In the cut and thrust of daily working life, news can easily become background noise. Gaza one minute, Venezuela the next and on to Iran. You take an interest, but the pressure’s on. You focus on the daily practicalities - what’s right in front of you.
But in recent work with Kiwi SMEs, we’re seeing a change.
Getting firms ‘on board’ with these ideas used to include explaining a whole series of long-term threats and considerations. The challenge was to try to convince organisations to care about them. Climate change “could” do such and such in a few decades’ time. Shortages of water, raw materials and more “may” occur if we didn’t change how we work.
That’s not so needed anymore. Partly because the latest generations of workers tend to be better informed, and partly because, sadly, the impacts we warned of are here and now.
So these days we often start sessions by just saying “Have you seen the news?” And working from there.
Threats and concerns that used to be distant in time and space are now right up in our faces. Because, bluntly, timely action has not been taken to prevent them. Extraction and pollution in all forms continues to rise on our little planet. The headlines scream out the inevitable results of this. Difficulties meeting demand, scrabbling over resources, a ratcheting up of tensions.
It’s all too easy to dismiss this as “it was ever thus”. Or blame the avalanche of negative information from the internet and social media. But the facts speak for themselves.
You will have heard about the current shift away from the (very loosely) rules-based order of the post-war era. We've had 80 years without much direct conflict between major industrialised nations. But now the big players are poking one another and flexing their muscles. Russia is at war in Europe. China is eying Taiwan. The US is shaking off the last tattered vestiges of its gloves.
There’s a lot more we could add, to try and convince you of the dangers. But, to be honest, we no longer have to. Because you’re not just seeing those dangers in the daily news. You're seeing them in your everyday work.
Unprompted, professionals in our sessions are speaking up. Food producers experiencing sky rocketing costs for supplies like coffee and chocolate. Facilities managers struggling for insurance, or clearing up after repeated fires, storms and floods that are supposed to be once-in-a-lifetime events. Overseas contacts frightened for their future, or even their immediate present. Disruptions in shipping through conflict zones. Currency fluctuations and financing difficulties.
The Covid-19 lockdowns triggered much of the current economic downturn. IRD arrears and overdue Covid-era loans factor in almost all the current wave of business liquidations. But, in our experience, it’s not sufficient to see this as an almost ahistorical isolated “black swan” event. That ignores both where it came from, and where we’re going. Global pandemic risks continue to grow, along with many others.
We needn’t be overwhelmed. We can brake and steer. We still have control over our destiny. This isn’t a choice between ignoring reality or panicking. We can make informed, professional choices. We don't want to see one more Kiwi family business blindsided by extreme weather events we've been predicting for decades. Or buffeted by tariffs, export constrictions and demand shifts that we can help you forecast and plan for.
We’ve found that businesses of all sizes can benefit from an effective framework for global threat assessment. It needs to be based on the material realities of each business and sector, but need only take a few hours to install.
Contrary to what some might expect, it’s actually a fun, enlivening process. Because it guides what you need to assess, and what you don’t. It transforms your experience of your news stream.
So, would you like to get beyond ominous rumblings and vague foreboding? How would it feel to be enabled to identify clear signals and opportunities you feel confident responding to? In these turbulent times that can make or break a business, and the people who rely on it.
That’s what sustainability really means.
If we’ve convinced you that this is something worthwhile, get in touch for a free initial chat. If not…have you seen the news?
You can access a wealth of advice, support and connected sustainability opportunities by joining SBN now, if you haven’t already.
And if you have a specific challenge that you want to connect to, contact the sustainability consultants in our advisory service for a free initial assessment.