Corporate Ethics

Tom Marks to Deliver DreamBank Keynote Address

Tom Marks — Wed, 03 Oct 2018 19:07:12 +0000

Tom Marks to Deliver DreamBank Keynote Address

October 3, 2018

MY FELLOW C-SUITE EXECUTIVES, SALES & MARKETING PROFESSIONALS, THOUGHT LEADERS, PHILOSOPHERS, HISTORIANS AND ETHICISTS...

I’m honored to have been selected to open the new DreamBank of Madison with my award-winning keynote address: Of Socrates, Plato & Aristotle: How Thought Leadership Drives Stronger Sales, Marketing & Corporate Ethics. This is the same keynote I present throughout the country, but never to the public, and never in my hometown of Madison. This is really one of the only times you’ll be able to see this presentation free-of-charge, compliments of DreamBank, on Tuesday, November 6th. That’s the good news, however, the not so good news is the new space isn’t all that large, so seating is going to be limited.

SIGN UP TODAY.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND: Anyone who is a C-Suite Executive, all sales and marketing personnel including entire sales and marketing departments and teams, advertising and public relations professionals, thought leaders and aspiring thought leaders.

MY SPECIAL GUESTS: I am tremendously proud that the philosophy department at Marquette University uses my findings to teach students how the doctrines of the past can be used in the principles of business practices today. Faculty from Marquette University will be attending!

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: “This is the best presentation I have ever seen and I’ve seen decades of presentations.”
Lyn Wineman, President: KidGlov Brand Enhancement
Lincoln and Omaha, NE, Loveland, CO

SEE WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING.

Men Gone Wild And The Forgotten Art Of The Apology

Tom Marks — Tue, 04 Sep 2018 21:43:34 +0000

Men Gone Wild And The Forgotten Art Of The Apology

September 4, 2018

For centuries, men have behaved badly. To fraternity pledges; to rival sports enthusiasts; to servers and flight attendants; to people who don’t share their worldviews; to the homeless; and to the helpless.

And, of course, to women.

By and large, men have a rich history of being jags. Women? Not so much. If you don’t believe me check into the life and times of Caligula, Nero and Tiberius. Okay, I get it, you don’t like the Romans, so what’s your take on the Japanese “Comfort Women”; gang-rape in New Delhi, or dumpster rape guy Brock Turner and Judge Michael Persky who was rightfully slammed for not tossing the guy in the slammer? And tossing away the keys. Like I said, men can be jerks – and it’s global.

And the list keeps getting longer than Moonves’ millions. There’s Les, Weinstein, Rose, O’Reilly, Ailes, Laurer, Seagal (now that he’s a Russian, will we see Seagal in Chekhov’s The Seagull?), Franken, Wynn, Keillor and more than 200 others on a list that’s updated daily and published by VOX. They come from different industries, were consummated in different years, grew-up in assorted parts of the country, and observe different religions. Other than treating women like shit, many have something else in common. They’re sorry for what they did. Sort of.

These guys are all masters of the standard default excuse that’s made a cameo in every statement of regret: these were mistakes that happened years go. Is that it? Since when is a mistake not a mistake? Apparently when it’s groping women. Remember what Rose Kennedy wrote:

“It has been said, ‘time heals all wounds.’ I do not agree. The wounds remain. In time, the mind, protecting its sanity, covers them with scar tissue and the pain lessens. But it is never gone.”

It’s never gone gents so don’t cast a woman’s feelings aside with the mighty stroke of your spokesperson’s pen. Are the mistakes of the Holocaust less mistaken because they occurred decades ago; are the assassinations at Virginia Tech more palatable because it’s been 11 years; are the 58 accusers of Bill Cosby’s unwanted exploits – dating back to the 1960s – somehow whole again after he tore their lives in half?

Of course not.

And then there’s this: times were different back then. Sure they were. So let me take a moment to make sure I have this right. Somehow, in the last 30 years, give or take a decade or two, women have changed, they now have feelings, sensitivities and purpose; all characteristics that are brand new. Give me a break.

The shit you did 35 years ago is still the shit you did. Own it bro.

But it’s not just men behaving badly; it’s men apologizing, badly. The art of the apology has landed in the unapologetic laps of lawyers, reputation managers and corporate shills. Does anyone see the irony? There’s nothing quite like damaged goods providing the cover for damaged goods.

Now it’s time for me to enter the narrative since none of you gropers and abusers seem to know the first thing about apologizing without slipping in a few thinly veiled excuses including this one: I’m not a perfect person. That’s why I’m here, because I know how difficult it is when all you have is a blank sheet of paper and an equally blank soul. So use this starter template to begin your apology tour.

“I screwed-up. No excuses, no finger-pointing, no buck-passing. I screwed-up by treating women horribly. And I want to be clear about this, the mistakes I made 20 years ago aren’t any different had I made those mistakes 20 days ago. They were wrong then and they are wrong now. I am sorry that I have caused this much pain for people who deserved none of it.”

That’s it. Some day, someone will get it right. But I wouldn’t hold my breath.

In order to understand corporate ethics, you need to understand Greek history

Tom Marks — Tue, 04 Sep 2018 21:18:11 +0000

In order to understand corporate ethics, you need to understand Greek history

September 4, 2018

When I speak to CEOs around the country about corporate ethics, one thing’s for certain; they don’t understand its genesis. And that’s the critical unknown about corporate ethics that needs to be known. When you understand its origins, its derivations, and its original intent, then you can better wrap your arms around the significance of what’s transpired over the last 2,500 years (very little), and gain a deeper realization as to why the absence of corporate ethics today bodes a rather chilling future for businesses of all shapes, sizes and formats.

It was telling when I spoke to an acquaintance the other day about my speeches regarding corporate ethics. He said, “That must be one very short speech,” laughing emphatically as if he just coined the most important joke of the day. Truth be told, he’s the third person who said that to me in the last month. And it is kind of funny. Let’s face it, corporate ethics is a tough nut to crack. The problem is deeply-rooted in the soul of the corporation, which for better or worse, is essentially the soul of its leader, and perhaps its former leaders.

Corporate ethics begins with an innate sense of being able to do the right thing. As corny as it sounds, it’s universally true. You can’t teach it, it almost always comes from the school of hard knocks, and you can’t force it because the obstacles that prevent a leader from doing the right thing are often commerce-centric, which is the sanitized way of saying money generally gets in the way of doing right.

So, at the starting line corporate ethics is one heck of a grueling race; sort of like the 800 meters, part endurance, part sprint. But what I’ve found immensely helpful to CEOs is explaining to them the nature, meaning and impact of Deontological, Teleological and Nicomachean Ethics. It helps them with context, with a more definitive thinking in regard to knowing the history and genesis of ethics, and it makes for great storytelling which they’re able to relay to their staff.

In any event, what company can’t use a little Socrates, Plato and Aristotle as part of their team?