Forum Post: Occupy: Corporate America

Corporate America we depend on you to create good paying jobs, career opportunities, job training, B2B support of our small businesses and nonprofit organizations, endorse and produce “Made in America” products, and are proud law abiding “citizens.” In this scenario, everyone wins. Your revenue and market share grows, your employees grow, and your community prospers. Unfortunately, that dreamy, idealistic scenario may be part of the past go-go years.

Corporate America you have changed. You rarely go local to get involved in your own community. You choose to remain in an inward-thinking, insulated environment, leading to inadequate strategic decision-making. Instead of hiring, you lay-off or downsize. Instead of strategizing about product/service improvements, you misfire and diminish customer demand, which eats into your profits. Or the government creates regulations that lay on additional responsibilities. Now you look for a way out of your dilemma, to get you back on track, ignoring those who helped you grow. While doing so, you hoard, cut back, stop hiring, claim bankruptcy or disappear from the landscape. These often preventable insecure reactions birth movements and protests, such as the Occupy Wall Street movement.

We’re not mad at you personally…just perturbed that you allowed these avoidable events to transpire under your watch. None of us are perfect, but if we allow situations to worsen, they escalate and evolve into deeper, far-reaching issues.

• Millions of American schoolchildren are receiving free or low-cost meals for the first time as their parents, many once solidly middle class, have lost jobs or homes during the economic crisis-- 11 states, including Florida, Nevada, New Jersey and Tennessee, had four-year increases of 25 percent or more. (NY Times 11/29/11)

• As noted in Newser (11/19/11) Census Bureau reported 1 in 3 Americans are either poor or “near poor” (those just above the poverty line who can barely pay their bills). Defying stereotypes, roughly half are whites living in the suburbs, and 28% have full-time jobs. (http://www.newser.com/story/133689/1-in-3-americans-poor-or-near-poor.html)

• Mid November study findings show a widening gap between the wealthy and the poor with a shrinking middle class (NY Times 11/15/2011).

As with Occupy Wall Street, Corporate America, while you decide on your next moves, we should do what we can to help our own communities. Support local businesses and nonprofits, become a bearer of gifts to those in need, or even start a Clean Sweep Initiative. Do something to make a difference in someone else’s life. Besides, the Bible says “No man is an island.” So, we’re all attached to each other whether we like it or not. Cause and effect permeate our lives.