Business Owner (50 years)

  • Retail—Urban lifestyle: city gardening, nomadic furniture, hydroponics, books, energy saving kitchen wares, energy-efficient heaters & woodstoves, and more
  • Distribution—Energy-efficient heaters & woodstoves
  • Manufacturing—Natural cosmetics & Toiletries
  • Private business school
  • Consultancy—Career guidance
  • Consultancy—E-learning and virtual communications
  • Consultancy—Graphic design & marketing
  • Consultancy—Small-business computers

Management Consultant (30 years)

  • E-learning and Virtual Communications
  • Growth Management
  • Marketing and Market Research and Analysis
  • Meaningful Work Personnel and Career Guidance
  • Organizational Culture Change
  • Partnership Mediation
  • Small Business Automation
  • Strategic Business Planning
  • Values-Based Management Practices

Non-Fiction Writer (40 years)

CW's Books: Mindfulness and Meaningful Work, In the Company of Others, Running a One-Person Business

— Author

  • Mindfulness and Meaningful Work: Explorations in Right Livelihood (Parallax Press, 23,000 in print).
  • In the Company of Others: Making Community in the Modern World (Tarcher/Putnam, 10,000 in print`).
  • Running A One-Person Business: Business as Lifestyle (Ten Speed, 2 editions, 60,000 in print).
  • Running A Good Business: Right Livelihood in the Age of the Internet (Smashwords ebook)
  • Herding Cats Through the Gates to Cyberspace (Smashwords ebook)

— Columnist

  • “Focus On Software,” The Office, monthly software review column.

— Journalist

  • Feature articles and book reviews for national periodicals and professional journals. Articles in numerous local periodicals.

Media Expert (40 years)

Logos of Media publishing interviews or quoting CW.
Media Publishing My Writing

Expert in small business, business computing, right livelihood. Featured in a range of media, including:

  • Local publications:
    • California Magazine
    • Common Ground Magazine
    • San Francisco Bay Guardian
    • Open Exchange
  • National media:
    • Newsweek
    • The Millennium Whole Earth Catalog
  • Technology or business publications:
    • Home Office Computing
    • Macintosh Business Review
    • PC World
    • Truly Portable Computers
    • Working Woman Magazine
  • Professional journals:
    • AHP Perspective
    • Journal of Business Ethics
    • Journal of Management Consulting
  • Buddhist and Yoga publications:
    • Lion’s Roar (previously Shambhala Sun)
    • Mountain Record: The Zen Practitioner’s Journal
    • Tricycle: The Buddhist Review
    • Yoga Journal
  • Nationally syndicated radio talk shows.

Public Speaker (25 years)

Talks, panels, lectures, book signings, and other public presentations on a wide variety of topics including mindfulness, right livelihood, small business management, Zen Buddhism.

Example Presentations

  • A Network Of Friends In Business: Origins, Purpose, and Present Status of the Briarpatch Society,
    • School of Broadcast Communication Arts, San Francisco State University
  • A Taoist View of Time
    • The Eric Berne Seminar, San Francisco
  • A Bohmian Dialogue on Opening Up to Spirit at Work
    • Bay Area Organizational Development Network, San Francisco
  • Healthy Business for Healthy Communities
    • International Conference on Healthy Cities (panel), San Francisco
  • Heart and Soul in the Workplace 
    • San Francisco Bay Area Book Festival (panel), San Francisco
  • Intuition and Livelihood
    • The Eric Berne Seminar, San Francisco
  • Is Right Livelihood Possible in These Hard Times?,
    • “Experience Unlimited,” California Employment Development Department,  Oakland
  • Mindfulness and Meaningful Work
    • “Institute for Creation Spirituality,” Holy Names College, Oakland
    • Nyingma Institute, Berkeley
  • Mindfulness and Meaningful Work (Part of “An Evening Series for Business Thinkers: Where do we need to go? How do we get there from here?” Other speakers in the series included: Willis Harman, Dennis Jaffe, Michael Ray, Mary Scott, Terry Pearce, and Edgar Schein. )
    • “Center for the Future of Organizations,” California School of Professional Psychology, Oakland
  • Right Livelihood and Ethics
    • College of Notre Dame de Damur, Belmont, California
  • The End of Work, The Reinvention of Work, Own Work, Future Work, and Good Work: Practical Steps
    • Saybrook Graduate School, San Francisco
  • Using Mindfulness to Find Meaningful Work
    • Sacramento Buddhist Meditation Society
    • Institute for Transpersonal Psychology, Menlo Park
  • What Is Right Livelihood?
    • The Eric Berne Seminar, San Francisco
  • Working for Yourself versus Getting a Job
    •  Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley

Entrepreneurial Experience (45 years)

— Founder and Director

The Center for Good Work, San Francisco, January 1987 to present

Small Business Consulting and Training Firm.

