Lessons from the C-suite Personal development
Consolidate success before
moving on to the next idea
I started out…
Selling brown rice
finger food at the
UFO Club, which
was where Pink Floyd
was the house band. Between sets
we’d explain to people what brown
rice is, why it is good for you, why
sugar is bad for you, and get their
contact details to come to the
macrobiotic restaurant I was
opening. The restaurant spawned
a shop, then a wholesale business;
then in time Whole Earth peanut
butter, Green & Black’s chocolate
and Gusto were created.
I knew this was the right
career path for me when…
I met people in the organic
business. They were hard-headed
and conscientious and I liked
working with them.
I was born on a farm in
Nebraska so had a natural affinity
with farmers.
The biggest lesson I’ve
learned along the way…
Outsource. Don’t try to do
everything yourself. My motto is:
‘somebody somewhere can do
almost everything I can do
cheaper and better ’. Find those
people, make sure they are reliable
and let them do what they do best.
My proudest achievement…
Launching Green & Black’s Maya
Gold, the first product
ever to carry the
Fairtrade mark.
It pioneered a
mutually-beneficial way of
working with farmers.
Mondelēz, which owns the
brand now, has modelled its
cocoa sourcing on it with a
programme called Cocoa Life,
which is making a profound
difference to farmers. We invested
£20,000 to make it work. The
Cocoa Life programme now has a
$400 million budget and a zerodeforestation
commitment.
My biggest mistake…
Always investing more
time in my latest great
idea and not enough in
consolidating the success of
my earlier achievements.
My biggest inspiration…
George Ohsawa
who wrote the
book Zen
Macrobiotics. He
mapped it
all out: whole
grains, organic,
plant-based,
waste
minimisation, fair trade, avoiding
processed food (in particular
meats), keeping sugar to a
minimum, stopping eating before
you’re full, and exercise.
Before I embarked on the diet in
1965 I wasn’t very well. I haven’t
been to a doctor since.
Keeping me awake at night
right now…
Climate change. We are still
investing billions in daft ideas like
burning wood and capturing the
carbon dioxide and pumping it
into the ground in the
hope it stays there.
Half of the US corn
crop is burnt as
gasoline and twothirds
of the EU’s palm
oil imports are burnt as diesel.
Have we gone completely mad?
The biggest
challenge for
organisations
over the next five years
will be…
Adapting to carbon pricing. When
the market prices carbon into
everything organic food will be
cheaper than industrial food.
General Mills already has 250,000
acres that are fully organic.
I need my HR director to…
Be proactive. Attitudes are
changing and education in
appropriate behaviour will help
people to avoid #MeToo moments.
It annoys me when HR…
Is just box ticking. HR can and
should construct a positive climate
in which people are working.
More HRDs would become
CEO if…
They understood
financials, the
supply chain,
sales and marketing –
ideally through direct experience.
What I’m reading
right now…
Infused: Adventures in Tea by my
dear friend Henrietta Lovell. It’s
the story of her extraordinary
success at the premium end of the
tea business.
My top leadership tip…
Work with people you trust,
make absolutely sure you
are on the same page by
getting them to repeat
back to you what
you have agreed,
and then let them
get on with it. HR
Craig Sams,
creator and
chairman,
GustoOrganic
Somebody
somewhere can do
almost everything
I can do cheaper
and better
CV 2012 – Present
Creator and chairman
Gusto Organic
2009 – Present
Chairman
Carbon Gold
2006 – Present
Chairman
Wellington Natural Health
1999 – Present
Co-founder and president
Green & Black’s
1972 – Present
Owner
Ceres Bakery
2005 – 2015
Owner
Judges Bakery
1982 – 1999
Co-founder and CEO
Whole Earth Foods
hrmagazine.co.uk October 2019 HR 55
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