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"But you do apply the concept of TRUTH"
"Yes", R replied "I do not give them tasks with fear in their mind that they might lose their job. They are put on a task with a sense of responsibility"
"Thus, reasonable instead of unreasonable targets"
"Yes, of course, If I put someone on a task with unreasonable targets, and threaten to fire him if he does not reach the target, then I cannot 'not fire' him when he does not, and so I would play with myself, and he or she would not take me serious anymore. The intention is to get the work done, not to fire anybody. So, I have to first assess the time needed for a certain work, and only then can I assign it as a reasonable target. It makes no sense to assign something that cannot be done".
"A good example", the second interlocutor replied "of how an ethical perspective can actually lead to good business in an economic sense of the word".
"What I am saying", R replied "is that without threat of firing one can reach the same productivity as with threat. That is what I am saying".
"All this provided that you are credible to the people involved"
"There are some people", R said "and I am not saying the word is 'rosy', that I can live without. Other people in the company know that. But let's say somebody is there for twenty years, and is middle age. Then there is a dilemma. What I do then is see if he or she can be taken from that job, and be put on another job that fits the company's and the person's needs. People respect that, and understand when I say I have no other choice but do that. I will not fire somebody just like that, otherwise I lose my credibility and they will fear it may happen to them as well"
"Let's go back to jewels" T proposed. "I feel some contradiction, or creative tension if you wish, because contradiction sounds normative, between what is said on the website about diamonds as luxury, as something that fits greed, desire and prestige, because that is what the market demands, and on the other hand the inclination to ascetic life, or the question why we would need al that luxury. Another point is the issue of sustainability, because just like with fossil fuel, we are exhausting a limited resource. So, I read both on the website, plus some other reports as well, that you are concerned about whether after fifty years you will still be able to do this business, because just as in the case of fossil fuel, there may be no diamonds anymore to be mined. These are two points about sustainability. How do you feel about them?"
"Well", R honestly replied "Concerning the expansion of greed, I do agree, but the business of diamonds is actually transformed, not in something for investment, but in something to express love
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