The IBTE Conversationin this issue introduces John Medina, a molecular biologist who studies the brain and applies this study to early childhood development. He was the founder of Talaris Institute; some of the exciting results of their work can be found on their website. So what is the connection to business, technology, and ethics?
Reading News Notables (see p. 17), with a small sampling of recent executive misbehavior, might suggest it is executives behaving like children! But there is another link. Today more than ever, employees are called on to use their brains at work. Gone are the days of Henry Ford, who, referring to the assembly line workers, said that he was sorry that a head came with the pair of hands.
Just as educators need to give more attention to how the brain actually works, so business people need to do the same. Managing stress, communicating information, and dealing with change are just a few of the many areas John discusses. The more I have talked with him over the past three years, the more convinced I have become of the relevance of brain research to a business world being changed by technology. I believe you will be also, even if you don’t buy his suggestion of bringing exercise bikes into the staff meeting!
Denise Daniels, Seattle Pacific University professor, School of Business and Economics, joined me for the IBTE Conversation with John Medina.
Next issue… we will travel to Malaysia for our IBTE Conversation. I had the opportunity to spend almost a month in Southeast Asia in support of a research project, and made connection with two CEOs in Kuala Lumpur. More on this perspective in November.
I would like to thank Jennifer Smith for her outstanding support of Ethix over the past three years as our circulation manager. She did a great job in helping us establish our database, and built the subscriptions to the present point. We wish her well in her new endeavors. Alex Ssebugwawo has taken over this task on an interim basis. Alex is a student from Uganda, with a background in computer science, and is helping us establish our office at the edge of the Seattle Pacific University campus (note our new phone number). You will see some of his ideas in the near term as he helps us develop our subscription list.
Al Erisman
Executive Editor