A Kind (of) Business

Do indulge me today because I have just launched a book – “A Kind (of) Business: 50 Essays on Business, Leadership and Society” (Anvil Publishing, 2021) with a longtime colleague at the De La Salle University Ramon del Rosario School of Business, Dr. Benito L. Teehankee.

We have put together essays touching on topics and concerns we feel strongly about: artificial intelligence, climate crisis, globalization, geopolitics and their impact on social justice, ethics and the future of mankind and Planet Earth. The book is divided into these five chapters: Mind Shapers, Environment, Technology and Social Inequity, The Corporate World, The Future.

In his Foreword, Br. Armin A. Luistro FSC points out a recurring theme in the book, “the irony of poverty and inequity amid global economic progress.” The status quo, he says, appears unresponsive to the aspirations of the minority or of the masses who may have the “numbers but not the power.” The essays are offered for those “who seek to redefine and rewrite the ways of doing business, for those who wish to chart new pathways…, as well as those who will eventually be considered as exemplars and pillars in the industry.”

Dr. Teehankee writes from his many years of continuing to teach and advocate business ethics and social responsibility. In his Introduction to the book, he emphasizes that when business organizations work towards a common goal, “through socially useful products and services while creating decent jobs for people and equitably sharing the wealth generated, the positive impact on communities and society as a whole cannot be overestimated.” His essays have been published in different newspapers.

Most of my essays have been published in this paper over a span of six years, although a few new ones were written especially for the book. It is always gratifying to write for a national broadsheet and to be read in print and online not only because one reaches a larger audience, but also makes available the feedback and opinions of readers, whether in agreement or strong vehement opposition. That exchange makes the initial experience that prompted the writing even richer.

Newspaper columns, however, have a very limited shelf life and online accessibility may not always be within reach of the larger audience. Thus was born the idea for this book.

As I wrote in my Preface to the book, although Ben and I have shared interests on many issues, we do not always agree which makes for interesting discussions replete with counterpoints. But isn’t that the best way to test your ideas, to discuss it with someone who holds a contrary opinion? This collection is a fair representation of those divergent views, an antidote to the prevailing preference for echo chambers where one’s affirmation biases are merely strengthened; where we read only what we want to believe is the truth.

In this day and age when an increasing number of people are unable to tell the difference between fact and opinion, when assertions are dignified as truth and dissenting opinions are met with contempt and disfavor, the need for civilized debate is more important than ever.

Many people feel that welcoming differences of opinion and making room for other voices is just being noble and magnanimous and even generous, which in a way is true.  But American writer and commentator Walter Lippman says it best. In an essay “The Indispensable Opposition” he maintains that while respecting contrary opinions which are diametrically opposed to ours is admirable, freedom of discussion adds richness to our opinions as well, benefits us as much and helps us in our own search for truth. Listening to opposing opinions with an open mind deepens our understanding of the subject matter, for “while the right to talk may be the beginning of freedom, the necessity of listening is what makes the right important.”

Allow this collection of essays to engage and provoke you into thinking and even writing your own.  A careful reader will always have something to add to a text they have read, whether orally, mentally or in writing. A piece of writing is, in a sense, never complete but a part of a continuing conversation with the reader.

Yesterday’s midmorning launch was virtual via Zoom and on Anvil’s FB Live but the conversation and exchange of ideas was no less animated between Ben and me, as facilitated by Xandra Ramos Padilla, National Book Store managing director and Anvil Publishing president. There were no formal speeches, but a discussion with the authors as prompted by the questions and comments from the audience. It was a format I rather preferred over the staid book launch programs of the past.

Our final words to the audience, especially the millennials, was to read the book and to seriously think about the hard issues that affect our lives, our country and the future world they are inheriting.

Thanks to Anvil Publishing for continuing to bravely publish in these uncertain times.

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“A Kind (of) Business: 50 Essays on Business, Leadership and Society” is available at National Bookstore branches, Anvil Publishing website, Shopee and Lazada.

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Summer time is Writing Time:

The 2022 Adult series begins on March 19 with returning facilitator, UST professor and author John Jack G. Wigley on Writing Humor.

Young Writers’ Hangout via Zoom on March 26, 2-3 p.m., with Natasha Vizcarra who is zooming from Colorado!

Contact [email protected]. 0945.2273216

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