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Category Archives: Management
Willy St: Co-op for Consumers, Union for the Workers
Beatrix Potter ( who with her husband Sidney Webb led the Fabian Socialists (predecessors to the Labour Party in the UK) generally opposed the notion of worker co-ops. The argument went something along the lines that all humans share the … Continue reading
Posted in Management, Worker Rights
Tagged consumer coops, fabians, labor unions, unionism, willy street
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Sociocracy: The Worker Co-op Operating System
Over the last couple of years, I have had the incredible opportunity to work with Sociocracy For All (SoFA). This organization has worked diligently to bring the concepts of sociocracy out of the “best kept secret” category and into the … Continue reading
Posted in Governance, Management, worker co-ops
Tagged Management, participatory management, sociocracy, union cab
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My 2nd Birthplace: Union Cab of Madison 40 years on
I am a bit glad that this post came so late in the month. I needed some time to get back in the practice of blogging before taking tackling this–so many thoughts and emotions run though my mind that this … Continue reading
Posted in Co-op Month, Management, worker co-ops
Tagged Democracy, self-responsibility, solidarity, taxicabs, union cab, worker coops
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Central Co-op: A Tale of Two Cities
Seattle’s Central Co-op’s Logo
Before I start with today’s Co-op Month post, please note that I am not a member of Central Co-op, nor have I shopped there. Also, a couple of the managers are alumni of the MMCCU program at … Continue reading
Posted in Co-op Month, Conversion, Management
Tagged consumer coops, openness, seattle, solidarity, tacoma, unioncoops
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The People’s Ride: A Co-op Response to Uber
I haven’t been a fan of the “sharing economy” primairlity because it really isn’t about sharing, it is about extraction. Uber, Lyft, AirBnB, TaskRabbit aren’t sharing anything, they are providing a technological interface for people to do menial jobs and … Continue reading
Posted in Management, Movement, Worker Rights
Tagged development, federation, innovation, self-responsibility, worker co-ops
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Teamwork vs. Collaboration
One of my weekly “must-reads” includes the Monday Morning Memo from the “Wizard of Ads” marketing guru Roy H. Williams. His weekly thoughts offer insight into the world of advertising and the human condition. Often illuminating, the Wizard delves into … Continue reading
Posted in Governance, Management
Tagged committees, leadership, self-responsibility, teams
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Managing Old Industries: A lesson for aging coops
Last week, Mondragon’s General Consul announced that it had decided to cease its efforts to stabilize the FAGOR Cooperative Group. FAGOR electronics makes kitchen appliances: stoves, ovens, refrigerators, and even pressure cookers. It is the original Mondragon cooperative that began … Continue reading
Getting Back to Normal?
I am looking forward to the future! For the last nine months, I have been in the role of General Manager of my co-operative. It has been a very difficult time made more difficult by the ebbs and flows of … Continue reading
Posted in Governance, Management, Movement
Tagged labor movement, participatory management, union cab
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The Power of the Mission
Recently, I was presenting a session on expansion and I discussed the role of mission statements. The main idea is that a first step at planning significant change in our co-ops should begin with an examination of our mission statements. … Continue reading
EdVisions Schools–Workplace and Educational Democracy
One of the great treats at a national worker coop conference is to learn about the incredible stories that exist. It is easy, sitting in our cooperatives at home, to imagine a world where we are the greatest thing since … Continue reading
Posted in Education, Management, Worker Rights
Tagged 2010 Conference, Education, labor movement
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