As I sat through two days of listening to the world?s most
inspirational and respected business leaders earlier this
month, one single thought crossed my mind ? business can do
so much good if it is run by good men and good women with
good heart and soul. I was at the Global Brand Forum 2003
held in Singapore, the inaugural event organised by
Intelligent Enterprise and Ogilvy & Mather. The
speakers were inspiring; their messages full of wisdom.
Words are cheap, we know, but coming from these speakers
who have all made names for themselves, built up successful
companies and in many ways built up personal brands
themselves, the words were very credible. Tom Peters,
author of the most successful management book ever written
?In Search of Excellence?, calls it ?a disruptive age? and
challenges us to ?Re-imagine!?, the title of his new book.
Dame Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop, challenges
global brands to operate with a conscience and says people
have become bored of brands and ?people selling to them all
the time?. Scott Bedbury, the man who created the Nike and
Starbucks brands, calls it a ?brand new world? and says ?it
is not a safe time to play safe, not a time to rely on
traditional approaches?. Deepak Chopra, the mind body
medicine guru, calls on business leaders to embrace ?the
soul of leadership? ? ?an expression of who we are as a
human being? ? and inspires us to believe that ?individual
consciousness creates public consciousness?. The founder
and chairman of Infosys Technologies Limited, Narayana
Murthy, believes the sole aim of corporations must be to
create wealth for the masses and not line the pockets of
CEOs. The mantra of the man named Asian Business Person Of
The Year by Fortune Magazine and World Entrepreneur of the
Year in 2003 by Ernst & Young is ?compassionate
capitalism?. Ho Kwon Ping (pictured), chairman of the
Banyan Tree Group, says Asian companies must break out of
the ?cost mentality? and build brands which give clear
proprietary advantages. Tom Kelley, the co-founder and
general manager of IDEO, the world?s leading business
consultancy and who brought the world the Apple mouse and
the Palm V, believes that brands are best promoted in the
long run by creating authentic business experiences. Yes,
there will always be the skeptics that will say, ?it is
easy for them to say this because they?ve made it? or ?this
is not practical at all? or ?this is not relevant to my
business? ? but think again. Perhaps the reason they?ve
made it is because they practised what they preached. Great
ideas should never be practical but should initially be
outrageous. Principles are universal in business, whether
you are selling a tour or towel. As I sat, listened and
observed, I tried to pinpoint common qualities ? what was
it about these individuals that made them different? That
made them the success they are? I came up with this list ?
make it your wishlist for 2004, and beyond, as you dare to
dream of a future for yourself, and your businesses.