Broken Business

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My life and experience has been filled with and informed by incredible people who have guided and supported me. The love of family, support of friends and colleagues, and trust of clients have all formed the foundation necessary to bring the ideas in this book together.

This book marks the beginning of the fifth stage of my life. This is the point at which I am ready, willing, and able to bring a compelling and comprehensive point of view to improving trust and integrity in business, beyond my individual client assignments. I had never expected that I would write a book, but I had begun to feel that I needed to go further than what I could accomplish with my consulting work alone. Was there a deeper meaning to what I was doing? What was the root of corporate failure? How do the best organizations fall and rise again?

I spent my childhood years in El Salvador. I was surrounded by a large family, good friends, and a good life until the reality of our environment struck us. Threats and violence forced us to emigrate. I had to grow new roots and work on more fertile ground for a new life. Canada opened its arms to my family, supported by an uncle and his family who sponsored us. All 10 of us were living temporarily in a cramped two-bedroom apartment during the transition months, surely a violation of fire and building codes. We had to start a new life, working and studying at the same time, fighting to take advantage of opportunities to succeed. These transition ...