A633.1.2.RB_FogartyShawn

            I think leaders of this era are groomed by that of the previous era. There is an abundance of greed and corruption. This is obvious from political and government leaders to that of our national sports leagues. There was and is a significant gap in ethics and understanding of corporate social responsibility. This is a product of the “bottom line thinkers” where expenses have been paid by employees, consumers, or the environment. The most obvious failure of a leader within the United States starts at the current executive branch. There must come a day, when we drop this bottom line, money grubbing ideology and place the welfare of the people and environment above our glutinous creature comforts. For instance, enacting the national healthcare bill for the people but is not good enough for the family of the executive branch?

            Leaders today must be agile but decisive. It is comical to watch leaders tap-dance around words to employ the decision of least resistance that offers the most benefit to them. The gap in leadership has been principally driven by that of greed. Everyone in conquest of the “American Dream” has historically grown more and more independent. This is obvious within the leadership level as well. In doing so, leaders are isolated. The leaders of the past relied more on relationships and not the all mighty dollar. Leaders used to conduct business with a sense of pride and honor whereas now it’s all about dollars and capital. Unfortunately there is only a few remaining that calculate success aside from their bank accounts.

            In order to close the gap between the “bottom line leaders” and those who operate with a sense of social responsibility will not be easy. It will take a significant amount of education and effort as society has at large choked down the “American Dream” which is full or empty promises. Second, there needs to be an end to the “entitlement” generation. A clear cut end, a lot of feelings need to be hurt. The previous generation embodied hard work which today’s youth has taken for granted by applications of technology. Further, the developments in technology enable more time which has not be harnessed yet. The younger generation has taken advantage of this time rather than focusing energy towards something productive.  Leaders of tomorrow are challenged with turning away from greed and towards social responsibility while harnessing the idle time created by technological advancements. Leaders must ask themselves, how can we make a positive difference?