It is about the money, but where do values fit?

He seethed out, "It's all about money."

Grabbing some latent self-righteousness, I tried to take the high road with, "Motivation, in business, is also about the turn-on that comes from serving people and solving problems."

He responded, "Horse pucky, it is the almighty dollar, and you know it."

Putting aside my tree-hugging, trust-walking, hand-holding, team-empowering sensitivities, this business executive, I am now convinced, was right.

Hey, who can pooh-pooh the power of Mammon, bucks, casholino, greenbacks, scratch, dough, or grease-my-palm reality?

As an inveterate romantic, I did not want to accept that the bottom line of business is the bottom line. Surely, I reasoned, the art of the deal, the challenge, raising of the bar, just the work itself made going in every day worth it all.

Then I started to look around. It wasn't pretty.

There are some diseases that do not have enough research funding because pharmaceutical companies refuse to invest money in finding a cure for a disease that kills only 5,000 people a year. Not enough profit margins, you know.

The U.S. Senate played fast and loose with our future by refusing to ratify the Nuclear Nonproliferation Test Ban Treaty, obviously for fear of offending big-bucks constituents who may become irate that the United States appears to be climbing into bed with those Commie wimps.

Airlines charge more to for a round-trip flight from Springfield to St. Louis or Kansas City than it costs to fly round trip from the Queen City to Los Angeles. Guess, why? You got it: they are the only show in town. If there is no competition, then go for the green jugular!

Even though at least 30 percent of a working population will lose their jobs, merger and acquisition is still the corporate choice to get richer.

If a stock is making a profit even though its product is killing people, it's OK. Come on, wave the red, white and blue this is the American way.

Yes, you don't have to look between any of these words to unearth my cynicism. I am disgusted with an economic system that, with each nanosecond, loses more of its spirituality. And, if this economy slows down, I fear the ugliness of our greed.

So, what is this column all about? Well, besides taking some pot shots at avarice (I have a penchant for this, I have been told, because I'm not wealthy!), I have some ideas on how to make a business successful without killing your ethics. It goes something like this.

First, you have to decide what your core ideology is. This means, "What are the values I will never compromise regardless of how much money I could make?"

Will I hold on to my beliefs for $100? $10,000? $100,000? Would I fold for a cool million? Does the amount change my belief system?

I am convinced that every business executive should have on his or her desk a list of values which are cast in concrete (Oh, my gosh, that is another business opportunity: The Value Brick!) and all decisions made today are measured against these precepts.

Second, employees should own part of the company. Every page of any leadership book is littered with buy-in. There is a term that will bring a tear to your eye and shiver up and down your spine. Unfortunately, there is no true psychic buy-in until someone, literally, owns the company.

Some form of employee ownership keeps everyone honest.

Third, there should be losses. In a profit-crazed economy, what are the places where you and I can count up what we have lost because we decided to do the right thing? It is inconceivable to me that the exercise of a value-based business would not result in a reduced bottom line.

Finally, where are you and I giving our money away? Special Olympics, Make-A-Wish, The Kitchen, MADD, American Cancer Society the list is endless, and so is the need.

That business executive who told me, "It's all about money," was right. But, he doesn't have to be.

(Dr. Cal LeMon solves organizational problems with customized training and consulting. His company, The Executive Edge, can be contacted through the Business Journal by calling 831-3238 or sending e-mail to sbj@sbj.net.)