Democracy: It has its downsides - Alan Jones is One of Them

Democracy is a wonderful thing. It allows people to live their lives as they want to live them. It provides opportunities for those that want to partake of them. It gives people the ability to be who and what they want to be. It provides the foundations for freedom and generally paints a picture full of hope and prospect.

As with everything in life, there is always two sides to the one coin and democracy is no different. It comes with responsibilities, at the individual and group level. Responsibilities such as the need to consider others, the need to treat people fairly, the need to ensure individual freedom and the need to improve the society that we live in.

Enter Alan Jones with his latest rant that truly goes beyond belief. Mr. Jones is obviously a lonely chap for unless he is at the center of the news, unless he is the focus of attention, be it negative or positive, he is not happy. And so it comes to pass that as a 'shock jock' the only thing to do is to constantly come up with raves and rants with the only intention of drawing attention to the one most important person in Sydney - HIMSELF.

His latest murmurings re-appeared on page 10 of this morning's Sydney Morning Herald where he is now attempting to connect the unfortunate bombings in Boston - where Mr. Jones, people actually died and were maimed for life - with student activism and accordingly we in Australia need to be ever vigilant as to the students that we bring into this country. What a complete load of diatribe. I suggest that we start drawing conclusions now as to the Boston culprits and in that manner we can get ahead of the truth - remember what the truth is Mr. Jones?

Alan Jones is, and never has been interested in the truth. He has always, and forever will be, interested in the headlines and him being on them, or part of them.

I seem to recall when living in Melbourne back in the 80's that the Alan Jones road show came to town and he succeeded in getting a television version of his talk-show on one of the commercial channels. Thankfully it failed, quite quickly after first launching. He left town and was never heard from again. And that's the beauty of democracy. In Melbourne, people voted with their feet and realised what Mr. Jones actually stood for and what his central focus was.

So democracy does work and works quite well. For some reason, New South Welshman and their Qld counterparts still actively listen and encourage Mr. Jones - and so it is we continue to put up with the 'shock jocks" of his ilk. It is well known that Mr. Jones is a protected species in this State, but why?

So back to democracy. It is a great system and our country and many like us has prospered as a result. But as I said, their are individual responsibilities regarding those things that Mr. Jones loves to ignore - because it gets him headlines. Maybe we should do what the Victorians did so successfully many years ago - ignore him and he may eventually go away.

In the interim, how about we continue to support the US in their hour of despair, wait for the outcome of their investigations and not point fingers where they should not be pointed just for a story. The letters to the editor on page 18 of the SMH sum it up quite well regarding Alan Jones' comments. So lets all enjoy the fruits of democracy and put Alan's selfish, egocentric and totally illogical views where they belong - in the waste.

The Social Good - Have We Lost the Plot or Have Society's Values Changed Forever?

If martians or other alien life forms exist and they were to visit our lovely planet or indeed our lovely corner of the planet known as Australia, what would they see and how would they view us? Lets consider the following scenarios and then reflect on where we want to be as a nation and as a people in generations to come.

This is a very wide canvas from the physical aspects of our planet, in such things as the environment and how we use the planet's resources through to the social values of its inhabitants and how Australia's inhabitants treat and value each other's presence and activities within it. So let's narrow the focus somewhat so that we can keep this to a tidy neat little article as the thesis that I am currently writing on change management does not get duplicated here on this issue. Lets home in on social justice and caring for our fellow citizens.

So what sort of things would the martians notice at this level?

