A Call to Serve
Social Enterprise Newsletter, Winter 2003
On June 5, a call to service rang out to hundreds of graduating students on HBS Class Day 2002. This year's featured speaker, John C. Whitehead (MBA '47), encouraged students to make a difference by steering their organizations toward greater social responsibility and by getting involved in their communities.
Whitehead began his remarks by advising students to envision themselves as leaders, not followers. "The world today cries out for leadership in every walk of life: in government, in business, and in the not-for-profit world as well." He touched on the many styles of leadership, from the strong, dominant styles of Theodore Roosevelt, Lee Iacocca, and Rudy Giuliani to the quiet, compassionate leadership styles of Dwight Eisenhower, Mother Teresa, and Colin Powell. "Each of you will find your own style, which will fall somewhere in between these two styles," he said, adding that leaders adapt to situations and that throughout their careers, each problem they face will require a different style of leading.
Whitehead said that the degree to which one can successfully make a difference depends upon the quality of leadership one offers. "There is one quality of good leadership whose importance is not often recognized—and that is the importance of listening." When Whitehead was appointed chairman of the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, charged with rebuilding and revitalizing Lower Manhattan after 9/11—a complicated and highly sensitive task—he asked the board to be in "listening mode" and not to make any decisions for two months. To this end, he formed committees for eight distinct stakeholder groups from the surrounding neighborhoods, and found that through the valuable feedback from these groups, he and the board were much better informed about everyone's needs. "If you do a lot of listening before deciding, you will make better decisions."
Whitehead asserted that even in the private sector, corporations can play a bigger role in solving social problems, but only if they are willing to push corporate involvement into new areas. "I believe that in the years ahead, corporate leadership will be recognized not only for the quality of their company's products and services, but also for their willingness to tackle some of this country's huge social problems, such as secondary school education, health care, and the environment."
Indeed, Whitehead's entire career has been an extraordinary example of leadership and service. With a passion to address the increasing leadership challenges in the nonprofit sector, he founded HBS's Initiative on Social Enterprise (ISE); he continues to actively serve as chair of its advisory board. Following a successful 38-year career at Goldman Sachs, Whitehead was appointed deputy secretary of state in 1985—serving for four years—and was awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal.
Reflecting on the 55 years since his own HBS graduation, Whitehead ended with a question: "In 50 years, you can do a lot of different things...what will you do?" As an answer, he offered three points of advice: Keep your eyes open to what is going on around you; get involved in your communities; and always strive to make a difference not only in your careers, but in your lives as well.