BUSINESSPHILOSOPHYINTRODUCTION

OUR BUSINESS LEADERS IN THE 21ST CENTURY NEED PHILOSOPHY. IN THE ERA OF PERMANENT REVOLUTION AND INCREASING COMPLEXITY, SOLUTIONS ARE FOUND BY EMBRACING DIFFERENT MINDSETS, SIMPLICITY AND WILD KNOWLEDGE. THE PURPOSE OF BUSINESS IS CHANGING, AND RELATIONS ARE INTERDEPENDENT AND MULTI-DIMENSIONAL IN A SHORT HISTORICAL ERA, WHICH I DEFINE AS THE “ERA OF THE MENSCH”.

There is an interdisciplinary potential of business and philosophy, when combined together. Philosophy supports the on-going improvement of business models, methodologies and various strategies – shaping how we work – and can also articulate “blind-spots” in business by looking behind the assumptions defined in our old models of “known-facts” and questioning theoretical defined pre-conditions influencing how we think.

Technology is evolving at an exponentially growing speed while the evolution of humanity is struggling to keep up – we need to dig deeper for greater richness and more depth which is not solely measured in $, € or YEN. We are using old models to solve future problems and working with outdated approaches. To end this struggle it is necessary to view things from a different angle, approached by positivism. With this approach, the world is full of opportunities and possibilities rather than limitations. Our leaders of tomorrow need this to add to their value systems, tool-boxes and mindsets. We are looking for effective ways to combine how we do business with the needs of society as we move into the future.

The skills needed are based on rational thinking, an outside-in or a backward view of things, some kind of optimization of a continuous decision-making process by taking abstract reflections and a broad view to a very often “narrow focus” way of thinking. Creativity and wild knowledge are the drivers of the 21st Century – the power of ideas. Philosophy provides support by questioning the answers and the facts, and provides critical reasoning. Lack of questioning assumptions is in fact one of the biggest challenges in organizations today, particularly in larger hierarchical companies.

The future leaders must function both productively, with a defined set of values, and be more responsible in order to succeed in business. Building culture and the organization while providing value to the clients. Our “old world” is reaching its limits, the capitalistic model needs compassion and our economic model is breaking down. We need radical changes in both our educational- and political-system in order to be able to cope with the challenges ahead as the complexity of technology increases and the exponential progress in AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) is fuelled by breakthroughs in quantum computing.

Business and Philosophy, hand-in-hand toward an applied practical philosophy for coping with change, our life in general and a goal not to teach what to think, but to influence how we think on the road towards our goals. Join the journey.

“Our Leaders of today need the philosophy of the past, paired with the scientific knowledge and technology of tomorrow.“