Well, had they have arrived in Sydney during the beginning of February they would have noticed that the NSW government threw in excess of $430,000 out one of the large windows at Railcorp defending their anti-discrimination case that was brought by Graeme Innes, a disabled individual, who successfully brought action against that auspicious organisation for not adequately addressing the need of blind people when it comes to ensuring they are able to identify railway stations. Oh and by the way, Mr. Innes is Australia's Disability Discrimination Commissioner, but that is just by-the-by. The case had been going for two and a half years

Let me put this in context. I deal with organisations in the NSW Disability Services sector that provide very important services to the disabled community and they do this under very difficult circumstances. They work with hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of families, carers and disabled people whose lives are very different to many other residents of this incredibly lucky country of ours and yet who face hardships that many of us seem to ignore. Quite a few of these organisations are of a small size, namely less than $5 million in turnover  So the NSW government throws out and wastes, without any serious consideration  nearly 10% of one of these organisations full year annual budgets. I'll let you do the maths as to how many lives that amount of money actually impacts. And by-the-way, can I ask who in Railcorp has taken responsibility or has been held accountable for this debacle? I don't think accountability is a strong point of theirs!

So far, our martian friends are slightly confused with this level of disparity. Why would the bureaucracy of its leaders be so wasteful when money is short and there is so much in peoples lives that needs to change and money can in fact assist?

Let's now go to the other end of the spectrum. They notice that there is a huge divide between those in this society who 'have it' and those that are being challenged and don't have it at all. I talk of the windfall gain of Marius Kloppers, outgoing CEO of BHP. A $75 million handshake seems like an interesting use of a public company's hard earned cash. Let me give you some quick mathematical parameters to this figure. At current bank term deposit rates of say 4% (and I doubt whether Mr. Kloppers would be investing in these) $75 million would equate to a weekly interest payment to that individual of $57,700. The martian on the left is looking at the martian on the right and wondering what does one individual do that can substantiate that sort of reward? The answer is not quite clear, either to the martians or to many others, excepting those that are shareholders in BHP - which then begs the question when is enough, enough?

Has our society lost sight of people and the comparative values that we function within? Has society lost sight of what they value and what they don't? Is Australia continuing to clear the path of equality and focusing individual priority and forgetting what may be the glue that binds us as a nation?

I am not suggesting socialism as the answer, nor am I suggesting that democratic capitalism is all that its cracked up to be. Lets consider the GFC and the advent of financial engineering as evidence of that. I am however asking the question - when is enough, enough? At what point does society say that one individual earning $57,700 per week could be excessive whilst large numbers of lives are badly lived?

After this short visit our martian friends decide to return home, having had a pleasant trip, felt the physical beauty of Australia, but deciding that as a people, there is much work that needs to be done in order to improve the lives of ALL its inhabitants. Oh well - 2 less diners at one of Obeid's restaurants at Circular Quay. Never mind Eddie - there will be other opportunities.

Public Awareness of Nonprofit Sector - Overcoming the "Blue-Light Syndrome"?

The information is out there, it has been public since January 2010 when the Productivity Commission released its report entitled "Contribution of the Not-for-Profit Sector - Productivity Commission Research Report", and the statistics were quire surprising, especially to those outside the nonprofit sector, perhaps not so surprising for those within it or those that interact with it.

At that time there were 600,000 organisations in the sector. 59,000 of these were economically significant. The sector contributed $43 billion annually to Australia's GDP and represented 8% of total employment in 2006-2007. In addition the sector was growing at the rate of 7.7% from 1999-2000 to 2006-2007.

But there were other interesting bits of information that came out of that report which are not as widely repeated in the mainstream press. Amongst these was the fact that the level of understanding of the sector amongst the wider community was considered poor.

So the article appearing in this morning's Sydney Morning Herald (Tuesday 2nd April) by Kathryn Wicks did little to surprise me regarding the lighting of the Sydney Opera House to mark United Nations World Autism Awareness Day. Or should I say, the lack of support shown by politicians to fund the event (I'm sure there will be no lack of photo opportunities or commentary however on the evening - politicians appear to respond well to this as photo opportunities reinforce the message of what CAN BE DONE without supporting what IS done!) This is not the point of my comment here.

