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Action, not Words 29 June 2009
‘You can't build a reputation on what you are going to do.’
Henry Ford
These words are just as true in the 21st century as they were at the beginning of the 20th century. Our leaders in business and in government tend to forget.
Setting targets and objectives are a normal aspect of good management. Management that understands the process, think very carefully about which objective(s) matter most and what is feasible and sensible. This is then translated into targets rather than a prescriptive plan. Lower levels of management then have the flexibility to deliver the target in the most efficient manner. A problem arises when targets are also used for publicity purposes with the aim of enhancing reputation.
Advertising a target with much fanfare can earn good headlines. Modern media-savvy government often set off down this route. Particularly now, as an election looms in the UK, targets can be set without taking on the associated responsibility to deliver. It will be the next government that has to ensure delivery. A confident government would, of course, plan to stay in power, and have the task of delivery, and therefore ensure that the targets are achievable. However a government that looks likely to lose may clutch at whatever target is likely to give the best headline today without worrying too much about tomorrow.
Business can also fall into the trap of chasing reputation. In a recent independent report by the University of Edinburgh and a research firm, ENDS Carbon, UK supermarket chains were compared (reported in the Sunday Times 28 June). Tesco was reported to have ‘the most ambitious carbon reduction objectives’. This was certainly good PR for Tesco presenting Tesco as the leading green supermarket chain. Other supermarket chains have been claiming that their targets are superior, with for example Mike Barry, Marks and Spencer’s head of sustainable business, claiming that M&S will be carbon neutral by 2012. This will not be possible unless carbon offsetting is used. M&S will have to be very careful - the public is becoming more knowledgeable about the limitations of carbon offsetting.
The reputations of governments and business is based on what you do, not what you say. The current government will be judged at the ballot box on what they have achieved. The supermarket chains will be judged by shoppers on the evidence of the environmental improvements in products and stores. Targets should be kept where they belong as a management tool, not a PR exercise.
© Peter McManners 2009
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