News Update – November 2011
The focus of this News Update is a report on the Management Committee meeting held at Friends House on Tuesday 15th November.
Q&B Management Committee Meeting – 15th November 2011
You can find minutes for this meeting on our group website: http://www.qandb.org/
The Q&B Management Committee met in Friends House in the afternoon before our annual conference. The agenda was dauntingly long, but turned out to be most uplifting to cover, as it testified to the exciting work and projects being undertaken by our working groups.
As a group, we seem to have come to a modus operandi through our structure and working groups that is really enabling us to make our voice heard and to have an impact on the world. This is in large part due to the active participation of our members in our programme of activities, and there is always room for more volunteers, so if any particular area of Q&B’s work excites you, please do get in touch.
Our membership has now reached 142, and we have recruited 12 new members since July 2011. We extend a warm welcome to these most recent recruits and look forward to meeting you both physically and virtually in the coming months.
We are also pleased to have made contact with Young Friends and the Quaker Socialist Society and we look forward to developing mutually supportive relationships in areas of common interest.
1. ‘Occupy’
Along with many others we have deep concerns about injustice and inequality in our economic and financial systems and structures. The ‘Occupy’ movement is reminding us all, through its continued physical presence, that there are many unresolved issues and questions. We drafted a Press Release, reproduced below, to offer them our support. We thank Jo Poole for providing the initial impetus for this initiative.
PRESS RELEASE: November 17th, 2011
Quakers and Business Support the global Occupy movement
The Quakers & Business Group stands alongside people of all religions and none who are resisting economic injustice with peaceable action. We recognize the concerns of those engaged in the occupation of financial centres throughout the world.
We support this movement that highlights the failures of the current structures and systems, leading to behaviours that exploit people and oppress their fellow human beings. We are concerned about aspects of the global economic system that divide people from the environment and from one another.
Q&B has worked, and continues to work, towards new systems of economic activity that relieve the current oppressive nature of many of our business practices. Our understanding is that the Occupy movement's aims reflect the views of many of the people around the world, who seek fairness and right ordering in financial affairs.
Quakers began as a grassroots protest movement. We know from our history that peaceful direct action plays an important and ethical role in resisting injustice and achieving change.
2. Q&B Strategy 2011-2015
With our new modus operandi we have an agreed 5-year strategy, and offer thanks to Alistair Heslop for drawing together and synthesizing our ideas into a coherent programme of action.
For the uninitiated, our purpose is:-
‘To be the custodian, modern interpreter and promoter of Quaker principles in business and the workplace.’
We have identified four themes to act as a focus for our work, to deliver our purpose:-
Theme 1 ‘Do the right thing’ – ethics has been a focus of our work for some time.
Theme 2 ‘Live your values at work’ – supporting those upholding Quaker values at work.
Theme 3 ‘What Quaker business people have done and are doing’ – how both Quaker businesses of the past and current organizations and people are using their business success to benefit society.
Theme 4 ‘The middle way’ – looking at and publicizing different forms of business ownership, for example businesses owned by charities and trusts, and social enterprises that are currently run to provide benefits beyond their owners.
We have identified 8 outcomes and measures to help ensure that we are achieving our purpose and these will be reported each year to the Management Committee meeting held prior to our AGM. Our wide range of projects can now be reviewed more systematically in terms of their contribution to our overall strategy.
You can download copies of the new strategy documents [Q&B Strategy 2011-15 v1.0 and Q&B Strategy 2011-15 (Implementation Plan) - v1.0 ], and documents showing the current structure of Q&B (Q&B Structure Documents November 2011) by first logging onto the Q&B website and then clicking this link. http://qandb.org/documents/Constitution-Strategy-and-Policies/orderby,4/
3. Keeping in touch with Q&B’s members
We pride ourselves on recruiting and welcoming new members to Q&B, and keeping in touch with more recent and active members. We recognize that more longstanding members may feel a little out of touch, so we shall shortly re-start our programme of contacting members of over two years standing to see if Q&B is meeting their needs, and to identify any new needs they may have. This will be undertaken by members of Q&B’s Nominations Committee: We look forward to speaking to you.
4. Communications Working Group
Our Communications Working Group is in the process of re-designing Q&B’s website, and we look forward to a shiny new version in the not too distant future. This update also provides an opportunity for us to develop a style guide which will ensure consistency in the ‘look and feel’ of our communications in the future.
We are also updating our publication ‘Good Business: Ethics at Work. Advices and queries on personal standards of conduct at work’ to make it more accessible to a non-Quaker readership, whilst ensuring that the Quaker aspects are made clear to non-Quakers. This version will be available as a download from the new website, as will the original version. Printed copies are still available for sale at £5.00 from the Quaker Centre bookshop or from Amazon.
Elizabeth Redfern and Alistair Heslop visited the Institute of Business Ethics (IBE) at the start of September and had a very fruitful meeting with Philippa Foster Back - Director, Nicole Dando - Head of Projects and Simon Webley - Research Director. Nick Pyatt will be joining the IBE as an individual member on our behalf as a group, and will share knowledge with us.
5. Q&B Events
A very successful and stimulating invitation-only event was held on November 4th at Friends House. The subject ‘Imagining beyond current approaches to business’ included an analysis of what is wrong with current approaches to business, and ideas for future directions to which Quakers can make a valuable contribution. Please see the website for a report from this meeting:-http://www.qandb.org/purpose/projects/44-non-executive-director-group/252-tim-phillips.html
We have a varied programme of forthcoming events – please do get in touch with the contacts given if you wish to know more or to sign up.
‘Living our Quaker values in the secular workplace’ Friday to Sunday 16th-18th March 2012, a joint Woodbrooke and Q&B course. For further information see http://www.woodbrooke.org.uk/courses.php?action=course&id=7059 or contact Eoin McCarthy at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Q&B’s Spring Gathering and AGM. Saturday 21st April at Woodbrooke. Organised by James Bradbury who can be contacted at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , with a programme to be announced soon.
6. Development Working Group
This group is where new ideas and leadings from Q&B are considered and shaped, or sometimes simply kept in mind as ideas that must not be lost from view.
One project idea that has been kept in mind is that of a Peer Review Service. This service would offer Q&B members who own businesses mutual support and advice to and from each other, as peers. So far, this project has not moved forward and we are seeking a co-ordinator. If you have a view to offer on this project, especially if you are a business owner, please contact Tim Phillips at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
An exciting new project proposal is for a publication entitled ‘Towards a Quaker view of Business’. This will aim to focus thinking on how business can move beyond the 19th century joint stock limited liability company and beyond fear, greed and selfishness in economics and business. Hilary Pinder is one of those involved This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
7. Finance Working Group
This group continues to consider whether there is space for a specifically Quaker finance entity, and if so, what form it might take. The issues are complex and we are pleased to have advice and expert help from a small group of business professionals from existing organizations engaged in ethical finance. For further information, or to contribute ideas, please contact John Lovatt at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
We hope that you feel inspired by Q&B’s work, and moved to contribute – we are always pleased to hear from you, so do get in touch.
In Friendship, Paula.
Paula Kingston, Convenor of the Nominations Committee.
Quakers and Business Group.