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Caribbean great-house ethics
published: Sunday | March 18, 2007
Cedric Wilson
In the mid 1990s, Stafford Burrowes and his wife Marilyn looked into the scintillating blue waters of Ocho Rios and in their minds they saw dolphins dancing in lagoons and stingrays gliding slightly below the surface of the sea. That was the genesis of an idea which took form and shape with the opening of the Dolphin Cove in 2001. And thus, a new type of tourist attraction had arrived on the Jamaican scene.
Today, Dolphin Cove receives some quarter million visitors annually, generating a revenue of $700 million. The Burrowes personify the very essence of entrepreneurship ? irrepressible vision, unflagging tenacity and an astonishing capacity for risk taking. Yet, they have not just stopped there. They are currently making plans to set up a similar venture in The Cayman Islands. And this is precisely what separates them from the typical Jamaican entrepreneur: the willingness to expand beyond their original creation.
Entrepreneurship is one of the most fascinating features in the growth of an economy. Yet, it is a variable that economic theory prefers to avoid. Unlike land, labour and capital, it is not a resource that can be easily modelled; it does not readily conform to neat equations nor can it be subdued to stable equilibria. It is unruly, chaotic and unpredictable ? the eternal destroyer of equilibria. Metaphorically, it is that mango tree that grows up in the yard that you never planted. But its fruits are pleasant to eat and it offers shade from the sweltering sun. Jean Baptiste Say, the venerated classical economist, famously declared "supply creates its own demand" and this is exactly where entrepreneurship resides. It is firstly and fundamentally a factor on thesupply side of economics, and as such does not generally produce many of the unpleasant side effects, such as inflation and exchange rate depreciation, which occur when demand is the prime mover of growth.
Therefore, when entrepreneurs exhibit expansionary tendencies, it is good for the economy. The question therefore for Jamaica is: Why with the abundance of entrepreneurship is there a scarcity of expansionism
Dauntless higglers
Where are the dauntless higglers of the 1980s who challenged the old order by finding new sources of supply, providing convenient service and offering creative credit to consumers? Why didn?t one of them evolve in the Jamaican brand of Wal-Mart? And if you think about it, Tastees, the local patty producers, has a product with the potential of becoming a world- player equivalent to McDonalds. Yet, for all its latent power, it has remained a domestic product with an international name. The question is why?
It may be argued that the reason for this is largely cultural. Max Weber, the German sociologist, in explaining the rise of capitalism in Western Europe contended that it was the Protestant Christian ethic that provided the spirit for this development. By this he meant that the capitalists profit-maximising zeal was driven by a desire to be accepted by God. In the Caribbean the version of capitalism that is embraced is not one based on profit maximisation. Instead, it is a capitalism more centred on making enough money to live in comfort and achieve status in the society. This brand of capitalism is derived from what may be called the Caribbean great-house ethics.
Many sugar plantations in the Caribbean during the 19th century were characterised by absentee owners. Actual management of plantations was therefore left to a Massa who himself was an employee. In this respect, the ownership and management were separated. While the owner was interested in profit maximisation the employed Massa had no such interest. The owner was, therefore, left in the cold and much was left to themanagerial discretion of the employed Massa who simply did enough to make the owner in England satisfied and preventing him from intruding too much.
An employed Massa, therefore, attached no importance to expanding into other activities in the domestic economy. His main objective was, therefore, to have a good time on the island and revel in the status he would not have back in England.
Interestingly, it is this model of capitalism that has to a large extent shaped the Caribbean entrepreneurial psyche.
Consequently, the Jamaican entrepreneur tends to be individualistic in nature, Epicurean in aspiration and non-expansionist in outlook. These characteristics, evidently, are powerful prime movers. However, they later become monumental obstacles to further success.
Brilliant starts
Numerous entrepreneurs have made brilliant starts, but stagnate because they fail to see that greater success is only possible by working with others. Too often, Jamaicans have made reasonable profit in a venture and decide to chill and start playing golf. Many businesses with enormous expansionary potential exist sadly frozen in time and space, stubbornly refusing to come or go.
So the motivation behind Jamaican, if not Caribbean capita-lism, is not the restless doctrine of profit maximisation, it is the aspiration of becoming the status-seeking, fun-loving employed Massa in the great house.
Plotting the path to growth requires honest analysis and the capacity to remove the constraining factors. The emergence of a new breed of entrepreneurs with expansionist orientation, like the Burrowes, is crucial. The great-house ethics, which has for too long informed our brand of entrepreneur-ship must therefore be uprooted and destroyed. Yes, and this is where a new approach to education enters the picture.
