Why doing the right thing matters. Click to keep reading…

08 Feb Why doing the right thing matters. Click to keep reading…

For those of you who have read my newsletter articles over the past five years, you may recall that most of my letters have dealt with issues of integrity and the heart. I believe it is critical as the bible teaches that out of the heart flow the issues of life. Out of the mouth the heart speaks. In other words, EVERYTHING you see, hear, say, do and think matters. So when times get tough, like during a global pandemic, it’s more important than ever to be committed to doing the right thing. Living your values is not only the right thing to do; it’s good for business and good for others.

A great example of this came during the Hurricane Katrina crisis. From Ethan Karp’s article in Industry Week – “In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Hancock Bank did something incredible. There was no power for ATMs or credit card machines. Banks were destroyed. People were desperate for cash. So Hancock employees dug dirty bills out of flooded vaults & ATM’s and laundered them. LITERALLY. They washed and dried the cash in laundry machines connected to generators. Then they gave it away. Tens of millions of it. Most of it to people with no ID, who signed IOU’s on scratch paper, promising to pay back the loans. Incredibly, almost all of it was returned. The bank was there when customers needed it most.”

WOW!!! What a testimony to helping their customers by doing the right thing, even when it required hard work and risk. But it paid off – deposits increased in the year after the storm. Hancock didn’t know that in advance – they were committed to helping their customers regardless of the long term outcome. They saw a need in the short term and responded.

Recently we’ve seen other examples of this flexibility and commitment to helping others during the COVID-19 crisis. For instance, New Balance pivoted from making sneakers to PPE masks. Ford shifted from manufacturing cars and trucks to ventilators. Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt hotels made rooms available to house quarantined health workers. McDonalds donated food and Apple donated to COVID relief globally. There were other examples where CEO’s and business owners called to check on employees who might be sick, or even hand delivering groceries to employees in need. Other CEO’s forfeited their salary for a period of time so that money could be used to support less fortunate employees. Other companies continued to pay medical coverage for furloughed employees. These are all great examples of doing the right thing – regardless of the cost or outcome.

During a pandemic, it’s more important than ever to let your customers, employees, and community know that values truly matter. They always have. Now more than ever, companies need to show that they just don’t manufacturer or sell something – they stand for something. Most companies and individuals can’t donate millions of dollars, or pivot to manufacture a new product, but they can get the small things right. We can value our employees and customers in every action we take, and every word we speak. We can make a difference.–Commentary provided by John Walker, Lupton Associates’ Business Development