A cold January day of 2005, I took one of my most important drives of my life. I was on this road in upstate New York, trying to find this old factory. The day before, I received a flyer in the mail that said, "Fully equipped yogurt plant for sale." I threw it in the garbage can. And 20 minutes later, I picked it up and called the number. The plant was 85 years old, and it was closing. So I decided to go see it.
2005年某个寒冷的一月天, 我开启了我人生道路上 最重要的旅程之一。 我在去往纽约州北部的一条路上, 寻找一家老工厂。 此前一天,我的信箱里 收到了一张传单, 上面写着“乳酪厂待售,设备齐全” 我把它扔进了垃圾桶。 20分钟后,我又将它捡了起来, 拨打了上面的号码。 那家工厂已经有85年的厂龄, 即将倒闭。 所以我决定去看看。
At this time, I wasn't sure where this road or my life was going. I owned a small cheese shop but really hated business. But the hills and the roads and the smells are all familiar. I grew up in Turkey, in a similar environment, near the Kurdish mountains. My family made cheese and yogurt; I grew up listening to shepherd's stories. We didn't have much, but we had the moon and the stars, simple food, each other. Eventually, I came to America. I didn't even know New York had farms. I made it to upstate, and I never left. Now I'm lost.
那个时候, 我不确定那条路 或者说我的生活将走向何方。 虽然我自己经营着一家小的奶酪店, 但我真的很讨厌做生意。 然而这山,这路和这气味我都很熟悉。 我在土耳其类似的环境里长大, 离库尔德山区很近, 我的家族制作奶酪和酸奶; 我是听着牧羊人的故事长大的。 那时我们并不是很富有, 但我们有月亮和星星做伴, 还有简单的食物,有彼此。 后来,我搬到了美国。 我那时甚至不知道美国竟然有农场。 我来了纽约州北部, 之后再未离开。 但是现在我却迷失了自我。
I passed the road sign that said "Dead end." Then soon after, there it was: the factory. The smell hit me first. It was a like a milk container left out in the sun. The walls were so thick, paints were peeling, there were cracks everywhere. The factory was so old, the owners thought it was worthless. I thought they left a zero off, I couldn't believe the price. As I entered in, I stopped noticing things. All I could see were the people. There were 55 of them. Just quiet. Their only job was to break the plant apart and close it forever.
我路过写着“死胡同”的路牌, 随后不久, 我就到达了我的目的地: 那个酸奶工厂。 我首先感受到的是它的气味。 像是像暴露在阳光下的牛奶容器 散发出的气味。 工厂的墙壁很厚, 油漆剥落,满是裂缝。 这家工厂太老旧了, 所有者认为它不值钱。 我起初以为这个价格抹去了一个0, 我都不敢相信它这么便宜。 当我进入那个工厂之后, 我便不再观察周围的事物, 我所看到的只有人。 那里一共有55个人。 安静地沉默着。 他们唯一的工作就是与工厂分离, 并且永远地关闭它。
I was met with a guy named Rich, the production manager. He offered to take me around, show me around. He didn't say much, but around every corner, he would point out some stories. Rich worked there for 20 years. His father made yogurt before him, and his grandfather made cream cheese before that. You could tell that Rich felt guilty that this factory was closing on his watch.
我遇到了一个叫里奇的人, 他是生产经理。 他提议带我到处看看。 他话不多, 但是会告诉我工厂里 每一个角落发生过的故事。 里奇已经在那工作了20年了。 他的父亲是制作酸奶的, 在那之前,他的爷爷是做奶油奶酪的。 可以看出,里奇感到非常内疚 因为那座工厂在他手里倒闭了。
What hit me the hardest at that time was that this wasn't just an old factory. This was a time machine. This is where people built lives, they left for wars, they bragged about home runs and report cards. But now, it was closing. And the company wasn't just giving up on yogurt, it was giving up on them. As if they were not good enough. And I was shocked how these people were behaving. There was no anger, there were no tears. Just silence. With grace, they were closing this factory. I was so angry that the CEO was far away, in a tower or somewhere, looking at the spreadsheets and closing the factory. Spreadsheets are lazy. They don't tell you about people, they don't tell you about communities. But unfortunately, this is how too many business decisions are made today.
