In this Caribbean‑focused podcast episode, Francis Wade reads his Jamaica Gleaner article “What legacy are you leaving?” and argues that business leaders must think beyond the immediate horizon to create a lasting, positive impact for future, even unborn, generations. He opens with a reference to UN Secretary‑General Antonio Guterres’s 2100‑year‑later letter, using it to illustrate the uncertainty of how today’s actions will be judged. Wade then presents a practical three‑step facilitation framework for embedding long‑term thinking into strategic retreats: (1) use current grievances to uncover decisions that were missed years ago; (2) have the team imagine a retreat 15 years in the future to surface future complaints; (3) point out a young colleague as a living embodiment of that future, making the consequences personal. He critiques the pervasive short‑termism in Caribbean companies, attributing it to external shocks, cultural habits, and career‑stage complacency, while emphasizing that leaders are not “bad people” but are trapped by invisible mechanics. The episode concludes with a call to action: shift from cash‑centric legacies to a legacy of kindness through courageous, forward‑looking strategic decisions, and invites listeners to seek further guidance via his blog.
Chapters
Hello and welcome back to Chronicles from a Caribbean Cubicle podcast. This is Francis Wade and here's the article I wrote for the Jamaica Gleaner. It's entitled, "What legacy are you leaving?" You don't normally think for long about the lasting impact your actions have on business colleagues who are unknown. This is particularly true if they haven't even been born. But is there a reason to consider far future generations of leadership in your company? Antonio Guterres, who heads up the UN, recently wrote a letter to his unborn great-great-granddaughter for delivery in 2100. He titled it "A Climate Change Apology" and began with the following question: "Will you open this letter in a spirit of happiness and gratitude or with disappointment and anger at my generation?" He further admits that humanity is "losing the fight of our lives, the battle against climate upheaval that threatens our planet." But why is he unsure about her reaction? Simple. Today he sees two paths ahead and doesn't know which one we will take. The first leads to a trail of destruction. The other trends to planetary salvation. Given the information, tools, and technology at our disposal in 2023, both are possible. At the end, he imagines her wondering quietly, "What did you do to save our planet when you had the chance?" His commitment is familiar to all creators of interwoven short- and long-term strategic plans. As facilitators, we help clients convert game-changing commitments into immediate actions. Here are 3 steps I employ. Number 1: Use today's gripes. In a typical retreat, I ask, "What are some of the complaints you have about your organization that should have been resolved some time ago? This question opens a floodgate of woes. Sometimes they stretch all the way back to the inception of the company. In fact, older heads admit that the matters being raised were mentioned in previous meetings just like this one but never addressed. Then we ask, what decisions did prior executives fail to make 10 years ago that would have prevented or resolved these issues? Or 20 years ago or more? This also unleashes a torrent of suggestions. In fact, it pays to pause before proceeding. Number 2: Visit the future. We then have the team envision a strategic planning retreat like this one but 15 years down the line. What are some of the complaints future leaders may have "Regarding tough decisions you failed to make today?" Unfortunately, this query is frequently met with horrified silence. After a few moments of reflection, the answers come out slowly but surely. But this is a new question for most. Managers spend their days tackling immediate issues and often don't take a break to consider the distant future in a structured manner. On occasion, they may speculate over lunch or drinks and bemoan their organization's collective lack of foresight. But the next day, they are back in busy mode. We don't have time to do interwoven short- and long-term planning. Number 3: Point out a young person. Finally, if there is a colleague in their 20s in attendance, I point them out by name. Bob is likely to be in that future retreat. I add, his cardinals will ask, "What happened at that planning meeting in 2023? Couldn't they see what was happening?" Just like Gutiérrez, Bob could have two contrasting stories to tell. One could be a tale of courage. Amazing experience. The executive team put itself at risk, set aside its fears, and made some difficult decisions. "Today we benefit from their wisdom." Everyone applauds. The alternate story could be one of cowardice and selfishness. They realized there was a problem looming, but they decided to focus only on the short-term issues that affected them. Why such a contrast? Some strategic planning teams fail to address the most salient challenges openly. Instead, they point fingers at the big man, board, government, customers, etc. Other teams just don't care. Attendees are coasting into the second halves of their careers and just want to make it into retirement with a pension. They place self before service, so their "strategic plans" in quotes don't look past 3 to 5 years of tactics the outer limit of their comfort zones. You may think these are bad people, but nothing could be further from the truth. Instead, they are simply caught in a trap whose mechanics they cannot clearly see. Consequently, they do their best, but it's not good enough. In the end, regardless of their motivation, the result is the same— disaster. Jamaican companies, like many worldwide, are currently rife with short-termism. Blame COVID or inflation or the war, etc. As such, our leaders are becoming cynical. Don't yield. Challenge them to leave future managers of your organization with more than a basket to carry water. Instead, ask them to create a legacy of kindness, not in the form of cash, but in the strategic decisions only they can make. Thanks for listening. Do you have an unsolved problem in your Caribbean company related to strategy, productivity, engagement, or business process improvement? Just visit a searchable listing of all my prior articles and you may be able to help yourself to a fresh line of thinking. Go to blog.fwconsulting.com or see the show notes.
