Monday, November 25, 2013

The Invisible Government


 

When the president signs this act [Federal Reserve Act of 1913] the invisible government by the Monetary Power will be legalized"
— Charles A Lindbergh Sr. U.S Senator, Minnesota


Charles statement still holds a lot of truth even after a century; cashflow is still king for many companies and government. The MBA Oath, now invoked at graduation includes a provision about being a good steward of entrusted resources.

However, great leadership and good management should be about the visible government and it is a series of well thought-through actions including phases, communications, checkpoints, customer-impact-testing, metrics, contingencies, and feedback loops, designed to produce specified results on time and on budget, based on known circumstances. Where circumstances are unknown, as with innovations, then good management proceeds with a flat organizational structures that encourages series of pilot tests, rehearsals and rapid prototypes.

The visible government is practical as well as visionary and cares about efficiency. The leaders might not be the ones to roll up their sleeves for the tasks of execution, but they know what to ask of those who do and they grow with experience.


China seems to have borrowed a lot from this concepts and it should not be hard to see why. When a country’s governance is structured in such a way that incentives for the political elite are aligned with the economic interests of the country, the country is likely to grow rapidly and in a healthy way, and with minimal political disruption. When they are misaligned, however, there are likely to be significant strains and pressures that resolve themselves through political conflict.

China makes massive change possible; from one child policy to the state owned enterprises while the government is willing to partner and learn from other governments and businesses.

We can also learn a great deal from China while we maintain an exposing pressure on the negetive aspect of corruption, human rights and intellectual property violation.

For instance; When you introduce yourself in the West, you say "Hi, my name is Mike Stuart, CEO of Nike, from Boston, United States." In China, you would say "Hi, I’m from China, Shanghai. I’m Nike’s CEO, Mike Stuart." That speaks volumes on the importance of the collective versus the individual.


Here is a big dream worthy of our attention, from China's, Alibaba, CEO

The company [Alibaba] will remain a ‘start-up’ no matter how long it has been in existence. Whatever has been stable, I will disrupt that stability. The company needs to continue to innovate and grow. I want the employees to believe that we are a small company, no matter how big we get. I believe we can create a system and culture to perpetuate this culture of entrepreneurial and start-up spirit.

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