The Purpose of Business

For more than 80 years, business has operated by the scientific model and lived out the belief that the purpose of business is to create and control wealth. As this model has worked less and less well for people, we have modified it, applied management and motivation theories to it, and tried every structure from hierarchy to teams to try to keep the model effective. However, in all our efforts, we have not seriously questioned the model itself or the core belief on which it was built.

At Lazarus, we question the model and its core belief. If people are thought of as expendable cogs which can be replaced on a whim, is it any wonder that it is so difficult to attract and retain a high quality workforce? We believe that any model that treats people as primarily a means to an end is no longer relevant or a good fit for today's business. Although we do believe that financial reward is ultimately a result of business, we seriously question if it is the purpose of business. We believe instead that the purpose of business is to provide a venue for all people to have healthy and productive relationships out of which the creation of new goods, services, information, or knowledge is possible. People working together to put new things in the world will result in wealth, and perhaps more importantly, will result in the ongoing creation of knowledge -- the only way a developed country can grow economically.

We also question the belief that the financial bottom line is all that's important to the life of an organization. Seven critical business needs must be attended to by every member of the organization if the organization is to become a healthy ecological community. In other words, if it is to be a stable, productive, and adaptable organization. In our model, every member of the organization must take ownership of these critical needs if the business is to respond quickly to its environment. This means learning and practicing leadership and management as functions.

As a foundation for practicing these functions, the people, who are the life of the organization, must learn new membership skills so that healthy relationships can be built and maintained. When relationships are healthy and what's critical to business is being looked after, the unique giftedness of each member can find expression and the energy of all members can be focused on collaborative creation - putting new goods, services, or information in the world.

And you know, an amazing thing about our new model is that it can work in any organization regardless of whether it uses a collaborative, participative, or traditional approach. Lazarus is not a fit for everyone…we don't try to be. However, if you are ready to try something really new and exciting, give us call.