Our challenge for the future is that we realize we are very much a part of the earth’s ecosystem, and we must learn to respect and live according to the basic biological laws of nature. ~Jim Fowler
I recently wrote about an ecosystem approach to business. Several readers commented on how looking at business, or any set of activities, as a complex interconnected set of interdependent relationships has helped them better understand vexing situations.
I can see a factory as an ecosystem, with inputs (raw materials, energy, etc.) as inputs and finished goods as outputs, with the real ecosystem being what goes on inside the factory walls. The human behaviors that either facilitate or slow down outputs. The business processes that either create waste or flow efficiently. For our work in strategy execution, studying an organization (factory, retail store, warehouse, entire company) as an ecosystem has brought many useful insights and solutions to difficult problems.
I recently ran across this video of the history of the “fossil fuel ecosystem”. Next time you turn on a light, fill up at the service station, remember what is really going on in this ecosystem. Since we are not bystanders, but active participants in this fossil fuel ecosystem, we can impact the outcome by our choices and our behavior.
It’s called 300 years of fossil fuels in 300 seconds. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJ-J91SwP8w
Tight Lines . . .
John R Childress
E | john@johnrchildress.com T | +44 207 584 3774 M | +44 7833 493 999
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About johnrchildress
For over 20 years, John R. Childress was Chief Executive of an international management-consulting firm before retiring to become a novelist. Having written several business books and participated in hundreds of global business assignments, Mr. Childress brings an insider’s understanding of the modern world to his thrillers.
“In 2001 I had the opportunity to “semi-retire” and so I turned my mind to writing novels. As an American I never was much on history, after all America is not about the past, it’s about the future! Anyway, when I moved into an 11th Century chateau in the south of France I got the history bug and kept wondering why over the centuries we just keep repeating history rather than learning from it. (As you can see I tackle the easy questions).”
Educated at Harvard University and the American University of Beirut, he has traveled the world extensively. His writing style is full of intrigue and humor, with exotic locations and an engaging cast of characters. In addition, his works are thought provoking, often probing the darker side of large institutions, corporations and organized religion. A recurring theme in his work is the historical antecedents to modern-day criminal and terrorist activities.
“My novels, whether they be historical thrillers, A Perfect Conspiracy and Pirates Inc., or political thrillers, The Beirut Conspiracy, all have a “timeless” element to them. I believe that with a deeper insight into historical events, we can better understand the chaos and complexity of the modern world. My fictional novels are all based on real events and situations involving an average individual who gets caught up in a struggle against ruthless criminal organizations. I like to use flash-backs and time-travel techniques to bring historical events into a modern context.”
