Why Everyone Should Pay Attention to the Market Basket Case
I think what is happening
at Market Basket is an indication of an incredibly deep rooted sociological
upheaval that is happening everywhere. But you have to look hard to see it.
Like the underground coal
mine fire of Centralia Pa, evidence of this “happening” can
be seen as seemingly unrelated puffs of smoke that are appearing as things like The Arab Spring, Occupy
Wall Street, The Tea Party; the breakdown of our bureaucratic educational systems; the push back against command and control
leadership methods and in the Market Basket case.
What is happening and what
is causing it to happen?
At the mega level I think
we are witnessing the beginning of end of the age of institutionalism and the
dawn of the age of entrepreneurialism. Entrepreneurialism is being defined in this case as the individuality, creativity and freedom of the individual.
Throughout history powerful
institutions have been in conflict with individuals to determine who will reap
the benefits from the creative mind power and manpower the individual
possesses.
On one side of this conflict
are governments, large institutions and bureaucracies, mega-corporations and
financial institutions. One the other side are the individualists, business owners, the young and all
those fighting for self determination and respect.
In the past, with few exceptions, the
institutions have dominated. That is all changing now, albeit
slowly and not without disruption(s).
The individual is mounting
a serious challenge against the institution and it is a global happening.
While we are in the
earliest stages of what will most assuredly be a decades long struggle for
dominance, the battle lines are clearly drawn. The changing conditions of the last 40 years of the 20th century and the emerging conditions of
the 21st century have determined the time for this struggle to start in
earnest is now.
This shift started when the Silent
Generation of the 40's and 50's raised the Baby Boomers, who then raised the
X'ers who are now raising the Millenials.
Each of these generations
have raised children who are more independent thinking and who have more
expectations of getting their way than the preceding generations. As a
result while the Boomers fought for their independence and expectations,
the X'ers expected them and now the Millenials demand them!
As a result we now have three of the most educated, independent minded and empowered generations in the history of humanity either coming of age or already there.
Add to this sociological
shift the fact the highly empowering, mind bending advances in technology that have occurred just within the last 10 years and you have a formula for independence, empowerment and mobility and freedom of the individual unlike anything ever experienced.
Welcome to the age of entrepreneurialism.
This is where the sparks that are fueling the fire that is beginning to burn and spread everywhere have begun, especially in the workplace. We now have three generations of workers who are not willing
to simply give up majority control of their creative mind power or
valuable muscle power without being respected, compensated or having a say in
how either are used.
Yet that is not how big businesses, government or institutions think. This individualism is a threat to their stability and to
their ability to mine the human resources they need. This competition for
control is creating conflict.
Which brings us back to
the Market Basket case.
Market Basket was a very
forward thinking company with a great culture. They enjoyed high levels of
employee engagement and profit levels. Until very recently the CEO, and creator
of the culture, was the beloved Arthur T.
Other family members were
involved at the board level who didn’t agree with Arthur T’s management style.
Enter Arthur S. Arthur S. is an old school, command and control, industrial age capitalist.
Arthur S. could be called
an institutionalist and Arthur T could be called an entrepreneurialist. Well
Arthur S ended up gaining control of the board and fired Arthur T. You could view this as a peaceful and free tribe being taken over by a competing tribal warlord.
This has set off a
firestorm of protest from the workforce who loved their company, their culture and their tribal leader. Market Basket is now in a spiraling out of control and losing altitude fast.
If this were 50 or even 15
years ago workers would have simply adjusted the yokes on their necks, put
their heads down and plowed ahead wistfully remembering the days when they were
respected and their tribe prospered.
That is not what happened.
Workers from the front office to the front line have joined in solidarity
against what they view as an oppressive regime and a cutural regression.
They stood up for
themselves. They stood up for their colleagues. They stood up for their
principles. Then, after standing up, they walked in a show of solidarity
that Norma Rae's could only dream about.
In true entrepreneurial fashion, they put
everything at risk and chose their principles over their paychecks.
In response the
institutionalists responded with power and force by firing key executives and
threatening both managers and workers who dared challenge their authority.
The fired executives left
their office and joined their colleagues on the picket lines. They were welcomed
like the respected tribal leaders they are.
So, by eliminating a
beloved CEO in order to get more productivity out of their people and more profits
out of customers the new managers are losing both.
While it is too early to
tell who will win this battle there is no doubt that the Age of
Entrepreneurialism is here to stay.
This is not to say that
large companies and institutions will go away. But if they are to thrive or
even survive in the modern age their leaders must change their corporate culture
to fit the modern culture and the modern workforce it has created.
They will have to face the
Age of Entrepreneurialism of face the consequences. The people are speaking.