
September Culturati: Magazine

It’s impossible not to reflect on all the one on one meetings from 2008 through 2015, discussing corporate culture with CEOs and investors with ever greater frequency. Fast forward to our second Culturati Summit in 2017, our opening panel concluded by saying that if corporations are citizens, they’re the most influential citizens in our country today and by asking, “what is our responsibility?”— yes, I know. I’ve remembered this probably every month this year. Why wouldn’t I? Our government is dysfunctional — there’s zero trust across the aisles of Congress, the White House reportedly suffering a “nervous breakdown”, the president threatening the fourth estate and citizens’ right to protest . . .

Nike just topped the charts at brands taking a stand with their “Just Do It” campaign including Colin Kaepernick, the iconic former N.F.L. quarterback who launched taking a knee to protest police shootings of African-American men and racial injustice.
While those offended have posted plenty of videos of flaming Nike shoes or cut up Nike wear, nearly two-thirds of Nike’s customers are under 35yo and are likely to embrace the brand for its stand. It’s doubtful this campaign was undertaken without consideration of what customers Nike might lose and which it may gain or further embrace. Personally, I’d love to present Colin and Nike with Culturati Hero medals. [At the NACD conference last year, I sat with a senior executive of a major retailer who assured me they didn’t lose store to store sales as a result of the right wing boycott against transgender bathroom rights. Dick’s Sporting Goods, however, appears to have suffered a 3–4% drop in store to store sales as a result of their policy to stop selling assault rifles and high-capacity magazines and to bar the sale of guns to people under age 21 following the Florida high school massacre.]

From a Motorola beat reporter, to covering Chicago’s start up scene, to producing The Distance and Rework for Basecamp, Wailin Wong knows the heartbeat of tech culture.
In her profile in this month’s Culturati Magazine, Wailin candidly wonders aloud if the #MeToo moment is “of the moment” and whether sustainable progress is really being made.
I’m appreciative of Wailin’s reminder that it takes special effort to make sure everyone is being included and heard (especially remote teams), and it takes deliberate steps to build an inclusive and honest culture.

Ethan Burris is a University of Texas Professor of Management and the Chevron Centennial Fellow at the McCombs School of Business. Plus, he is the Director of UT’s Center for Leadership and Ethics. He earned his Ph.D. in Management from Cornell University and has served as a Visiting Scholar at Google and Microsoft. He is Culturati’s partner in launching several research projects aimed at better understanding organizational culture and how to set the conditions for employees to thrive and feel that they are valued, identifying the best and most effective practices.
Our goal is to develop a long-term partnership between organizations and academia that will lead to deep, yet practical insights to help companies understand three areas critical for success:
- Giving Voice
- Innovation/Creativity
- Diversity and Inclusion
Ethan shares more details in his contributed piece in this month’s issue.

One hundred sixteen days until the end of the year — only 144 until Culturati Summit 2019. Josh Jones Dilworth and team are in the thick of programming. They’ve called for submission for those wanting to present. You can submit here. Our working thread for 2019 is purposefulness. We’re especially interested in cutting edge experiences building culture in the context of personal development, empathy, politics in the workplace, brands taking a stand, diversity & inclusion, mindfulness, investor & customer drivers, and the compensation divide.
Culture is about what happens when people have a strong sense of the why for their work and a keen sense of their connection to purpose and the opportunity to make a difference. The way we work together creates value. The journey you are on is very much the vision of business that’s our reason for being and is at the heart of the conversations we hold. This is the community we call Culturati. Thanks for being part of it.

Eugene Sepulveda is the co-founder of Culturati as well as the CEO of the Entrepreneurs Foundation and a director & partner in Capital Factory. Eugene’s played at the intersection of business, politics and community in Austin and nationally for many years. He can be reached at Eugene@ABPorter.org