■ Cedric Wilson is an economics consultant who specialises in market regulations. Send your comments to: [email protected].
published: Sunday | March 18, 2007
Cedric Wilson
In the mid 1990s, Stafford Burrowes and his wife Marilyn looked into the scintillating blue waters of Ocho Rios and in their minds they saw dolphins dancing in lagoons and stingrays gliding slightly below the surface of the sea. That was the genesis of an idea which took form and shape with the opening of the Dolphin Cove in 2001. And thus, a new type of tourist attraction had arrived on the Jamaican scene.
Today, Dolphin Cove receives some quarter million visitors annually, generating a revenue of $700 million. The Burrowes personify the very essence of entrepreneurship ? irrepressible vision, unflagging tenacity and an astonishing capacity for risk taking. Yet, they have not just stopped there. They are currently making plans to set up a similar venture in The Cayman Islands. And this is precisely what separates them from the typical Jamaican entrepreneur: the willingness to expand beyond their original creation.
Entrepreneurship is one of the most fascinating features in the growth of an economy. Yet, it is a variable that economic theory prefers to avoid. Unlike land, labour and capital, it is not a resource that can be easily modelled; it does not readily conform to neat equations nor can it be subdued to stable equilibria. It is unruly, chaotic and unpredictable ? the eternal destroyer of equilibria. Metaphorically, it is that mango tree that grows up in the yard that you never planted. But its fruits are pleasant to eat and it offers shade from the sweltering sun. Jean Baptiste Say, the venerated classical economist, famously declared "supply creates its own demand" and this is exactly where entrepreneurship resides. It is firstly and fundamentally a factor on thesupply side of economics, and as such does not generally produce many of the unpleasant side effects, such as inflation and exchange rate depreciation, which occur when demand is the prime mover of growth.
Therefore, when entrepreneurs exhibit expansionary tendencies, it is good for the economy. The question therefore for Jamaica is: Why with the abundance of entrepreneurship is there a scarcity of expansionism
Dauntless higglers
Where are the dauntless higglers of the 1980s who challenged the old order by finding new sources of supply, providing convenient service and offering creative credit to consumers? Why didn?t one of them evolve in the Jamaican brand of Wal-Mart? And if you think about it, Tastees, the local patty producers, has a product with the potential of becoming a world- player equivalent to McDonalds. Yet, for all its latent power, it has remained a domestic product with an international name. The question is why?
It may be argued that the reason for this is largely cultural. Max Weber, the German sociologist, in explaining the rise of capitalism in Western Europe contended that it was the Protestant Christian ethic that provided the spirit for this development. By this he meant that the capitalists profit-maximising zeal was driven by a desire to be accepted by God. In the Caribbean the version of capitalism that is embraced is not one based on profit maximisation. Instead, it is a capitalism more centred on making enough money to live in comfort and achieve status in the society. This brand of capitalism is derived from what may be called the Caribbean great-house ethics.
Many sugar plantations in the Caribbean during the 19th century were characterised by absentee owners. Actual management of plantations was therefore left to a Massa who himself was an employee. In this respect, the ownership and management were separated. While the owner was interested in profit maximisation the employed Massa had no such interest. The owner was, therefore, left in the cold and much was left to themanagerial discretion of the employed Massa who simply did enough to make the owner in England satisfied and preventing him from intruding too much.
An employed Massa, therefore, attached no importance to expanding into other activities in the domestic economy. His main objective was, therefore, to have a good time on the island and revel in the status he would not have back in England.
Interestingly, it is this model of capitalism that has to a large extent shaped the Caribbean entrepreneurial psyche.
Consequently, the Jamaican entrepreneur tends to be individualistic in nature, Epicurean in aspiration and non-expansionist in outlook. These characteristics, evidently, are powerful prime movers. However, they later become monumental obstacles to further success.
Brilliant starts
Numerous entrepreneurs have made brilliant starts, but stagnate because they fail to see that greater success is only possible by working with others. Too often, Jamaicans have made reasonable profit in a venture and decide to chill and start playing golf. Many businesses with enormous expansionary potential exist sadly frozen in time and space, stubbornly refusing to come or go.
So the motivation behind Jamaican, if not Caribbean capita-lism, is not the restless doctrine of profit maximisation, it is the aspiration of becoming the status-seeking, fun-loving employed Massa in the great house.
Plotting the path to growth requires honest analysis and the capacity to remove the constraining factors. The emergence of a new breed of entrepreneurs with expansionist orientation, like the Burrowes, is crucial. The great-house ethics, which has for too long informed our brand of entrepreneur-ship must therefore be uprooted and destroyed. Yes, and this is where a new approach to education enters the picture.
■ Cedric Wilson is an economics consultant who specialises in market regulations. Send your comments to: [email protected].
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