A Plea To Employers Everywhere - Save Jobs If You Can

The recent decision by Arsenal football club to make 55 of their staff redundant is symptomatic of the society we live in and the short term business decisions most profitable companies will be sorely tempted to make. 

Running a business, much like the economy is about ensuring you are driving towards an upward curve. Business owners expect it, shareholders expect it and it's a necessity for potential acquirers. As a CEO, the pressure is intense and you feel the weight of responsibility squarely on your shoulders. Ever hear the expression ‘it’s business, not personal’? This is something we hear all the time. 

However, in times such as these I would like to make a plea to all business owners. Please be patient, act ethically and in the best interests of our economy. Of course you have a duty of care. If your business is at risk, often you don’t have a choice. However that is not the case for many businesses (such as Arsenal Football Club), they do have a choice and they are at worse exploiting this awful situation we find ourselves in to maintain their profit curve or at least to ensure they continue to make profit, the cost of which is jobs. 

I believe ALL employers have a responsibility. And their responsibility right now is to retain as many jobs as possible. This, in the first instance is an ethical decision and we mustn't forget that people want to work for a business that represents their own values so this could have an indirect impact on productivity from the high performing staff you want to keep. But it is primarily because a failing economy doesn’t work for anyone. If we all make individual decisions to protect ourselves it will have a collective impact in that the economy will suffer, business in turn will suffer and we will find ourselves even worse off. 

So if you are a business owner, a shareholder, or a potential acquirer, now is the time to show leadership. Activate empathy, search for patience and work your long game. The economy can rebound, relatively quickly, if we keep people in jobs, slow down our growth expectations and work together as business leaders to ensure we make the right decisions as a collective. 

This of course doesn’t apply to businesses who have no choice. Sadly for industries such as retail, we will see more businesses suffer. This is where I would hope Big Tech would come in and acquire. They have the ability and the cash to pivot bricks and mortar businesses to make them run more efficiently which can in turn provide a need (for example to lower shipping costs, or to warehouse product). Big Tech has a responsibility to be a force for good, not evil. The Government could also help by reducing the burden on bricks and mortar businesses. Parking is killing them. Business rates and commercial leases are killing them. High streets as a group of individuals, not collectives is killing them. Make high streets an eco system so businesses are not alone, they are together. 

This is the time when I would like to see less individual thinking and more collective thinking. I believe that is the best way to get the economy back to where it was and it will serve us well for the future. But in the first instance, a plea to profitable businesses everywhere. Please retain jobs. It is your responsibility and it should represent your business values. If it doesn't, perhaps it's time to think about what your values are both as an individual and as a business.