Watch the recording I Zen and the Art of Evolving Capitalism
If you missed the last virtual ITBoss with Richard Tang, Founder & Chairman at Zen Internet, then here’s your opportunity to catch up on what you missed. Richard’s inspiring presentation: ‘Zen and the Art of Evolving Capitalism’ explored the state of capitalism and what he is doing at Zen to try and evolve it into a system that is sustainable for the future. Here are the themes that Richard explored:
The Capitalist System Today: Money First and People Second
Richard looks at the social and environmental impacts of capitalism including:
- the impact of wellbeing and spending on happiness
- business crimes and regulation breaches
- the capitalist system being a giant inequality machine
- climate crisis and extinction
Richard said:
“It is very clear to me that our capitalist system is not sustainable.
“I have made it my mission in life to evolve the system toward something better.
“Starting at Zen.”
Zen’s Culture
The three objectives that enshrine Zen’s culture are:
- Happy staff
- Happy customers
- Happy suppliers
The company operates a culture that puts people first, and money second and this is the secret behind its reputation for service quality. Its employees clearly view their roles as a job for life, demonstrated by their loyalty to Zen; 60% have been with the company for over five years and 25% for over ten years.
Zen’s Achievements
Richard talks through three pioneering initiatives at Zen:
- The company has submitted an application to be a Certified B Corporation; People Using Business as a Force for Good
- The Zen Business Incubator Scheme which encourages employees to start their own businesses
- The Zen Foundation which is a charity with the aim of evolving capitalism to a new sustainable model and which will allow the raising of money to fund many more start-ups
Richard believes that today’s capitalist system is not sustainable, for the wellbeing of humanity or the sustainability of the environment. He thinks that the evolution of capitalism that we desperately need will come from businesses that choose to operate in a different way, and from each and every one of us:
“We need to create a movement for World 2.0.
“We all have a part to play in making it happen.”
See for yourself – here’s the recording of ITBoss:
