By Kevin F. Clune, CLP

 

With the third week of November just around the corner, it seems appropriate to reflect on the Thanksgiving Holiday and, for the purpose of this piece, the meaning it holds for business relationships.  I have recently had two experiences which are worth noting and also were a factor in my decision to choose this topic.  

 

“Corporations are people” discussion in a Presidential debate.

 

General Stanley McChrystal presentation on leadership at the recent 50th Annual Equipment Leasing & Finance Association (link here?) conference.

 

When one of the Presidential candidates stated that “Corporations are People”, many in the audience and also opposing politicians scoffed at this statement. "Of course they are. Everything corporations earn ultimately goes to people. Where do you think it goes?” was the reply to those who denied the assertion.  When the answer was “Corporate Pockets”, my attention was aroused.  

 

I found this exchange to be very insightful and is possibly an indicator of how impersonal many view business transactions. With the advance of electronic communications, walls exist between the consumer and the vendor that reinforce the inhuman view of corporations.  The “Occupy” crowds are proof of this phenomenon. 

 

On the contrary, within our company and every company are real people with real families to support and real lives to lead. Their livelihood depends on the success of the corporation and as a result, their efforts are directed to the goal of providing an excellent product or service.  

The second experience I would like to note is the opportunity I had recently to hear General Stanley McChrystal speak about leadership at the annual Equipment Lease & Finance Association Conference, attended by over 900 members from across the country.  As the leader of the combined Special forces in Afghanistan, he developed a theory about effective leadership which he compared to a piece of plywood.  Each layer of the plywood is weak but when combined with all the layers, it is strong and almost unbreakable.  

 

An effective leader needs to be inspirational, interactive, responsive, and express appreciation to those people whom he or she leads or employs.  They each represent the “layers” of the organization.  He described this as a recognition of the “human factor” and personally strived for human interaction with both those in his command, and also the Afghan forces with whom he worked.  He accomplished this goal with many web conferences, face to face meetings, and hundreds of personal hand written notes.  

 

Therefore, I would like to take this opportunity to express my appreciation to the many people in the employ of Clune & Company and also to the many people who provide the tangential support to our business.  Above all, we are also indebted to those people in decision making positions who trust Clune with their equipment leasing and finance business needs.  

 

Happy Thanksgiving,

 

Kevin F. Clune, CLP

Clune & Company