Fighting the pandemic, Racism

As Churchill said, ‘Never waste a good crisis’ - we can use this pandemic to make big environmental changes. Great to see London doing it already with the step towards increased bicycle and pedestrian lanes.

From a tech perspective, we’re using this crisis as part of a second wave of e-commerce adoption, the influx of new marketplaces in education and health, and the leap to a more integrated home and work life. Countless more examples that this pandemic can be used for good, within our inter and intrapersonal lives too. Gratitude and appreciation of little things - if we can keep that, it will genuinely lead to happier lives.

Now, we need to apply that thinking to the George Floyd situation. #blacklivesmatter and diversity is a topic that is not seen as a priority outside of tragedies like this - and that itself, is tragic. But this needs to be used as a trigger for a movement of all people across all industries for weeks, months, years and decades to come.

We need to collectively buy into this as a purpose - in whatever sector we apply our trade, it is our collective responsibility to seek ways to pursue equality. Eventually, eventually, greater equality should lead to greater conscious and subconscious understanding that we are absolutely different, but absolutely equal.

In the same way we can use the pandemic to reform our approach to the environment long term, we need to use the George Floyd situation to reform our approach to subconscious and conscious racism long term.

In our personal capacity we can all campaign. Saying that we need to acknowledge white privilege and racism is a good start. But it can be dangerously close to ‘trendy’ and ‘fluffy’. We can all take further steps. In professional capacity, we can action change that will [eventually] lead to long term impact.

In the startup space there are a few things we can do. There should be a new wave of angel networks (like Cornerstone), angel investors, family offices and VCs that a) focus exclusively on black founders, and b) established investors (of varying fund sizes and that invest various stages of business) that shift focus slightly to actively choose higher percentage of black LPs, venture partners, associates - black decision makers. They need to actively seek out black-owned businesses to invest in and fuel. This has to be an internal KPI. Something that everyone agrees is the right thing to do to move the world forward. A purpose. 

It’s much easier said than done. South Africa has tried for two and a half decades to institute institutional black-economic empowerment, but it falls apart when the government enforce it without appropriate organization and buy-in. This is not a top down approach.

This should be done bottom-up, private sector operators and investors instituting this by choice. Not easy. It needs excellent businesses that tick the right boxes. Pre-seed and seed finance is crucial to give these startups the chance to flourish. It needs commitment to the cause

In startups, first key hires should actively seek more diversity. When employee number is more than 5 people, enforce an internal rule that the business will never be more than 60-40% split in both gender or race. Again, maybe not easy, but what’s the point of life if we don’t have purposes to strive towards?

There are obviously 1000s of flaws to my suggestions. That’s good, we should implement change, experiment, learn that our hypotheses are flawed, and actively improve on them over time. The only way we will prevent ‘accidents’ like Geroge Floyd or Oscar Grant, is by changing the power dynamic in society. It’s by socioeconomic equality. It’s by getting the right voices in the rights places and slowly, gradually, righting the wrongs of centuries of human history. What can you do within your job, your role as a leader, to institute change in your company to do your part in moving the world forward?

Winning this Battle

The world as we have known it, changed forever.

These are difficult times, many are losing their lives, many are facing irreparable illness, industries are being shut down, and jobs are being lost.

Many are also opening their eyes to new possibilities.
Some are reconnecting with loved ones.
The world of remote work has been catalysed into reality.
New industries are being born.
The environment has had an opportunity to regenerate.
Humans going out of their way to help other humans.
While self-isolated, as a community, we have never been closer.

We will look back on these times in a year, in a decade, and tell the stories to anyone who will listen about the times we saw a young masked-man scurry away with 27 bags of toilet paper; groups singing across the streets with neighbours in defiance and in unity; and young athletes pouring dishwasher liquid on their kitchen floor to simulate a treadmill experience. Surreal, but we are living it.

While self-isolated, as a community, we have never been closer.
We are resilient, as individuals and as a collective.
We are in it together. Some affected much worse than others.

It has filled me with such hope to see so many acts of generosity during this time.
I want to implore anyone reading this: If you are in a position to help an individual or a group that has been financially affected, please consider doing so. A landlord that can afford to waive rent. An employer that can afford to pay those wages. A company that can afford to provide that essential service for free. This is a time for enhanced empathy, that will hopefully become a muscle that we develop far beyond this crisis.

Let us fight through these times, remember the detail of how it made us feel, and use this feeling to come out stronger on the other side as a more generous, grateful society.

Your Customer is Your Partner

Why get into business?

To make money?

To move the world forward?

To create a movement?

To solve a problem?

For any of the above, it makes sense to get people using your product or service to fall in love with it. It makes sense for the people who engage with your business to become ambassadors, to go out of their way for their friends to use it too. Mass adoption is needed to build a goliath business.

There are a few ways to achieve this mass adoption…

Traditional network effect - the social media model of becoming more valuable the more people are on it. You only want to be on Facebook if your friends are using it too.

Another method, is exorbitant spend on referral - If I get $100 for a referral, I’m going to make sure my friends start using that product.

The most appealing method to me - is to shift away from company-customer ; shift from business-client relationship… into one collective community. To shift into the idea that a new business is an opportunity for everyone involved to come together as one: Leadership, employees, customers and partners aligned as a collective to achieve the vision of the business.

The best way to achieve this? To create that sense of ownership for all stakeholders. For all stakeholders to feel that the company belongs to them. Over the next decade, the fastest growing businesses will adopt this - customers will metaphorically and literally own the businesses they engage with as a part of their identity.

We can’t all initiate ideas that will move the world forward, but we can all support them, belong to them, form part of a movement. The companies that understand this - that can grow a customer network of impassioned owners will rule the next decade. Equity crowdfunding is a way to achieve this for a growing private business - the modern fusion of traditional crowdfunding and public markets for growing private businesses; the modern way to raise capital for a growing startup.

For mass adoption in modern business, give your customers ownership and build a movement.