Thousands of people all across the United States are setting up tents outside the financial district of their local city. They are marching down the streets in New York City, Boston, Seattle, Philadelphia, Tampa, San Francisco and other cities. They claim to be the 99% of people, fighting back against the 1% who controls the wealth.
Many of the companies they are protesting are hiring here at Bentley.
While some students may think the protests have no effect on them, the fact is the protests do affect us here at Bentley. As current and future employees of these companies, with big hopes of becoming CFOs or CEOs, it is vital that we pay attention to where the Occupy Wall Street goes. Bentley Professor of Finance Atul Gupta says, “Folks in the Occupy Wall Street movement have articulated a variety of concerns to which all responsible citizens, including Bentley students, should pay attention.”
Knowing that, the next question is, what do the protestors want? The protestors themselves barely know, but they are working on what they feel is important. Topics range from corporate personhood to healthcare to job opportunities. While the topics may not seem new, there may be a new view or new proposal related to these topics at the Occupy Wall Street protests.
These new ideas are what Bentley students need to pay attention to. The corporations which are able to adapt to the needs of these individuals will have a competitive advantage over the corporations who ignore the protestors. Within an individual company, Bentley students can have an advantage by being aware of the protests and coming up with solutions to their problems.
The second thing we must pay attention to is who is speaking and marching at Occupy Wall Street. Different cities have had different success rates with including minority voices or the voices of women. A story came out of the NYC protest about a march against police brutality, where an African American woman whose family member was killed by police was cut off even though she was the only one who had faced real police brutality. If the corporation or corporate employees are going to consider the voices of the protestors, it is essential that there are women’s voices included.
One way to ensure women’s voices are heard is for Bentley students to speak up. I’m not suggesting you join the protest (though you’re welcome to if you want). Bentley students have a unique opportunity of being in position to be heard by those running the corporations. It is our job to speak up for the needs of the people—because we are the people.
Professor Gupta believes in the capabilities of Bentley students, saying, “Paying attention to what others are saying, engaging in constructive dialog and finding areas of common ground seems to be the least we can do at this difficult time in our history.”