Monthly Archives: November 2010

Local Schmochal! Shop Co-op.

Posted on November 29, 2010 by John McNamara

It is “cyber Monday” which follows “black Friday” for those of us in the US (and I imagine Canada to some extent. In any event, the Holiday shopping season has opened. Since I don’t have anything heavy to write about … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Business or Democracy? Why Is That Even a Question?

Posted on November 22, 2010 by John McNamara

“To be successful, co-ops must lead with a competitive, quality product, not their cooperative values.” “The is no mission, if there isn’t a margin.” Sound familiar? I’ve heard both in the last couple of days. The latter was part of … Continue reading →

Posted in Movement | Tagged | 2 Comments

The US Labor Culture: Does It Exist?

Posted on November 15, 2010 by John McNamara

I had an interesting conversation this weekend with a long-time activist in labor and social justice circles. During our talk, we discussed how Mondragon works,  the sense of solidarity within their ranks and the difficulty of creating that solidarity in … Continue reading →

Posted in Movement | 2 Comments

The Three Dimensional Business Integration

Posted on November 9, 2010 by John McNamara

The people who work in our businesses are not two dimensional, why should the structure be? If you have studied business, or even US history, you have likely heard the term “vertical integration”. This concept was developed by US Steel … Continue reading →

Posted in Education, Human Relations | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Beginning a Thousand Mile Journey

Posted on November 1, 2010 by John McNamara

Let’s forget about tomorrow. Not because, as the song goes, it never comes, but because the election that happens tomorrow will have little effect on the worker co-ops of 2040 (or even 2011 for that matter). We need to think … Continue reading →

Posted in 2040, Human Relations | Tagged , | 3 Comments