Have you heard of Dov Seidman? The man who built and runs a multimillion dollar global company around the idea that the most principled businesses are the most profitable and sustainable.

That’s hard to believe in a world where every day stories bombard us proving over and over that ‘ethical leadership’ has attained the dubious honor of being an oxymoron, whether in business, politics and even in religion.

In a world focused on ‘how much’ and ‘how many’ it’s important to remember that what we choose to measure is an accurate reflection of what we value.

Seidman offers a cogent argument that the more important question is ‘how’, as he discusses in his book, “How: Why HOW We Do Anything Means Everything” and the following video.

Image credit: The MIX

There are multiple articles in two of today’s links, so you may want to bookmark them.

The first is from the IBM Institute for Business Value (to which you can subscribe for free) and offers links to several studies on social CRM. You can also participate in a short survey about how social is being used in your company.

I’ve sent you to The Mix in previous posts; they just posted the winners in each category and they are worth checking out.

We launched the inaugural Harvard Business Review/McKinsey M-Prize for Management Innovation nearly a year ago. Today, we are so proud to announce the grand prize winners as well as the “Management Innovator of the Year” Award.

Last week I wrote about how Facebook was turning “Likes” into endorsements for which it’s paid. That’s changing as part of the settlement of a class action lawsuit.

Facebook has agreed to make it clear to users that when they click to like a product on Facebook, their names and photos can be used to plug the product. They will also be given a chance to decline the opportunity to be unpaid endorsers.

Flickr image credit: pedroelcarvalho

Back in January I provided a link to The Mix (Management Information Exchange) and recommended that you register and read hacks of interest to you.

If I hadn’t done so it’s doubtful I would have heard about Ricardo Semler and Semco Group.

Since the mid-80s when Semler arrived on the scene, that has meant an ever-evolving experiment in upending the organizational status quo: no organizational chart, no fixed offices or working hours, no fixed CEO, no HR department, no five-year plan (or two- or one-year-plan), no job descriptions or permanent positions, no approvals necessary—and an endless array of clever practices and initiatives to increase individual autonomy and agency, participation at every level, trust, and informality.

The result? Market success—Semco is private but Semler reports average annual revenue growth at 40% and profitability. (…)

“We constantly talk about passion—serving customers passionately, filling in forms passionately—but what if we created the conditions for people to feel exhilaration, to get involved to the point they shout ‘yes!’ and give each other high fives because they did it their way and it worked?”

Would your people thrive in a going concern that functions more like a startup than most startups?

If yes, why? If not, why not?

Knowing why it would/does work is useful because you can share the knowledge and lessons learned with others.

If you don’t believe similar actions, tweaked for your organization, would work you need to ask why not.

You can ask your peers or, better yet your people, but first ask the mirror.

You may need to look no farther.

Flickr image credit: Cea