It is not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory. ~W. Edwards Deming
On Friday I was in the front lobby of a large corporation waiting for a friend. Sitting across from me was a very nice woman, with whom I struck up a conversation about the hot weather we’re currently experiencing in California. Through the conversation, she happened to mention that she and her family were moving to Montana. I asked her if she or her husband were from Montana. Much to my surprise, she explained that both she and her husband were native Californians. Being a California native myself, I found this very interesting and borderline surprising. Of course, I needed to know why two natives wanted to leave. She explained that she had just been laid off, and her husband was leaving his small business wanted to be a rancher. In addition, they thought that Montana would be a better place to raise their Eleven year old daughter. To sum up, they wanted a simpler lifestyle, dictated by values not cash flow.
And then, as if on que, I read an article by Steve Lambert in the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin (Changes Bring Challenges, But the Sky’s the Limit for Americans). In the article, Mr. Lambert discusses the social changes he believes will occur, bringing revitalization to small towns as people leave the big cities searching for a better quality of life. In that same article, he also talks about “a spirit of patriotic capitalism that puts a priority on buying locally and buying American”.
As I read his words and thought about the “Montana Woman”, I realized that a trend may already be occurring, we just don’t realize it yet. It leaves me with little doubt that corporate America will also see this trend before it turns into a tsunami, and implement remote work policies that will allow these amazing knowledge workers to work from home, supporting the lifestyle of their choosing, while creating incredible value for the firm that utilizes their skills.
And that is what the “Homeland Onshore Model” is all about.