当时最打动我的一点是, 这不仅仅是一个旧工厂, 它还是一个时间机器。 这些人在这里建立生活, 他们因为战争而离开。 他们曾经炫耀过 工厂的成功和漂亮的报表。 但是现在,它面临被关闭的命运。 公司放弃的不仅仅是酸奶事业, 更是放弃了这些员工。 好像他们做得不够好似的。 但是我对这些人的表现感到震惊, 没有愤怒,没有眼泪。 只有沉默。 他们体面地关闭了这家工厂。 我感到非常生气, 因为彼时CEO正在千里之外, 在某个高楼之类的地方, 看着业务报表, 决定关闭这座工厂。 业务报表是片面的, 他们不会告诉你有关人 有关群体的东西。 但不幸的是, 这正是目前很多商业决策制定的方式。
I was never the same person after what I saw. On my way back home, I called Mario, my lawyer. I called Mario, I said, "Mario, I want to buy this place." Mario said, "Hamdi, one of the largest food companies in the world is closing this place, and they're getting out of the yogurt business. Who the hell are you to make it work?" I said, "You're right." But the next day, I called him again, and I said, "Mario, really, I really want to buy this place." He said, "Hamdi, you have no money.
目睹了这一切之后 我变了一个人。 在我回去的路上, 我打了个电话给我的律师,马里奥 我说:“马里奥,我想要买下那座工厂。” 马里奥说: “哈姆迪,全球最大的食品公司之一 要关掉这个地方 他们打算放弃酸奶业务, 你以为你是谁,能让它起死回生?” 我说:“是的,你说的对。” 但是第二天,我又打电话给他, 我说:马里奥,我真的, 真的很想买下这个地方。“ 他说:“哈姆迪,你又没有钱。
(Laughter)
(笑声)
You haven't even paid me in six months."
你都已经半年没有付我薪水了。”
(Laughter)
(笑声)
Which was true.
他说的是真的。
(Laughter)
(笑声)
But I got a loan, another loan. By August 2005, I had the keys for this factory. The first thing I did was to hire four of the original 55 people. I had Maria, the office manager. I had Frank, the wastewater guy. I had Mike, the maintenance guy. And Rich, who showed me the plant, the production guy. And we had our first board meeting. Mike says, "Hamdi, what are we going to do now?" They look at me as if I have the magic answer. So I said, "Mike, we're going to go to Ace Hardware store, and we're going to get some paints. And we're going to paint the walls outside." Mike wasn't impressed. He looked at me. He said, "Hamdi, that's fine, we’ll do that, but tell me you have more ideas than that."
但我得到了一笔贷款,另一笔贷款。 在2005年的八月, 我拿到了那座工厂的钥匙。 我做的第一件事就是 聘回55位前员工中的四位。 我请了办公室经理玛丽亚。 废水管理工人弗兰克。 维修工人麦克。 还有当时带我参观工厂的 产品经理里奇。 我们召开了第一次董事会议。 麦克问我:“哈姆迪, 我们现在要做什么?” 他们都看着我,就好像 我有什么绝妙的答案似的。 于是我说:”麦克, 我们去Ace五金店, 买一些油漆。 把外面的墙壁重新粉刷一下。” 麦克并不满意。 他看着我, 说:”好的,哈姆迪, 我们就这么做, 但是请告诉我, 你还有别的想法。”
(Laughter)
(笑声)
I said, "I do. We'll paint the walls white."
我说:“会有的。 我们先粉刷一下墙。“
(Laughter)
(笑声)
Honest to God, that was the only idea I had.
老实说,我当时 真的没有别的主意。
(Laughter)
(笑声)
But we painted those walls that summer. I sometimes wonder what they would have said to me if I told them, "See these walls we're painting? In two years, we're going to launch a yogurt here that Americans have never seen and never tasted before. It will be delicious, it will be natural. And we're going to call it 'Chobani' -- it means 'shepherd' in Turkish." And if I said, "We are going to hire all of the 55 employees back, or most of them back. And then 100 more after, and then 100 more after, and then 1,000 more after that." But if I told them, "You see that town over there? Every person we hire, 10 more local jobs will be created. The town will come back to life, the trucks will be all over the roads. And the first money we make, we're going to build one of the best Little League baseball fields for our children. And five years after that, we're going to be the number one Greek yogurt brand in the country." Would they have believed me? Of course not. But that's exactly what happened.
