Fixing Business

In his second book ‘the face of British Business' Lord Digby Jones shows us why profit isn't a dirty word—it's what you do with it that counts. Society is at a crossroads, and good business lays the foundation for a successful future; but are we brave enough to build it? Fixing Business focuses on why we must be.

Fixing the world requires a vibrant and successful, profit-yielding, tax-delivering, job-creating business sector. This book describes how that sector is built, and how the good of business means the good of all.

• Learn why business must invest more—and better—in physical and human infrastructure
• Discover the critical importance of social inclusion in the future of business
• Understand why fixing education and the environment are at the top of the priority list
• Engage with every aspect of society to create the wealth that holds the social fabric together

From the smallest shop around the corner to the largest multinational corporation, the variable upon which every facet of business success rests is people. Workers, investors, customers, creditors—all ensure that wealth is created, and at the end of the day, they are what business is about. Fixing Business shows us how to harness their power to change the world.

1 Something is Wrong – and it’s Everybody’s Business 1

2 Where the Battle is Being Lost: Fixing the Reputation of Business 27

3 Achieving Socially Inclusive Wealth Creation 57

4 Harnessing the Power of Education, Training and Skills 85

5 Protecting the Environment: An Essential Priority 113

6 The Boardroom: Executive Pay and the Gulf between Big and Small Business 131

7 Dealing with a Post-Brexit World 149

8 What’s Next? 167

Acknowledgements 189

About the Author 191

Index 195

"... always charismatic, plain speaking and bold — just what business needs, in fact, at a time when it finds itself in the dock." (People Management, June 2017)

One of the most important institutions in modern Britain is facing a crisis. In fact, the relationship between three of Britain’s most important institutions is broken. When Business – which generates wealth, taxation, employment, products, services and innovations – Government – which regulates, seeks social progress and has a mandate to lead – and Society – all of us – cannot work together, it’s something that should concern us all. Yet while the connection between Government and Society is often reported and analysed, the crucial relationship between Business and Society is much less understood.

Business faces a range of difficult problems: many of its own making, some that are not, and it is time that these were addressed. According to Lord Digby Jones, Business must recognise that it has a vital role to play in society and it needs to start fulfilling that role better. This book is about Business: what it means, why it matters and, more significantly, the challenges it currently faces and the solutions that it needs to adopt if it is to succeed for the benefit of us all.

In this follow-up to his widely acclaimed Fixing Britain, Lord Digby Jones turns his eye to Business, by proposing a way to salvage this often maligned word and make profit creation a socially-beneficial act. Lord Jones pulls no punches in addressing the major factors that influence, and are influenced by, Business today, including:

• Britain in a post-Brexit world
• Donald Trump’s America
• The “Elephant in the Boardroom” or Executive Pay

Profit is not a dirty word. It is an agent for good if properly used. Communities, charities and every part of Society are better served when businesses, large and small, are buoyant. Fixing Business calls out to all businesses and their leaders to rise to the challenge.