When you *do* give a damn about your business impact
Newsletter #2
Throughout time many, ok most, business and political leaders in the Global North have been protected from the negative fallout of their decisions, whilst, of course, bathing in the beneficial effects of those very same decisions.
We’ve watched on during Covid times as men in the UK Government (yes there were only men in the room) made decisions around childcare, childbirth, home schooling and, and…. that women would just not have made.
We’ve heard about tech leaders in Silicon Valley limiting the access their children have to technology, whilst profiting off someone’s else’s children using the very same tech.
“We’re in this together”, really doesn’t mean what they claim it means - because they’re embedded in *Severed Impact Culture.
(*yes I am watching Severance right now, yes I think it’s fab, no don’t worry there are no spoilers to see here. And if you haven’t watched it yet, grab yourself a free Apple TV trial and run directly to a screen near you).
To be part of Severed Impact Culture people, institutions or businesses, need to meet one of the following criteria:
✅ they’ve not taken the time to fully understand the impact of their decisions beyond the impact on their spreadsheet.
✅ they have no empathy for people’s situations when they differ from their own. So can’t understand that the same decision will impact different people, differently.
✅ they just don’t care.
The antidote to this disconnection is an Entangled Impact Culture, that recognises that impact:
🖇️is woven into every decision and cannot be outsourced or ignored.
🖇️is not just measured or acknowledged—it is felt and lived in real ways.
🖇️spreads and reverberates and we need to stay engaged with its consequences, whether positive or negative.
Entangled Impact Culture can be messy as we see more perspectives and unearth unintended consequences or missing information.
It means we can fall into an overthinking, overwhelm spiral where ideas can get stuck, and even die – yes been there, done that, got the T-shirt.
A business ecosystem map is a tool for us to visually organise our thoughts and findings when exploring the possible ripples from our businesses. I had the idea after watching a video of wolves being rewilded into Yellowstone Park1. It was such a beautifully clear amd emotionally moving example of how one thing can impact another, and another and another. Like the best and most brilliant domino rally you saw on record breakers as a child. And a tool to…
“Shift our focus from counting and quantifying things to mapping relationships, focus on connective tissue and learning how to relate across difference.” 2
This week's question:
Why this question?
❓It allows you to organise your thoughts/fears/hopes so you can feel confident about your business’ impact and go all in on your plans because you’ve left nothing out.3 No more death spirals for your business plans.
❓It helps you slow down and think through the ripple effects of your business, so you can catch issues before you implement ideas.
❓It’s the red pill that lets you see relationships and interdependencies that were hidden before.
How to use this week’s question:
Jot down all the stakeholders, direct and indirect, who will feel the impact from your business and its main aim. From specific communities of people, to the planet - there’s no right or wrong here, and you can add to it at anytime.
Use your list to create a visual tool - a business ecosystem map with your business in the centre. I like to draw mine by hand, but you can create something digitally if you’d prefer. Click on the images below to see some examples of stakeholders and how your map might take shape.
Next think about the impact your business might have on all members of your ecosystem. Use your map to help organise your thoughts, unearth possible ripples that you’ve missed or highlight missing information.
In the future when you have a new business idea or project, grab your map and drop the idea into your business ecosystem to explore impacts from each stakeholder’s perspective - the good, the bad and the messy.
When our focus is narrow, our ability to predict or shape outcomes is nil. So we must learn to see our systems anew by soliciting divergent views.4
So… if you find yourself been held back by ‘what ifs’, or fear someone you work with is immersed in Severed Impact Culture, slow down and ask a question.
Till next time,
P.S. Want to do a show & tell? I’d love to see your business ecosystem map, if you’d like to share?
Inspiration & Credits:
Words: George Monboit. Video: Sustainable Human How Wolves Change Rivers
h/t to Kirsten Gibbs who came up with these words for me.
Peter Morville: Interwingeld: Information Changes Everything - I can only find new copies of this for sale via Amazon as it’s self-published. There are second hand copies at the usual spots if you search.