If people are an organization’s greatest asset, why do so many businesses still treat them as a liability? When faced with business downturn or disruption, workforce cuts are wide, deep, and often feel indiscriminate to those left to deal with collateral damage. No wonder the term “Human Capital” is associated with an interchangeable cog in a profit-making machine. But what if organizations treated Human Capital with the same respect assigned other financial assets? Could the emerging Knowledge Age economy demand we reInvent how we value our workforce?

1. I Am Human Capital
an asset-based perspective
on reINVENTing work
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

2. I am Human Capital
• I am the most valuable asset of my
community, my workplace, my nation
• I generate wealth for myself and those
with whom I choose to partner
• I am actively shaping a productive and
happy future for us all
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

3. TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

4. I am an Entrepreneur
• I am the most valuable asset of my
community, my workplace, my nation
• I generate wealth for myself and those
with whom I choose to partner
• I am actively shaping a productive and
happy future for us all
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

5. I am a Doctor
• I am the most valuable asset of my
community, my workplace, my nation
• I generate wealth for myself and those
with whom I choose to partner
• I am actively shaping a productive and
happy future for us all
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

6. I am a Teacher
• I am the most valuable asset of my
community, my workplace, my nation
• I generate wealth for myself and those
with whom I choose to partner
• I am actively shaping a productive and
happy future for us all
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

7. I am a Plumber
• I am the most valuable asset of my
community, my workplace, my nation
• I generate wealth for myself and those
with whom I choose to partner
• I am actively shaping a productive and
happy future for us all
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

8. I am a Retailer
• I am the most valuable asset of my
community, my workplace, my nation
• I generate wealth for myself and those
with whom I choose to partner
• I am actively shaping a productive and
happy future for us all
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

9. I am a Factory Worker
• I am the most valuable asset of my
community, my workplace, my nation
• I generate wealth for myself and those
with whom I choose to partner
• I am actively shaping a productive and
happy future for us all
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

10. “There is no future in any
job. The future lies in the
person who holds the job.”
George W. Crane
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

11. My Obsolete Job Titles
• Small Press Operator (InstyPrint)
• Typesetter
• Keyliner
• Technical Writer
• Desktop Publisher
• Online Help Developer
• WBT Developer
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

12. I am Human Capital
• I am the most valuable asset of my
community, my workplace, my nation
• I generate wealth for myself and those
with whom I choose to partner
• I am actively shaping a productive and
happy future for us all
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

13. Human Capital
Revolution
Change how we think about
Muskegon’s Human Capital
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

14. “The most valuable assets of a 20th-century
company were its production equipment.
“The most valuable asset of a 21st-century
institution, whether business or non-
business, will be its knowledge workers and
their productivity.”
- Peter Drucker, 1999
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

15. Nandan Nilekani
Author, Imagining India
Jon Stewart
Host, The Daily Show
We’ve always viewed a country of
a billion people as a detriment.
Mm-hmm, that's the big change.
I think we saw it as a burden.
Now we see it as human capital.
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

16. “Human Capital”
gets a Bum Rap
“I find ‘Human Capital’ such an
outdated and demeaning term”
- Chamber of Florida blog
“Who thinks the phrase
‘Human Capital’ is a degrading,
bean counter term?”
- Center for
Workplace Excellence
“The Case Against
‘Human Capital’
- Corporate People
Responsibility
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

17. Changing what we
call people doesn’t
change our behavior.
aka Actions speak louder
than Words ….
or, why we don’t Trust
what Business tells us.
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

18. Evolution of Work
Industrial Age
Personnel
Information Age
Human Resources
Knowledge Age
Human Capital
Automate, Eliminate
Reduction Downsize Rightsize
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

19. Business Capital in a
Downturn
Financial Capital
• Financial Reports:
Asset
• Invest wisely
– Growth investment
– “Gotta spend money
to make money”
• Hold on tighter
Human Capital
• Financial reports:
Liability
• Stop investing
– Automate
– Eliminate
• Across the board cuts
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

20. We have to reduce Cost
We have to increase
Profit
The Corporate Boardroom
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

21. TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

22. Project K
“Project K is a significant, four-year global
program that will re-shape our cost
structure and serve as a catalyst for our
growth strategy."
“The likely outcome of this global initiative
is that by the end of 2017, we estimate that
Kellogg will have approximately 7 percent
fewer employees worldwide than we do
today.”
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

23. People are our most
valuable resource?
Whatever happened to the
Triple Bottom Line?
People
PlanetProfit
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

24. Knowledge Economy
Business Model
• Human Capital alliance since 1993
• Core team with others who come together
and disband as opportunities captured
– Coop of shared resources
– Pool overhead for economies of scale
• Admin
• Sales & marketing
• Benefits
• Rainy day savings
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

25. Economy of More
• The more we negotiate, the more we
collectively earn
• The more billable people we put to
work, the more we collectively earn
• The more rare and valued our
collective skills, the more we
collectively earn
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

26. Economy of Agility
• Sometimes I lead
• Sometimes I create
• Sometimes I co-create
• Sometimes I support
• I am free agent Human Capital
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

27. Challenge
YOU are Human Capital.
Saying it isn’t living it.
Will you accept the challenge?
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

28. Human Capital Revolution
– Abundance
• Instead of:
– “What will we do with these people?”
• Ask:
– “What CAN we ACCOMPLISH with
these people?”
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

29. Human Capital Revolution
– Be a Positive Deviant.
• At work:
– “Why do we do it this way?”
– Dare to cross silos.
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

30. Human Capital Revolution
– Be a Positive Deviant.
• At school:
– “How does X prepare our children for
the future workforce?”
– Demand entrepreneurship curriculum.
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

31. Human Capital Revolution
– Seek Human Capital partners.
• How do I want to work?
• What assets are available to me?
• What alliances can I form to get
there?
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

32. Human Capital Revolution
– Bring others along.
• Command and Control perceptions
and behaviors are deeply ingrained
• Tried that before = SO WHAT?
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

33. We can’t wait for THEM
to do something.
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

34. They won’t.
WE HAVE TO.
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der

35. I am Human Capital
• I am the most valuable asset of my
community, my workplace, my nation
• I generate wealth for myself and those
with whom I choose to partner
• I am actively shaping a productive and
happy future for us all
TEDx Muskegon, October 2013 Chris Frederick Willis @media1der