I HAVE SEEN THE FUTURE AND IT IS BRIGHT!

I am greatly concerned about our society’s inability to grasp the significant threats that global warming poses. Even though there is much positive progress, the overall trend, especially with the Senate’s dithering over real climate change legislation and Copenhagen looking wobbly, is that we aren’t making enough progress fast enough.

I received my MBA in Marketing and Entrepreurship from the Johnson School of Management at Cornell in 1986. That was the era of Yuppies, Masters of the Universe, and Gordon Gecko’s iconic “Greed is good” speech. We went off in pursuit of lucrative careers and enjoyed a reasonably strong economic environment during the early part of our careers, until the dot.com bust and 9/11 came along. I put my environmental concerns on the back burner as I launched new computer storage systems at Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). I was one of a mere 16,000 employees DEC hired that year. No, that is not a typo – 16,000 people in one year! We rented the QE2 cruise ship, the largest in the world, to house all our customers for the annual trade show.

The past decade has been rough for capitalism and free market thinking. Last year’s financial meltdown may turn out to be the tipping point that turn the masses to realize a more sustainable economic path is needed. So, why do I think the future is bright?

I am at the Net Impact Conference at Cornell right now. Net Impact is the collection of MBA student clubs creating “a network of emerging business leaders committed to using the power of business to create a better world”. 2400 young adults, the best and the brightest from leading schools all across the country and from many other countries are meeting in Ithaca for an intense series of presentations, workshops, and networking events. Liz Mauw, Executive Director, kicked off the conference by sharing her fear that after last year’s meltdown she worried about attendance at this year’s conference. “Ithaca, in November, how are we going to do it?” she mused. Yes, Ithaca is expensive and hard to get to and the Finger Lakes weather in late fall is unpredictable.

Well, attendance at this year’s event is up 20% from last year, and is the largest Net Impact conference ever. At our networking dinner last night, I was impressed by the drive, talent and experience of my 8 companions. Half are working professionals making a real difference at companies like International Paper, Con Edison, Martha Stewart and Nautica. The MBA students all had impressive experience on Wall Street, media, and public health. Everyone at the table was knowledgable, passionate and very well intentioned.

I sat back and thought about the conversations I had with my fellow students in Collegetown over 2 decades ago. We focused on money, power, climbing the ladder, and what kind of new car we wanted to buy. I don’t have quantitative evidence that today’s MBA students are any less materialistic (although current economic conditions are leading to a tempering of income expectations and career mobility); however, I am greatly heartened to see the outpouring of caring, compassion, innovation and motivation that tomorrow’s business leaders are showing today.

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