Operation Weak Flesh: a management model can be the seed of corruption
Much has been said about Operation “Carne Fraca” (Weak Flesh) and its repercussions, already felt and discussed, on the image of the companies involved, as well as on the reputation of Brazil, whose international standing has suffered, once again, a negative impact.
But there is still an important reflection to be made about illicit practices involving the public and private sectors. It is important that we talk about how certain management models open up enormous fronts for the uncontrolled practice of corruption and fraud within companies.
And how does this happen? Mainly because most traditional management models generally establish that the most important thing to be done in a company is to “hit targets,” obtain results and win market share.
The big problem is that, most of the time, these same traditional management models that demand those numbers and targets do not define “how” to reach these indicators. They do not define how to reach them grounded in values, management principles and process efficiency. And, even worse, these models have weak control practices over those who commit misconduct.
The truth is that traditional management spreads the mindset of “hit the target whatever it takes.” After all, as Machiavelli wrote, “the ends justify the means.” That opens the way to reprehensible, unethical and illegal practices which, as we know, occasionally occur in various business areas.
But is it possible to change this in the capitalist context we live in, whose essence is the pursuit of profit? Yes, it is possible, however difficult it may seem.
First, it is necessary to change the organization’s management model. And one of the first steps to do this is to redefine very clearly what the company’s “purpose” is. But, more than that, it is necessary to fulfill it.
In the lean system, also known as “lean thinking,” this changes absolutely everything. In this case, the organization’s focus, the purpose that should underpin everything done in the company, is not purely to“make the numbers”.
Far from it. The main and central concern is to “add value for the customer.” In other words, to serve customers excellently, to give them what they want and need. It is to make them absolutely happy and satisfied. It is to work for the one who really matters, the customer. Thus, hitting numbers becomes a “consequence” and no longer a “target” that exists for its own sake.
By adding value for the customer - every day, by satisfying them and meeting their demands, the natural consequence is retaining customers, building their loyalty and winning new consumers. Thus, the “number,” the target and the profit come as a natural consequence. And not as something that is often “forced,” “dressed up” or, as in cases of corruption, the fruit of criminal actions.
This is simple to understand. Look at the recent cases of corruption and fraud in companies. In all of them, the crime committed aimed to maximize profit at the expense of degrading what is value for the customer. As a consequence, it harmed and drove away those who really matter, as is happening in the companies that are concretely involved in this Operation “Carne Fraca”.
If we look at it from the inspection side, the management failures are even more evident, with bureaucratic processes that foster the well-known practice of creating difficulties in order to sell favors.
Brazil has built a solid reputation in recent decades, becoming the largest meat exporter in the world and winning extremely demanding markets, the result of a great effort by companies and government agencies. Since the number of meatpacking plants and inspectors involved is a small percentage of the total (which does not minimize the seriousness of what is being reported), it certainly will not be long before all the embargoes imposed by the main markets are lifted.
But we cannot let this fact fall, like so many others, into collective amnesia. Even if the percentage of those caught in the crimes may be small, that does not mean that many other companies are not subject, every day, to misconduct like this, because they adopt management systems that push people toward “anything goes” to obtain results.
The allegations involved companies of different sizes and different track records in terms of objectives, values and pursuit of quality. Some give the impression that they never aimed to act ethically or with a focus on the customer. Others show that they strive for this. For the latter, which we hope are the majority, in this and other sectors, the damage in a case like this is even greater. The easiest thing is to think of more controls. But the opportunity is to reflect more deeply on what is being done to align everyone on “how” to achieve the objectives and what they are.
Do you want to eliminate the risk of any kind of unethical or criminal action in your organization? The most effective way to ensure compliance is for leadership to have a strong, sincere and tireless commitment to adding value for the customer. So that every employee understands that what the company expects of them is nothing more than that, with their own prosperity and that of the business being a consequence.