但是那个夏天我们把墙都刷好了。 我有时就在想, 如果我这么说, 他们会作何反应: “看到我们刷的墙没? 两年内, 我们要推出一种酸奶, 是美国人从未见过和尝过的。 不仅美味,而且纯天然。 我们要给它起名为‘Chobani', 土耳其语是‘牧羊人’的意思。” 如果我还说, “我们要聘回所有的55名员工, 或者聘回大多数员工。 随后雇佣100位, 再雇佣100位。 再之后,雇佣1000位。” 但是如果我告诉他们, “你们看到那边的城镇了吗? 我们每雇佣一个人, 就会在当地创造出10个就业岗位。 这座城镇将会充满生机, 路上车辆也会川流不息。 我们赚到的第一桶金, 将会用来 为我们的下一代 建造最好的 少棒联盟比赛场地之一。 五年之后, 我们将会成为 全国第一的希腊酸奶品牌。” 他们会相信我吗? 当然不会。 但是这确实是之后发生的一切。
(Applause)
(掌声)
In painting those walls, we got to know each other. We believed in each other. And we figured it out together. Five years, me and all my colleagues, we never left the factory. We worked day and night, through the holidays, to fix that plant. The best part of Chobani for me is this: the same exact people who were given up on were the ones who built it back 100 times better than before. And they all have a financial stake in the company today.
在刷墙的过程中, 我们增进了对彼此的了解。 我们信任彼此。 并且一起出谋划策。 五年来,我和我的同事们, 没有一位弃公司而去。 我们夜以继日地工作, 节假日也不休息, 将工厂修建完成。 Chobani对我来说最好的一部分是: 它曾抛弃过的那些人 正是将它重建成比过去好百倍的那些人。 他们今天还持有公司股权。
(Applause)
(掌声)
And all this time, I kept wondering -- you see, I'm not a businessman, I don't come from that tradition -- I just kept wondering: What is this all about? Corporate America says it's about profits. Mainstream business says it's about money. The CEO playbook says it's about shareholders. And so much is sacrificed for it -- it's factories, communities, jobs. But not by CEOs. CEOs have their employees suffer for them. But yet, the CEOs's pay goes up and up and up. And so many people are left behind.
一直以来,我都在想—— 你看,我不是一个商人, 我没有从商的背景—— 我只是在想: 这一切到底是为了什么呢? 美国企业说都是为了利润。 主流企业说是钱的问题。 CEO手册称都是为了股东。 太多东西为之牺牲—— 工厂,群体,工作。 然而CEO不用做出牺牲。 CEO的员工们代他受过了。 然而CEO的薪资一涨再涨, 太多人被抛在后头。
I'm here to tell you: no more. It's not right, it's never been right. It's time to admit that the playbook that guided businesses and CEOs for the last 40 years is broken.
我是来告诉你们: 别再这样下去了。 这不对。从来都不对。 我们是时候承认 过去40年企业和CEO 一直遵循的手册 是有缺陷的。
(Applause)
(掌声)
It tells you everything about business except how to be a noble leader. We need a new playbook. We need a new playbook that sees people again. That sees above and beyond profits. In the movies, they have a name for people who take a different path to do things right. They call them "antiheroes." I think we need the same idea in business. We need anti-CEOs, and we need an anti-CEO playbook.
这个手册告诉你有关企业的一切, 除了怎样做一个 高尚的领导者。 我们需要一个新的手册。 我们需要一个新的 考虑得到员工的手册。 它的视角远高于利润。 在电影里,对于那些 走不同的路只为做对的事的人, 有一个名称。 他们被称为“反英雄”。 我认为企业中也需要这个概念。 我们需要“反CEO”, 我们需要“反CEO手册”。
So let me tell you about what this anti-CEO playbook is all about. An anti-CEO playbook is about gratitude. Today's business book says: business exists to maximize profit for the shareholders. I think that's the dumbest idea I've ever heard in my life.
