Fishburn Hedges

13.08.2010

I see that John Lewis this week is among the expert mentors for the new pathfinder projects to create public sector mutuals. That surely has to be a good thing.

If there’s ever a big company that instinctively feels closest to a social enterprise then John Lewis is it.  Its genuine employee-led culture delivered by a committed and knowledgeable workforce is well documented (thank you, while I’m at it, for all that expert roller blind advice). Combining that with a responsible way of doing business, which so clearly sits at its heart, gives a real sense of marrying social and commercial enterprise and values.

There’s one big difference, though.  It’s there to make money and profit in which all its partners share.  That has to be at the heart of making the employee-led model work well for so many years. 

In transferring such a model to the public sector, communications and transparency will be everything, right from the off.  I’m sure John Lewis invests heavily in ensuring its people live and breathe its values, and it’s clear so many of them do.  If the desire is to get management and employees of the new offshoots sharing the same motivation, then genuinely giving people a say in the way the new organisations are run and living up to the promises set at the outset will be critical – as will then doing it again, again and again.

Certainly an interesting first move in what will be an early test for the Big Society.

Posted by Simon Matthews