a world of peace. During the dark days of my last business venture, I would not even spare the funds to support the local marching band. But fortunately, that business is now healthy and prosperous and in a position to generate not just monthly profits, but also goodwill. Still larger companies are visible corporate citizens and have good reason to re-invest part of their profits to promote peace and prosperity in the world around them. Corporations have already learned this principle of win-win outcomes for their community. To the spiritual leader, this is not a theory but a law: serving others brings blessing.

Participation in “extracurricular projects” may be on a personal basis for business leaders, or may be on a corporate basis through grant writing or gifting. In either form, such philanthropic activity is generally accompanied by technical expertise, in the form of advisory involvement or board participation. Certainly, there is an opportunity cost to providing funds plus technical expertise to support specific peace initiatives. Therefore, it becomes the responsibility of the project partners (such as UPF) to provide excellent project design and project management. In conclusion, business leaders are unlikely to take the initiative in creating a world of co-prosperity and lasting peace. Peace initiatives are led by visionaries-either political leaders or spiritual leaders. The role of business leaders is to provide support for the visionaries by responding with disciplined management practices, innovation and resources that perhaps can only be found from the value-adding realm of business.

This article is from a presentation made by Jim Edgerly at a “Business Leaders for Peace” conference held in Seattle, Washington, May of 2006. Mr. Edgerly is an Ambassador for Peace living in Boston, Massachussetts.

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