Businesses and Communities Need Each Other Now More than Ever: Ozinga Purpose Part 4

I am in the midst of writing a five-part series on the Ozinga purpose: to have a positive impact on individuals, their families and the community for generations. In this post I am going to explain the Ozinga philosophy on the role of business in the community. This topic feels very relevant in light of many of the challenges we have been facing in our communities this year. 

To start, I want to point out that the purpose statement describes a progressive, successive approach with regard to impact and influence. In other words, it starts with the individual. Every individual needs to regularly look in the mirror and take personal responsibility for one’s own attitudes and actions. Only when individuals accept personal responsibility can there be positive impact in a broad and sustainable way in that person’s life. From there, individuals can begin to positively impact other individuals. As I mentioned in the previous post, when this happens, there is a ripple effect that can take place with positive impacts overflowing from the individual into families and into communities, impacting these constituencies in the present and generations into the future. 

So, in effect, positively impacting communities doesn’t happen without individuals making the commitment to do so in their own lives and the lives of others. This is not to say that groups of people can’t work together to have collective impact on individuals, families and communities. In fact, that is the most effective way to have a positive impact. When individuals successfully operate in the community with other individuals, it is a force multiplier that is significantly more powerful than an individual working alone. 

But it also needs to be said that if communities aren’t healthy, they will take the life out of even the healthiest of individuals. It may take some time, but it will happen. If communities lack safety, quality education, economic opportunities, food, access to health care, etc., the odds of individuals in those communities reaching their potential become greatly diminished. This is a sad reality in too many communities in our country and around the world. 

The positive potential of our purpose in communities like this is what inspires us at Ozinga. We believe our work community is capable of having an extraordinary impact on individual lives in the communities we serve, directly and indirectly. We view the business as an asset on the balance sheet of the community. But more than that, we view ourselves individually and collectively as citizens with a responsibility for the health of the community. If the communities we operate in aren’t healthy, our business won’t be healthy. It is a symbiotic relationship. We need each other. 

Unfortunately, there are businesses that are on the other side of the balance sheet, ones that are liabilities to communities. These organizations are a blight on their communities and give other businesses a black eye. This is another thing that drives us. We strongly believe there are differences from one business to another, and that the positive potential of our purpose sets us apart. Business cultures and other communities have the ability to learn and grow. The more that businesses and communities see themselves as interdependent, the better off both will be, and the more positive the impacts will be for one another. 

There are a number of ways that businesses can have a positive impact on communities:

1. Calling Creation. Many people call this job creation, but we believe employment can and should be so much more than a paycheck. We want coworkers to realize their God-given potential and have the conviction that they are called to their chosen vocation. When this happens, communities benefit because employed, engaged citizens see themselves as contributors to causes larger than themselves. When able-bodied individuals are employed in good jobs, there are countless benefits to the community. Unfortunately, the alternative is also true. When unemployment is high, the negative ramifications to communities are too numerous to measure.
2. Products and Services. Businesses are constantly innovating and improving their products and services by responding to the needs of the marketplace. This is a result of coworkers using their talents to push the boundaries of what they are capable of individually and collectively. It’s hard work but it’s very rewarding. Again, communities benefit when this happens. For example, think of the businesses that are actively working on a vaccine for COVID-19 right now. Thank God they exist.
3. Economic Impact. Capitalism sometimes gets a bad rap because of some bad actors. But there is no economic system in the history of the world that has come close to creating wealth and opportunities for the most people. When a system protects private property rights and leaves winners and losers up to the invisible hand of the market rather than the government, entrepreneurs and businesses have the confidence to hire people and make investments in their future. When they do, there is an economic benefit to local communities. Individuals and the businesses they serve have more discretionary income to invest in their local communities, hire more people, etc. It is a compounding cycle of progress.
4. Tax Revenue. There will always be debate about how much tax is fair. Lost in that debate is the fact that businesses large and small generate an incredible amount of tax revenues that benefit communities. As an example, Ozinga has dozens of locations generating taxes in the communities where we are located. These taxes pay for schools, emergency services, park districts and many other things in local communities.
5. Charity. While not all businesses give back to their local communities in the form of charitable gifts to qualified non-profits, many do. Throughout the history of our company, Ozinga has donated a minimum of 10% of our pre-tax profit to charitable causes. This practice has been a great blessing to our organization and the organizations we donate to. It helps us keep perspective on our purpose, it affords us opportunities to come alongside individuals and organizations doing incredibly important work and it helps our coworkers appreciate that all of our daily efforts are ultimately benefiting many in need.

Ozinga has been operating in local communities for more than 90 years. There are now more than 2,000 Ozinga coworkers representing thousands of their family members. We are convinced that when we do things the right way, living into our purpose, communities are positively impacted and it keeps our business thriving. Many of these impacts we may never see in this life. But that’s okay—we see it enough that it regularly inspires us to keep our purpose in front of us and not lose sight of the vision and values that have brought us this far. 

Thank you for your role as a contributing member of the communities that you are a part of. Remember every day is a new opportunity to have a positive impact on those communities that may impact generations to come. You have a purpose.