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Under the Expert Talk Series launched by Industry Interface Cell of IIM Indore, Professor Raj Sisodia, Distinguished Professor of Global Business and Whole Foods Market Research Scholar in Conscious Capitalism Inc. delivered a Guest Lecture on June 21, 2016. Professor Sisodia spoke on the topic ‘Conscious Capitalism’.
The talk revolved around the fact that capitalism has been extraordinarily successful over the past two centuries at raising human living standards, life expectancy and life satisfaction. But many see it is extracting too steep a price for the prosperity it has enabled.
Professor Sisodiya began his talk discussing about the concept of conscious capitalism in India and how significant innovations have affected the capitalism globally as well. ‘Industrial revolution and renaissance have been a technological breakthrough in the international capitalism’, he said. He also mentioned that capitalism can help eradicate poverty, as the number of people living on just $ 1.25 per day has come down from 100% in the year 1800 to just 20% in the year 2012. Hence it can be totally removed in the next 30 years. ‘The key challenge is not unequal distribution of income, but unequal freedom’, he noted.
Mentioning the multiple tectonic shifts which took place, he noted how the world has changed and people have evolved at a rapid rate. ‘Yet we continue to use the old system for operating businesses, treating them like army or military organizations, as those were the only big organizations in the ancient times. We have turned organizations and companies into a war and this is what needs to be changed’, he said.
Discussing about technological development, Professor Sisodia said that today we are smarter, educated, and intelligent and connected. What the bigger organizations need today is a mixture of feminine and masculine values in the correct proportion. ‘There has been a rise of compassion, gentleness, nurturing, care, etc. in the companies as compared to domination, aggression, competition. And this is what makes a great leader’, he said.
He concluded his talk mentioning that we need to do something worth and earn money as well, rather than just do something to earn money. We need to take care of stakeholders, be it society, customers, employees, investors and environment as well, rather than just focusing on how a company would earn profit. ‘Build the company with love and care, not fear and stress’, he concluded.
This was followed by a Q&A Session.
About Professor Sisodia:
Professor Sisodia is also Co-Founder and Co-Chairman of Conscious Capitalism Inc. He was previously Trustee Professor of Marketing and the Founding Director of the Center for Marketing Technology at Bentley University. Raj has published nine books and over 100 academic articles. He has consulted with and taught executive programs for numerous companies, including AT&T, Nokia, LG, DPDHL, POSCO, Kraft Foods, Whole Foods Market, Tata, Siemens, Sprint, Volvo, IBM, Walmart, Rabobank, McDonalds and Southern California Edison. He is on the Board of Directors at The Container Store and a trustee of Conscious Capitalism Inc.