Best Business Leaders Make Better Decisions.
Last week, I was attending a Section 4 presentation about Netflix and how their leadership team made decisions. The presenter shared a problem they grappled with and asked us what decision we’d make before sharing what Netflix chose to do.
The problem: They noticed .05% of subscribers had not logged into their Netflix account in over 12 months and accounted for $100 Million in fees. The choices they considered were:
a) Do nothing and keep collecting the fees
b) Email them to remind them they had an account
c) Auto unsubscribe everyone who didn’t log in after 12 months.
Who are the best business leaders to take notice of?
Who are the best business leaders to take notice of?
To find out, I asked people to share a few stories about businesses who are putting people before profits and making it work. I encourage you to read through these stories and support these businesses who have social agendas and treat their people with respect and decency instead of like workhorses to be used up and replaced.
Read stories of those who made the hard choices
Anthony Gruppo — Retired CEO of Marsh Commercial
A few years ago, I helped Anthony write and publish his book Pushers of the Possible about the lessons he learned as a servant leader. When I analyzed his personal brand on social media, I discovered that those whom he led respected him and had good things to say about him. In the conversations we had, I was impressed by his philosophy and concern for others when he had to make the hard decisions.
Read more about Anthony Gruppo
We Sell Mats
- Chanel Campos the Customer Experience Team Lead at We Sell Mats
We have assisted customers with researching other brands to find a product if we didn’t have what they were looking for. The more important thing becomes helping that customer find a product that is right for them!
Read how they put customers first
Big Businesses Who Did the Right Thing
- Shel Horowitz at Going Beyond Sustainability
Shel Horowitz a green/social entrepreneurship profitability consultant, speaker, and author of Guerrilla Marketing to Heal had some interesting stories to share about some big companies who have done the right thing.
I see over and over again, that companies don’t have to sacrifice anything except short-term profit when they choose to do the right thing. If done properly, their ethical actions will make them MORE profitable, not less — because it will be MUCH easier to retain existing customers and attract new ones, and sometimes because expenses actually go down.
Read about the corporations he thinks do it right.
EVO3 Olive Farms
Cristina Madruga Executive Vice President, Master Cannabinologer EVO3 CBD Oils
EVO3 Olive Farms is a brand built on social responsibility and environmental sustainability. Our motto “Taste Love, Give Life” encompasses these ideals. We endeavour to keep intact the thread that binds us all by seeking to meet human needs and to help alleviate the conscious eradication of our environment by incorporating these values in our day-to-day operations.
Read about their corporate social responsibility
Old Bull Lee
- Lee W. Johnson Founder — Old Bull Lee
“A few years ago, we sent in a fairly significant order to the factory that we contract with for “cut & sew”, it was the largest order that we had ever placed. When they came back, they looked fine, but they were wrong.
How they made they hard choice
Conex Boxes
- Teri Shern Cofounder of Conex Boxes
We were faced with the choice of profits or ethics route because of the pandemic. One of our suppliers, who creates a specific component for our containers, was having issues with not enough supply and huge demand. This meant our supply chain took a hit along with an increase in costs. Plus, we faced a higher demand for our containers due to the shipping container shortage, which meant we could raise our prices.
In my opinion, there is no other company worldwide as ethical and responsible as Google when it comes to community impact and employee well-being. Since becoming the global tech giant, Google has taken several environmentally friendly initiatives to ensure environmental sustainability. For instance, a large amount of data is produced at Google data centers every day. When Google started expanding its data centers for effective data management, it came across the challenge of environmental conservation because these data centers require lots of energy and they emit dangerous gasses into the atmosphere. However, instead of preferring money, Google decided to remain ethical and designed its data centers in such a way that they use 50% less energy than that used by their competitors. Moreover, the American tech giant has also committed $1 billion to renewable energy projects to reduce environmental impact and keep this earth the safest place to live. Recognizing the company’s eco-friendly efforts, Reputation Institute declared Google the best CSR organization in 2018.
- Sara at US Title Loans
DGW Brands
I am replying to your HARO request looking for businesses that put people before profits. DGW Branded is a print promo supplier that was built on the ideology that business should be used for good, rather than benefitting a select few shareholders.
Mellow Pine
When I began Mellowpine, there was a time I was offered a lump sum of investment from an investor. But I knew there was dirt on him and that he would make me adjust/compromise the values and ethics I have for this firm. He has a history of manipulating the board of other firms and playing around with the quality. So, I declined his offer and went forward with whatever funding I had. But, doing the right thing is the actual ‘profitable’ thing in the long run. I do not regret declining his offer because if I wouldn’t have, Mellowpine wouldn’t be a quality oriented firm.
iHaul Junk
- Matt Fitch Founder @ iHaulJunk, Inc.
Howdy! Matt Fitch here, founder and CEO at iHaulJunk, Inc. In the last year and a half, I expanded my business to major cities across the country and grew my business over 300%. My model is to subcontract our jobs to independent haulers, which we recruit and train. About a year ago, I hired the best salesman, or so I thought.
Brand reputation before profits
There are lots of these types of stories out there in the marketplace and consumers hold a lot of power. They can choose to support the businesses who make hard choices and do the right things, or they can choose to support the big names with bigger egos. It is up to us to define what makes a leader the best business leader and what