The point is that public awareness of the importance of the nonprofit sector, what it does, who it helps, how it goes about its activities, and the economic, political, and social environment and constraints within which it does so, should become more mainstream, especially if more and more public services are effectively 'outsourced' to the nonprofit sector. We should, as a society, better understand the attributes of one of the largest sectors of our economy. I think that the mining sector would attract far more attention and yet touches far fewer lives that the nonprofit sector. The former will eventually dwindle as the resources are extracted and dealt with. The latter will only grow, especially driven by demand. Putting this in perspective, in 2010 the mining sector contributed 8.4% to GDP and the nonprofit sector contributed 3.8% to GDP. Whilst slightly less than half, it is a contribution that ranks up there with the ones that everyone knows about. At another level the mining sector employs less than 3% of the Australian workforce compared to 8% in the nonprofit sector. These comparisons only reinforce that more Australians should understand the nonprofit sector better than they currently do - many rely on it on both sides of the supply/demand equation.

Where to from here?

One suggestion would be for the mainstream press to expand its focus on this sector in a slightly more coordinated and strategic fashion  An example here would be the way the Sydney Morning Herald deals with Local Government. Every Tuesday, the SMH produces a dedicated section entitled "Local government"  that captures key stories of that sector  jobs and tenders. I note that this morning's paper contained stories about bottle plans for the environment, amalgamation issues facing the sector and smaller articles regarding roads, online approvals and something on community groups signing a petition.

Consider what a section on nonprofits could look like - examples of well run outfits across the country, stories of success at the organisational and individual level, challenges of staffing, career opportunities  strategic partnerships and potential regular features of some of the less well-known nonprofit organisations that go about their business, Langley oblivious to outsiders other than those directly impacted by that organisation.

So there we go mainstream press. Who is up for the challenge?

Governance Models for the Nonprofit Sector - Are Current Options All There Is?

Many models of governance have been attributed to this sector in Australia - but are they all that exists and are they enough to carry this sector forward?

The Australian Stock Exchange model that is referenced in the Principles of Good Governance takes a very 'legal' and 'regulatory' approach with its emphasis on rules, relationships, systems, processes, control and mechanisms. It looks at things from the perspective of formality and rigidity and whilst it refers to relationships, it does so within a very limited notion of formal relationships, and in so doing keeps the board in an arms-length relationship with constituents. In many cases it keeps board members, other than the Chairperson, at arms length to the CEO as well. In such a legalistic and formal model the prospect of a wide range of stakeholders to potentially feel disengaged is possibly quite high.

This model is however the one that appears to formally address many of the governance challenges that currently exists within the corporate world and perhaps, if adhered to in both principle and practice, would hopefully overcome many of the excellent examples of very poor corporate governance application that we have all become more and more familiar with in the Australian commercial world. Well known names have been embroiled in the aftermath of poor governance.

Another model often quoted in Australia is the Tricker model which seeks to delineate, along a mufti level plain, between functional aspects of inward and outward looking activity, past, present and future focus, and conformance and performance type activities. These plains are further categorized by reference to the key board functions of accountability, strategy formulation, supervision of executive activities and finally policy making.

But the question remains - is the way board governance handled in the nonprofit sector delivering for the 'communities'  that they serve, in terms of outcomes being consistent with those community expectations, and for that matter, societal expectations, or are we falling short because the focus is potentially too heavy on the legal and regulatory requirements that support the prospects of legal liability should something go wrong?

Is innovation being somehow starved for the sake of legal fundamentals? Whilst there is no doubt that efficient well run nonprofit organisations must be a fundamental aim of all who work and interact with these organisations, is there another way of delivering this whilst maintaining the confidence of those who fund these bodies?

Small to mid-sized incorporated nonprofits are experiencing massive resource challenges and yet boards remain, in many cases, stuck within the framework of complete separation between executive and managerial demarcations. In this manner, are nonprofits in Australia getting the most out of their boards?

