1 - Towards a ‘right use of money’
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 January 2022
Summary
David Darton is a consultant for a range of private and public clients in business strategy, research strategy and communications, and is part of a consortium providing media training. He also works as Strategy and Research Director for the Equal Opportunities Commission and is writing his first novel, a thriller. His earlier career was centrally concerned with money: as Senior Economist for the Korea Exchange Bank and Korean Ministry of Finance based in Seoul and then as a Founder Director of the strategic business consultancy, the Henley Centre for Forecasting, which subsequently became part of the international marketing group, WPP. More recently he spent ten years as Communications/Strategy Director at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
“Such a complicated thing, then, is money. It is our livelihood, the way we pay for our bread and butter; it is the way we create work for other people; it is a measure of success, whether you store it in a bank or spend it on unnecessary things; it is a consolation prize for missing out on your vocation; it can even be an excuse for not following that vocation…. No wonder we get confused. No wonder that so many make money the point of life rather than the means of life. It was not meant to be that way when it was first devised as the universal mechanism of exchange.” (Charles Handy, Chapter Nine, this volume)
This book is about money. Not about how to make it, but about how to use it and use it well. This is not easy: not only Charles Handy, but also many other contributors to this book note the complexity of money, its multiple roles and the resulting difficulties in determining the right use of money. It is hardly surprising then that the authors of these short chapters, left completely free to explore the topic from their own perspectives, have adopted a wide variety of starting points and styles.
The eclectic nature of the contributions helps us take a fresh, creative look at the issues. What is especially fascinating, however, are some common threads that weave between many of the pieces. Collectively these can be summarised as philanthropy, empowerment, stewardship, transparency. From these themes, the authors identify a number of approaches and practical mechanisms for improving the use of money and achieving social change. These are summarised more fully in Part Five of this book.
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- The Right Use of Money , pp. 3 - 10Publisher: Bristol University PressPrint publication year: 2004