让我来说说 反CEO手册是关于什么的吧。 它是关于感恩的。 如今的一些商业书籍称: 企业的存在是为了 帮助股东获取利润最大化。 我认为这是我人生中 听到过的最愚蠢的想法了。
(Laughter)
(笑声)
In reality, business should take care of their employees first.
事实上,企业应该把员工放在第一位。
(Applause)
(掌声)
You know, a few years ago, when we announced that we are giving shares to all our 2,000 employees, some people said it's PR, some said it's a gift. I said, it's not a gift. I watched it, I've been part of it. They earned it with their talent and with their hard work, and I don't see any other way. The new way of business -- it's your employees you take care of first. Not the profits.
你知道,几年前, 我们宣布将股份分给我们 两千位员工的时候, 有人称这是公关伎俩, 有人说这是礼物。 我说,这不是礼物。 我看过,参与过它的执行。 他们是靠自己的才能 和努力赢得这些。 而我也没看出有什么别的办法。 企业新途径—— 员工第一。 不是利润。
The new anti-CEO playbook is about community. Today, the businesses that have it all ask communities, "What kind of tax breaks and incentives can you give me?" The reality is, businesses should go to the struggling communities and ask, "How can I help you?"
反CEO手册是有关社群的。 如今,拥有一切的企业 会问大家:“你能够给我 怎样的减税优惠以及奖励激励?” 事实上,企业应该面向 有困难的员工 问问他们:“我怎样才能帮你?”
(Applause)
(掌声)
When we wanted to build our second yogurt plant, Idaho was on nobody's radar screen. It was too rural, too far away, didn't have much incentives. So I went there. I met with the local people, I met with the farmers. We shook hands, we broke bread. I said, "I want to build it right here." I don't need to see financial studies. And the result -- its community is thriving. There's new schools that open every year. New food companies are coming up every year. And they told me, "You're not going to find any trained workers here." I said, "It's OK, we'll teach them." We partnered with the local community college, and while we were building the plant, we trained hundreds of hundreds of people for advanced manufacturing. And today, our factory is one of the largest yogurt plants in the world.
当我们想建第二家酸奶工厂时, 没人会考虑爱德荷州。 它太偏远,也没提供多少奖励。 于是我去了那里。 我与当地居民见面, 也见了农民。 我们握手,分吃面包。 我说:“我想把工厂就建在这儿。” 我不想看财务研究报告, 结果是—— 这边的社群蓬勃发展。 每年都有新学校成立。 新的食品公司每年都不断涌进, 有人告诉过我: “你不会在这里找到有经验的工人的。” 我说:“没关系,我们会培训。” 我们同当地的社区大学合作, 在我们建造工厂的过程中, 我们教会数百人掌握了 先进制造技术, 如今,我们的工厂是世界上 最大的酸奶工厂之一。
(Applause)
(掌声)
The new way of business -- communities. Go search for communities that you can be part of. Ask for permission. And be with them, open the walls and succeed together.
企业新的途径—— 社群。 寻找你能成为其中一份子的社群, 请求许可, 然后加入进去,打破壁垒, 共享成功。
The anti-CEO playbook is about responsibility. Today's playbook says, the businesses should stay out of politics. The reality is businesses, as citizens, must take a side. When we were growing in New York and looking for more people to hire, I remembered that in Utica, an hour away, there were refugees from Southeast Asia and Africa, who were looking for a place to work. "They don't speak English," someone told me. I said, "I don't really, either. Let's get translators."
反CEO手册是关于责任的。 当今的手册称, 企业应当远离政治。 然而事实是, 企业同公民一样, 都要有自己的立场。 我们在纽约扩大规模, 寻求更多雇佣员工的时候, 我记得在一小时路程之远的 尤蒂卡(美国中部城市), 那里有从东南亚和南非来的难民, 正在寻找工作地, 有人告诉我:“他们不会英语。” 我说:“我也不是真的会, 我们可以请翻译。”
(Laughter)
(笑声)
"They don't have transportation." I said, "Let's get buses, it's not a rocket science." Today, in one of America's rural areas, 30 percent of the Chobani workforce are immigrants and refugees.
