The days of the Ferengi are over
Evert Smit
Director Scouting (for Sustainability, Technology & Innovation) at Lohmann GmbH & Co. KG, and President at AFERA
(the opinions here are mine, not linked to any organisation I belong to)
I do understand how difficult it may seem to believe there is something good, in these unbelievable days. As US President Biden jokingly said: “We had a horrible plague – followed by two years of Covid”. However, it was all but a joke. Then we got Putin and his “special military operation” putting the world in immediate danger and in economic turmoil we never asked for. And on top of it all we have the “pandemic in slow motion” (1), climate change. A gloomy almost dystopic picture for sure.
Now we do need to realise all these mishaps have one element in common, and that commonality is also the key to the solution... We must recognise this is all caused by us humans, our behaviour, our fears, and our choices. It is our perpetual strive for growth and wealth, for power, for control over nature and people. It looks like we conveniently forget that there is just one Earth that we all share, and that the inhabitants of Ferenginar (2) are not supposed to be our role models.?
Earth Overshoot Day (3)?this year for Germany is… the day when I am writing this article -??4 May. Just let it sink in: in just 125 days we have managed to consume all resources for this year.?
This calls for action, we all know that. If we, and our companies, act now, we will not be history. Mind you: businesses fail because the world changes. The once ubiquitous one-dimensional focus on profit maximization and shareholder value is slowly but surely seen as “the dumbest idea” (4), one that contributed massively to the mess we see around us nowadays – for over four decades we truly have behaved like Ferengi.?
It should be clear that it is time for serious change (9). Former GE CEO Jack Welch once remarked, "When the speed of change on the outside exceeds the speed of change on the inside, the end is near." Peter Drucker wrote in “Executive Excellence,” “We can already see the future taking shape. But I believe the future will turn in unexpected ways. The greatest changes are still ahead of us. The society of 2030 will be very different from today’s society and bear little resemblance to that predicted by today’s futurists.” And they are right.
After above gloomy messages, what then makes me positive, and think there are really good things happening? That we are not going to end in a dystopia? That also my industry is taking their responsibility??That we demonstrate leadership, instead of trying later when someone else (our children) will pick the hot coals??
Because of something in that same human nature that sets Homo Sapiens apart (5). Our outstanding and unique strengths: talking & cooperating.?
I have stated before that the European tape world is reconsidering the landscape we operate in. That “competitors” are actually becoming partners in making the future happen. Ending the fossil-based economy has at once become a deed of “together against the aggressor” where the competitors are climate change, and recently economic turmoil - which intensifies our will to change in unprecedented ways!
This way we can help making the required changes happen. Enabling a renewable future. No one member of our industry has the might to make the obligatory changes happen, but together we can, and we do. All along the tape value chain we are teaming up and have made it our number one priority as we want to contribute also in the next decade. Afera has installed the Flagship Sustainability Project (6,7), with the focus on harmonising data and calculation methods, establishing legislated best techniques for waste management and material reduction, and helping our members to “translate” the EU Green Deal for them.??We believe that adhesive tapes are one of the hidden drivers towards climate neutrality (8). Adhesive tapes can perform a variety of functions at once, meaning that products can be made thinner, lighter, and using fewer, less expensive and more sustainable materials. They are being developed to stand up to the toughest environmental conditions, to be durable and reliable, to realise manufacturing efficiencies and to facilitate recycling and repair.
The future could be bright!
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This article appeared (in German) as my second column for “Dicht!”, summer 2022. I wanted to show you that there is positive stuff happening, and that my industry, the world of adhesive tapes, is acting.
Notes:
9: To give you an idea how difficult change is in real life, here is some fun reading you may want to undertake. Fun because many will be able to relate to it. An obvious symptom of holding on to things we probably all agree we shouldn’t. Structures that are often fiercely defended with fallacies.?Now, when this changes, I promise you: progress is on the way!??https://www.rootinc.com/everything-need-know-culture-parking-lot/
Always be agile
2 年Brilliant Headline! A loss frame mentioning "someones" downfall, but only few will get it in the first place. It also shares something private about the author that enables a first emotional connection. In addition to that the article is very well written about an important topic and finally it frames a positve perspective. Thank You for this article Evert Smit
Reliable, innovative bonding technologies on skin, metal and plastics for you.
2 年Let's hope we manage a federation to overcome our Ferenghi shortcomings Evert. We'll need more communication on our way and need to ensure better understanding before we introduce a common constitution (of the federation of an aligned planet), but I sincerely hope and will work for this joint reception of the big task ahead of us. Let's ensure it's timely and helps us back into a drivers seat, as taking action seems very necessary.