The Role of Leadership in Change - An Action Learning Approach

Management and Leadership are two very different concepts requiring very different skill-sets. Management is characterised by such activities and responsibilities as planning & budgeting, organising & staffing, and controlling & problem-solving. In executing these responsibilities, effective managers attempt to produce a degree of predictability and a sense of order.  Leadership on the other hand is characterised by such activities as the establishment of organisational direction, aligning people with vision and strategy, and motivating & inspiring. In many respects it is these bigger picture issues that underscore organisational change. Indeed, much has been written in management and organisational literature connecting leadership styles to stages of organisational change.

One clear certainty is that successful organisations require leaders and managers to display the combined attributes mentioned above, irrespective of the extent of change or indeed the level of continuity being experienced at any time during the life of an organisation.

Underpinning this discussion of leadership, are the wide range of interpersonal skills that enable individuals within an organisation to effectively work with others. These skills include:

-          Self awareness which comes from a clear and realistic understanding of your own strengths, weaknesses, ambitions, and needs;

-          Self regulation which comes from an understanding of how you control your actions and reactions and take charge of your emotions in the process;

-          Motivation which comes from understanding the mechanisms that drive you to achieve and to exude a passion and enthusiasm for your work and for the success of your teams, departments, divisions and organisation as a whole;

-          Empathy which comes from displaying a clear understanding of your fellow staff and being able to weigh the ability to consider and acknowledge others with the more global needs of the organisation’s mission and vision , and

-          Social skill which, whilst associated with empathy, comes from your ability to relate to, and work effectively, with other people.

Action Learning recognises the important link between leadership and success in the challenging environments that organisations now face, and will continue to face over the coming years. Management literature identifies a number of roles that leaders must increase their abilities in to underpin this success. These include:

-          the ability to think in systems terms

-          the ability to act as change agent

-          the ability to constantly innovate

-          the ability to act as servant-leader

-          the ability to take on a wide range of concurrent tasks

-          the ability to be both teacher and mentor, and

-          the ability to be visionary and to communicate that vision

In the context of the leadership skills identified earlier and the abilities discussed above, Action Learning has emerged as one of the most effective and powerful tools in developing the necessary competencies and experiences to support the leadership roles of the modern organisation. Through the Action Learning approach of working with real problems, a reflective inquiry process, a commitment to action and the focus on learning within the organisation, Action Learning contributes to the critical leadership skills that are one of the key enablers of organisational change.

OPTIMUM NFP launches its inaugural “Action Learning as a Change Management Strategy in the Not-for-Profit Sector” Workshops on 14^th May 2013. OPTIMUM NFP has been applying Action Learning to organisations in the NFP sector as a means of addressing the various challenges of initiating and working with organisational change. Currently, this sector faces many challenging times and must respond to these in a timely yet effective manner. Change in these organisations is ongoing and will continue to be into the future.

This Workshop is based on research papers submitted to the Academy of Management (America) and the British Academy of Management for their 2013 conferences as case studies in the application of Action Learning in the NSW NFP Sector. The Workshop will provide both the theory of Action Learning as well as its practical application. Participants will be involved in designing and participating in Action Learning programs, the aims of which will be to enable participants to lay the foundations in their own organisations for future Action Learning activities.

Action Learning is an effective approach in directly assisting organisations in this sector to not only deal with change, but to develop capacity and capability, ensuring organisations become more ‘change-ready’. As Principal of OPTIMUM NFP, David Rosenbaum’s consulting work in this field is further supported by his research pursuits in change management where he is currently undertaking PhD research in the management of change in the Not-for-Profit sector via a longitudinal qualitative study at a major Sydney not-for-profit hospital.

For those interested in gaining further insights into Action Learning and how it can be applied in your own organisation, visit the following link to download the Workshop Information as well as the Workshop Registration Form. http://www.optimumnfp.com.au/news-letter/34-the-role-of-leadership-in-organisational-change-an-action-learning-approach.html

Given the practical nature of the workshop, numbers are strictly limited to a maximum of 18 participants.

For any further queries regarding Action Learning, contact David Rosenbaum at OPTIMUM NFP.