“他们也没有车。” 我说:“我们准备班车,这并不难。” 今时今日, 在美国一个农村地区, Chobani有30%的员工都是移民和难民。
(Applause) (Cheers)
(掌声)(欢呼声)
And it changed us for better.
这让我们变得更好了。
The new way of business -- it's business, not government, in the best position to make a change in today's world: in gun violence, in climate change, in income inequality, in refugees, in race. It's business that must take a side.
企业的新途径—— 是企业本身,而不是政府 身处寻求变革的最好的位置。 在如今的世界中, 在有关枪击暴力事件,气候变化, 收入不平等,难民和种族 这些问题之间, 企业必须有自己的立场。
(Applause)
(掌声)
And lastly, an anti-CEO playbook is about accountability. Today's playbook says, the CEO reports to the corporate boards. In my opinion, CEO reports to consumer. In the first few years of Chobani, the 1-800 number on the cup was my personal number.
最后,反CEO手册关于向谁负责。 如今的手册称,CEO向公司董事会负责。 依我之见,CEO应该向消费者负责。 Chobani刚成立的几年里, 酸奶瓶上面的数字是我的私人号码,
(Laughter)
(笑声)
When somebody called and wrote, I responded personally. Sometimes I made changes based on what I heard, because consumer is in power. That's the reason the business exists. It's you -- every single one of you is in power to make changes today. If you don't like the brand and the companies, what they are doing with their business, you can throw them into the garbage can. And if you see the ones that are doing it right, you can reward them. In the end, this is all in our responsibility.
有人打电话或者写信给我, 我都亲自回复。 有些时候,我会根据我听到的意见 做出某些改变, 因为消费者掌权, 正是企业存在的理由。 是你们——今天你们 每个人都有权利做出改变。 如果你们不喜欢某品牌和公司, 不喜欢他们的经营方式, 你可以把它们扔进垃圾桶。 如果你看到做得正确的, 你可以奖励它们。 最后,这一切都是我们的责任,
The new way of business -- it's the consumer we report to, not to the corporate boards. You see, if you are right with your people, if you are right with your community, if you are right with your product, you will be more profitable, you will be more innovative, you will have more passionate people working for you and a community that supports you. And that's what the anti-CEO playbook is all about.
企业的新途径—— 是我们对消费者负责—— 而不是对公司董事会负责。 你看, 如果你正确对待你的员工, 你正确对待你的社群, 你正确对待你的产品, 那么你的利润会增加, 你会更加创新, 也会有更多充满激情的员工为你工作, 还有支持你的一整个社群。 这就是反CEO手册的内容。
The treasure that I found in that factory -- dignity of work, strength of character, human spirit -- is what we need to unleash all across the world.
我在那个工厂找到的财富—— 工作的尊严, 角色的力量, 人性光辉—— 我们要将这些传播到整个世界。
Brothers and sisters, there are people and places all around the world left out and left behind. But their spirit is still strong. They just want another chance, they want someone to give them a chance again, not to just build it back, but build it better than before. And this is the difference between return on investment and return on kindness. This is the difference between profit and true wealth. And if it can happen in a small town in upstate New York and Idaho, it can happen in every city and town and village across the world.
兄弟姐妹们, 世界上有许多人, 还有许多地方, 被忽略,被遗忘。 但他们的精神仍然强劲, 他们需要的仅仅是另一个机会, 他们需要某人来给他们机会, 不仅仅是要重建, 而是要建得更好。 这便是投资回报和善意回报 真正的区别。 这便是利润 和真正的财富之间的区别。 如果它可以发生在 纽约北部的一个小城镇和爱德荷州, 那么它也能发生在 世界上每个城市和乡镇地区。
This is not the time to build walls, this is a time to start painting the walls. I leave the colors all up to you.
现在不是建墙的时候, 而是粉刷墙壁的时候。 用什么颜色,全部由你决定。
Thank you so much.
非常感谢。
(Applause)
(掌声)