Is it possible to run a company in todays business climate without taking the cut-throat, winner-take-all approach that seems so predominant? While all the big news lately has been about those companies that have failed, and particularly those that have failed while using questionable tactics and obfuscating accounting practices, not to mention showing little concern for the average employee, are there still companies thriving while being run in a fashion that recognizes the value of ethics and the contribution of employees who feel like family?

One example that comes to mind here close to home is Celestial Seasonings. In spite of the various changes the company has undergone over the last 15 years, including a stint as a Kraft subsidiary, a time as an independent company, and now as part of a larger health-food company, Celestial Seasonings has stayed true to its roots. The company treats employees honestly and with kindness, and shares the profits of its success with them. It is a company that seems to wish everyone it touchesvendors, distributors, customers, even the competitionto benefit from that contact.

So it seems that it is possible to run a company in such a fashion that employee loyalty is bred by good treatment, that strong financial results can be achieved without scams or accounting schemes. Why dont more companies try it?

My theory is that too many of the executives today were trained early in their careers that stepping on others to get where you want to be is not just expectedit is the only way to get to the top. Now that they have reached the goal, they are not easily convinced that a different strategy might work equally well.

The good news is, the change is coming. It is coming not from the senior people, but from junior execs who are coming of age in a different time. More and more, people are coming to the realization that what we do affects everyone else, and the everyone else is not them. It is us. We are all in this together, and the dawning awareness of that fact is what will drive a sea change in our world over the next few generations.

Our planet is gradually recovering from centuries of abuse at the hands of uncaring and ignorant populations. As we take better care of Mother Earth, the chances of our race surviving another century rise slowly. And much of the recovery will be the responsibility of the businesses of the planet. Governments can spend huge sums to clean up past ecological disasters and can legislate proper behavior, but business is best equipped to prevent it in the first place. If the top management of a company has the attitude that taking shortcuts and violating either our home or the people who live here is the worst possible path to take, this gradual improvement in conditions will snowball with lightning speed.

My vision is not one that will easily come to pass. On the other hand, Mo Seigel probably had little inkling of what Celestial Seasonings would become when he and some friends picked herbs in the fields outside Boulder to use in his first batch of Mos 36 Herb Tea back in 1969. Vision is not about the how of it. The realization of a dream seems to take care of itself when people come together to share the dream. As more and more of us come to share this vision, we take another step toward it becoming reality. We make it our reality.