> [Host's Note: Thanks, everyone, for the contributions on this thread.
> Somewhere in the middle there is a gray area in which the pros and cons
> are not so clear for sharing vs. keeping secret. What principles or
> criteria should guide us in this area? In my experience, and I'll add a
> message or two shortly, there is a *great* deal more sharing with
> "competitors" going on now that in past decades. ...Rick]
I have been following this thread, feeling that both "sharing information
as a rule" and "hiding information as a rule" are not productive.
Of course, we don't make public everything we know, and the reason to do
that is not only economic.
Of course, we live in a community, and our existence, as people, as
business, as nation, as species, depends on existence of other entities.
We are both "I" and "us" at the same time.
I would suggest, on this subject, Ryuzaburo Kako's (Canons's CEO)
"Kyosei: The Guide for a New Order in Business"
<http://astro.temple.edu/~dialogue/Codes/canon.html>.
Some excerpts:
"What exactly is kyosei? At Canon we use a concise definition: "living and
working together for the common good". A more detailed version is: "all
people, regardless of race, religion or culture, harmoniously living and
working together for many years to come."
...
"I have defined the fourth type as the "corporation assuming global social
responsibilities". It may also be described as a "truly global
corporation". This type of company cares for all its direct stakeholders
including its local community and beyond. While this type of corporation
experiences no labor disputes and exists harmoniously with the local
community, it strives to fulfill its corporate obligations on a global
scale. Its social responsibilities transcend national boundaries. Canon's
concept of kyosei applied to its relationship to all people symbolizes the
company's commitment to the aim of becoming this fourth type of company --
truly global corporation."
...
"A final question that arises is, assuming that a corporation is engaging
in fair competition, how does a corporation achieve kyosei with its
competitors."
"Even if a competitor falls into difficulties, I do not approve of taking
a "survival of the fittest" approach to destroy another party until it is
liquidated. Competition involves being innovative during the process of
creating original products or services; it is not a kill-or-be-killed
struggle in which one is either the predator or the prey."
"The survival of the fittest is said to be the prevailing rule of the
natural world. However, a close observation of animals in their natural
habitat reveals more subtle relationships between species. When lions
attack zebras, they never kill more zebras than they need to eat for
survival. Wisdom thus operates to protect the zebra species. In my view it
is a mistake to believe that competition means a fight until the other
party is destroyed and all competition eliminated."
"Innovative corporations with specialties in different areas can also work
together in the spirit of kyosei to produce outstanding products. In this
way a synergy is created and products can be produced that either company
alone could not develop."
"In this way, if every company does its best to be innovative and develops
specialist skills they can often team up with other companies with
different strengths to create further innovations and provide the world
with better products and services. Canon has such cooperative kyosei
relationships with Texas Instruments, Hewlett-Packard, Eastman-Kodak,
Olivetti and Apple."
"Naturally, cooperation between companies must observe anti-monopoly
regulations and must involve respect between the parties and mutual
benefits."
I hope you enjoy this
Durval
-- Durval Muniz de Castro <durval@ia.cti.br> Fundacao Centro Tecnologico para Informatica <http://www.ia.cti.br/> Campinas - Brasil - Fone: 55-19-2401011 - Fax: 55-19-2402029Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>