Our Ideas

Standing out in the crowd for consumers who are looking for stand-outs

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Consumers have had a tense relationship with corporations for a long time. We have grown suspicious, learning to recognize the signs of the charming cad and detecting self-serving piety in a moment.

We can smell the absence of authenticity from the proverbial mile away. To paraphrase the true romantic, Charlotte York of Sex and the City fame, we are exhausted–we have been hunting for the perfect mates for years to no avail. More importantly, we don’t know who can we trust, whose words are confirmed in actions, and whose values mirror our own. To put it another way, if corporations were human, whom would we date?

Something as seemingly trivial as toiletries, for instance, can be an interesting indicator of value and values. Whether you travel for business or pleasure, you know that there will be toiletries in your hotel room, be they non-descript or brand name body cream and shower gel. We count on these items to be there. If you’ve had to discard your shampoo at airport security or simply forgotten the essentials, you need not worry. Toiletries in hotel rooms are our assumed reality.

But it was not always so. It wasn’t until the early 1960s that Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts introduced soaps, shampoos and cotton towels into hotel rooms. At the time a radical and expensive concept, the Four Seasons lead quickly became table stakes for the entire industry. In the mid-1980s, Four Seasons introduced the Spa and, today, they too are standard for all hotels aspiring to be even moderately luxurious.

These introductions were designed to achieve competitive distinctiveness. And they did. But why was it that Four Seasons made these radical improvements and additions?

The simple answer is that it was a human value – the Golden Rule (yes, the one that admonishes us to treat others as you would have them treat you). This is the value central to what Four Seasons stands for.

At Four Seasons, corporate values are much more than a programme or a policy – they define who we are and inform the decisions we make. The company’s guiding principle is the Golden Rule – to treat others as you wish to be treated

Notwithstanding that this information is embedded in their website under a small header at the bottom of the opening page entitled “About Us,” we know this is the guiding value of Four Seasons because that is what we experience. Its actions are its words. Toiletries, cotton towels, and spas were the manifestation of the Golden Rule.

Four Seasons is one of the premier luxury hotels because of its outstanding customer attentiveness. We experience not just simple pampering with the best linens, foods and toiletries, but also professional respect and kindness. We experience the Golden Rule.

In his recent book, Four Seasons, The Story of a Business Philosophy, Isadore Sharpe recounts an example of this kindness. Four Seasons Chicago. Evening event; husband did not know it was black tie. An employee changes out of his tuxedo into his own street clothes, presses the tuxedo and lends it to the guest—complete with a Four Seasons seamstress taking up the hem of the pants.

Closer to home, my stepmother was living in the Four Seasons Chicago with her very large, very adorable poodle who needed to be walked everyday. Because her schedule was frantically busy, the Four Seasons staff arranged to walk the dog, everyday rain or shine. The Golden Rule, seemingly, extends to all creatures.

In standing for a human value, Four Seasons has redefined luxury. True luxury now means pampering plus excellent quality plus human respect.

Is human respect now exclusively in the luxury category? Why is it not just part of the way companies do business?

In reading a recent restaurant review by the always-tasteful Joanne Kates of The Globe and Mail, she remarks on the restaurant’s reservation etiquette: in booking a table for 7:00 pm she was told politely (and thoughtfully she notes) that the table was booked again at 9:30 pm, so she and her party would have to leave at 9:15 pm. Kates then explained that while the request was intelligible and made economic sense, it still “rankled” because this is “not exactly my definition of hospitality,” concluded Kates. It is certainly a case of economics trumping a human value.

In the same edition of The Globe and Mail was another story in support of human values. It was a portrait of Mike Lazaridis, the CEO of Research in Motion and founder and supporter of The Perimeter Institute, celebrating his vision is to marshall the “great brains” to create dramatic breakthroughs in science and enrich our communities. This dramatic commitment to human thinking and achievement is noteworthy and commendable – and reflects Mr. Lazaridis’ commitment to “giving back” and citizenship. Whatever the debate about the efficacy of the approach, we believe Mr. Lazaridis to be a man of value and values.

But flip to another story in the same section, and we read about the ravages of the telecommunication producers in their extraction and use of coltan. Coltan, because it contains a key ingredient in electronic circuitry, is essential in every electronic product, including mobile devices. Coltan is mined in The Democratic Republic of the Congo. Many are concerned inhumane labour practices are being used to extract coltan and, worse yet, the proceeds of this extraction are supporting brutal warlords. Federal NDP Member of Parliament Paul Dewar is calling for assurances that electronic products do not support these practices and are, as he terms them, “rape-free.” There is a complex chain of custody, and various efforts are in place to try to ensure adherence to codes of conduct.

But within this discussion, where are the RIMs, Apples, Nokias and Dells of the world? Where is the stand these companies are taking on ensuring that materials required for the production of their devices do not transgress essential human values?

Yes, we appreciate that political considerations are complex, and that the essentialness of coltan creates possibly uncomfortable conditions of production. Perhaps, without a viable alternative substance, the OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) are held hostage to non-negotiable economic realities. But where are human values in this equation?

In the end, we are left with two different portraits of the same company. We have the inspired Mr. Lazaridis who commits significant funds to create and support a centre of human intelligence. We have the company he runs, which does not publicly explain its use and purchase of coltan. We respect and admire the man; we are curious about the company.

The path to respect, loyalty and love is not complicated. Companies, if you want us to fall in love with you, ensure that your actions reflect real human values. We may purchase you for your economic value; we will continue to purchase, admire and adore you because of the values you reflect.

And lest you comment the real reason Four Seasons reflects the human value of the Golden Rule is because one pays for that value, then let me comment on my local shoe repair shop. Part of a nation-wide chain, it is not a sole proprietorship. But the man who runs the shop knows me by name, always asks about how I am doing, and always delivers me excellent, prompt, attentive service. Yes, that is because my shoe fetish helps support his business; but I chose to take my business to him first because of convenience and quality, and second and more important, because he treats me with respect and warmth. It is the personal value that is his competitive differentiator.

So while we wait for more companies to understand the true value of human values, let us encourage them and explain that it is how we experience your values that really matter. When they reside only in annual reports and speeches they have no impact. When they come to life in how a business acts, they drive business success because they are why we fall in love.

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Junxion’s Pamela Divinsky is a featured writer on Corporate Knights, a Canadian magazine and website committed to “clean capitalism”.