What if the key to a successful, lasting business is a different approach? In his thought-provoking book ‘People Over Profit: Break the System, Live with Purpose, Be More Successful,’ Dale Partridge offers a unique perspective. He suggests that by prioritising people and ethical principles, companies can not only attain long-term success but also create a positive impact. This isn’t just a theoretical idea – it’s supported by real-world success stories from companies like Whole Foods, Chick-fil-A, Patagonia, REI, and In-N-Out Burger, which have remained true to their values and inspired others to follow suit.
Partridge outlines four distinct eras of organisational behaviour:
- The Honest Era: This is the initial stage where companies prioritise people over profit and embrace honesty, transparency, and authenticity. Successful businesses like Whole Foods, Chick-fil-A, Patagonia, REI, and In-N-Out Burger have managed to stay in this era as they have grown.
- The Efficiency Era: During this phase, companies focus more on efficiency and profitability, often sacrificing quality, service, and integrity. The book cites McDonald’s as an example. The company shifted its emphasis from “Quality, Service, Cleanliness, and Value” to prioritising efficiency and cost-cutting.
- The Deception Era: This is the phase where companies partake in deceptive practices, putting profit before integrity. As a result of prioritising profit over people, they may face scandals and a damaged public image.
- The Apologetic Era: This stage sees companies endeavouring to rebuild trust, transparency, and compassion following the Deception Era. The book states that this era is about “restoring confidence, trust, health, faith, hope, mission, quality, and accountability.”
The main message is that successful, honest companies can remain in the Honest Era as they grow, while many others become trapped in a cycle of efficiency, deception, and the need for redemption. The book offers theories and provides practical principles that successful, honest companies follow. The following principles serve as a roadmap for businesses to adopt and implement in their operations, making the seemingly daunting task of prioritising people over profit more manageable and attainable.
- People matter: Treat all stakeholders with equal empathy and respect, including customers, team members, and vendors. It’s like delivering excellent customer service at a local cafe, where everyone is welcomed warmly and cared for, which can build genuine connections and trust.
- Truth wins: Embrace honesty and share the truth in a clear, holistic, and concise manner to engender consumer loyalty. It is like a reliable weather forecast that people can depend on. Just as knowing the true weather conditions helps people plan their day, transparent and truthful communication from businesses enables consumers to make informed decisions.
- Transparency frees: Adopt a transparent business model to liberate themselves to pursue innovation, sharing as much information as possible with consumers. It is like a see-through glass jar filled with cookies, where customers can clearly see what they are getting. This transparency fosters trust and loyalty, just like being able to see the cookies can make people confident in their choice.
- Authenticity attracts: Cultivate a distinctive organisational style that truly reflects the company’s character and personality. Just as the interior design of a cosy coffee shop mirrors its atmosphere, your organisational style should embody your company’s essence and inspire employees and customers to explore their own identities.
- Quality speaks: Protect the tangible physical merits of goods and showcase offerings in a way that visually displays their quality, providing authentic personal interactions and experiences to foster brand loyalty. Protecting the tangible physical merits of goods, much like a baker displaying fresh bread in a bakery window, visually demonstrates quality and attracts customers through genuine experiences.
- Generosity returns: Offer free goods or services to attract a wide network of loyal stakeholders, as seen in Gillette’s practice of giving free razors to teenagers. Offering free resources or tools to potential clients can be likened to a company hosting an open house event, where it showcases its expertise and offerings.
- Courage sustains: Never succumb to fear and make bold business choices, even if it means stepping out of one’s comfort zone. It can be compared to a mountaineer who takes calculated risks to navigate a challenging peak. Similarly, businesses can sustain themselves not only by making decisions but also by making brave decisions and venturing outside their comfort zones.
These principles can be applied to various areas of business, including product development, customer service, and marketing. By prioritising people over profit, companies can build trust, foster loyalty, and ultimately achieve long-term success. For example, consider the case of Patagonia, a company that has consistently prioritised environmental sustainability over profit and yet managed to grow and thrive. This demonstrates the importance of placing people and the planet first in business strategies.
The book ‘People Over Profit’ offers a compelling vision for building successful businesses by prioritising people over profit. However, it’s important to acknowledge that implementing these principles may not be without challenges. In a highly competitive market, focusing on people may seem counterintuitive. Yet, by embracing these seven core beliefs, companies can break the cycle of dishonesty and apology, stay in the Honest Era, and achieve long-term success. By being aware of these potential challenges, your business can be better prepared to navigate them and stay on the path to success.
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