DreamMakers Quotes

“We have been living and reliving George Orwell’s Animal Farm allegory since the beginning of civilization. We have played out the win-lose, conquer or be conquered scenario, and now most people understand that this approach to winning is not sustainable, meaningful or fun.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“People are extraordinary and capable of extraordinary things when we recognize our common bonds, aspirations, and our basic goodness.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“If we find the courage to honestly look at the world we have created, we cannot help but be moved to change and improve it.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“I used to marvel and wonder what it must hav been like to be a pioneer, a great inventor or a courageous explorer. Much to surprise, I’m finding out, not by flying into space or trekking into the wilderness, or even unveiling the next great gadget or app, rotten by witnessing and participating in the world as it transforms into something it has never been before.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“The mission and vision, almost to a word, became his reality.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“I have always believed that what is on the inside of a person comes out on the outside. But I now understand that what is on the outside, literally the physical environment, critically impacts what is on the inside of a person. This makes for a vicious cycle that whole cultures are caught in with little opportunity to break out of their own accord. This cycle must be understood and it must be broken.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“It had preserved nearly 50,000 acres of land in 23 countries, which had had a tremendous positive effect on the enviroment and the communities of northeast Ohio. It has permanently preserved meadows, streams, wetlands, forests, camps, parks, and family farms, enabling flora and fauna to flourish.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“When you see and feel that kind of passion and enthusiasm you can’t help but stop and listen.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“Each year Mayor Jackson brings hundreds of people together from across secors, disciplines, and neighborhoods to collaborate, share information and plan ways to transform their city from what was once known as “the mistake on the lake” into their shared vision of a “thriving green city on a blue lake.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“I experienced firsthand, a company that prospered by innovating for the greater good.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“Herman Miller helped to prepare me for the transformative times we are living in today. I gained the experience and skills to contribute to the Business as an Agent for World Benefit movement, for which I am deeply grateful.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“We made mistakes, we last our way from time to time, but our values served as a powerful force that pulled us back on course.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“To become a leader at Herman Miller, we had to unlearn almost everything we had been taught at business school.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“To become a leader at Herman Miller, we had to unlearn almost everything we had been taught is business school.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“We were not just encountable to shareholders-we were accountable to a myriad of interwoven stakeholders.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“In the long run, we learned that being socially responsible was not only the right thing to do, it also made good business sense.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“Family, social, and environmental responsibility was the most revolutionary of all the values at the time, especially for a publicly traded Fortune 500 company. I was sure that these values would cause the toughest debates and hardest decisions among the leadership team; I was wrong. The team was very enaged and proud of these values. They helped us to see the inextricable connection between the company and people, families, communities, and the environment. We made courageous and radical decisions to align our policies and practices and behaviors with these important values.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“When people are given the opportunity to work together in teams, contributing their ideas and gifts, and being valued and recognized for their contribution, they accomplish amazing things, and love doing so.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“Engaging people in visionary the company’s future together lifts their spirit. Engaging them in the process of transforming that compelling vision into reality touches their hearts.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“It is impossible to create a high-performance culture that is pursuing excellence if the leaders are not aligned.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“A powerful concept was at play; the recruiters were serving the shared vision and values of the company; they were not there to serve me.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“We engaged everyone in the company in the development of the vision and company values and then Max had the courage to liberate the people in the organization to make the changes.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“Now our vision and values looked like others you see on banners in corporate headquarters, in annual reports, and in marketing brochures; however, the difference was the process that got us there.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“Participative management and ownership was a very important principle and was at the heart of the process.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“We had to garner the courage to renew and transform the company and we needed everyone’s help to get there.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“A moral purpose is defined by values.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“I soon learned a very valuable lesson: with great opportunities come great responsibilities and challenges.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“What kind of culture and environment engenders this kind of ownership in someone who is on the bottom realm of the pay scale?”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“I had witnessed how a negative environment could dampen the human spirit of the inmates as well as the prison staff.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good

“During my first nine years out of college, I served in various positions in the Michigan Department of Corrections including: being one of the first two women to supervise adult men on probation in the city of Detroit; running a halfway house for female offenders; and then becoming the first female deputy warden over programs of rehabilitation in an adult male prison in Michigan.”
― Michele Hunt, DreamMakers: Innovating for the Greater Good