Provide advice and training on marketing, management, and meaningful work. Client base of 300 small businesses and community organizations and nearly 500 individuals, primarily in the San Francisco Bay Area. Offer periodic workshop series on values-based management for small organizations. Provide career transition guidance for individuals seeking a values-based work life. Offer periodic workshop series on livelihood issues. Provide advice and resource referrals to 400+ alumni.

— Co-founder, President

The University of the Future LLC (FutureU™), San Francisco, January 1997 to present

Large Organization Consulting and Training Firm.

FutureU™ serves both business and academia and specializes in organizational learning. Our most requested services include:

  • Training programs for:
    • How to design, build, and deliver online courses,
    • Online collaboration and communication, including:
      • Web conferencing
      • Virtual teaming
      • Virtual community building
  • Research services, including:
    • Market research
    • Readiness assessments
    • Needs assessments
    • Feasibility studies
  • Technology tool evaluation and implementation management.
  • Content development, including:
    • Course development
    • Curriculum development
    • Program evaluation
  • Content delivery:
    • webinars
    • online courses
    • online programs
  • Learning expeditions to actual businesses
  • Training programs for:
    • Leadership development
    • Professional advancement
    • Talent retention
IT Support Group facilitating adoption of online collaboration tools for scientists of the NASA Astrobiology Insitute.
NASA Astrobiology Institute
Consultant, Mentor, Coach
Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico

— Founding Program Director

Master of Arts in Business, California Institute of Integral Studies. San Francisco, 1993-1995

Advanced Degree Program. (See listing under “Educational Administration Experience”)

— Partner

Research & Planning for Business, San Francisco, 1986-1987

Market Research Firm.

  • Participated fully in all aspects of work, including sales, proposal preparation, research, analysis, and reports.
  • Learned and utilized the market research techniques of surveys, one-on-one interviews, and focus groups.
  • Developed a two-step proactive marketing program involving mail solicitation with follow-up telemarketing.
  • Created and published a quarterly newsletter.
  • Produced special promotional events.
  • Responsible for the creation and maintenance of computer systems for survey analysis, document processing, and accounting.
  • Developed personnel and policy manual.
  • Supervised one employee in the operation of the business and various subcontractors in the execution of projects.
  • Clients included:
    • Apple Computer
    • Fujitsu America
    • Hibernia Bank
    • Pacific Bell
    • Southland Corporation (7-11 Stores)

— Director of Value-Added Services

Softyme, Inc., San Francisco, California, 1983-1985

High-Tech StartUp

  • Recruited as an independent consultant to help build a management team for this start-up venture specializing in the distribution of software over high-speed telephone data lines.
  • Designed and created a “Value-Added Services” department to provide customer and supplier support services.
  • Managed department during the critical start-up phase.
  • Answered directly to the Vice-President of “Value Added Services” and the CEO.
  • Stood in for V.P. at Board and company meetings when necessary.
  • Created management and reporting systems.
  • Recruited and hired staff.
  • Directly supervised three employees.
  • Provided meeting facilitation and technical and training support for all departments.
Clipping from PC Magazine article about Softyme. Headline: Softyme Bids for Share in Electronic Distribution.
Clipping of PC Magazine article about Softyme..

— Partner

Noren Institute, San Francisco, 1983-1988

Private Business School.

  • Developed twice yearly workshop series on honest management for small businesses.
  • Acted as co-instructor of all workshops.
  • Created newsletter and lecture series as promotional vehicles.
  • Provided resource referral service for 150+ alumni.
Noren office over Bloom's Saloon, Potrero Hill, San Francisco
Noren office over Bloom's Saloon
Potrero Hill,San Francisco

— Owner

Enterprise Support Center, San Francisco, 1983-1986

Small Business Consulting Firm.

  • Provided consulting service to small businesses on the issues of bookkeeping, marketing, and growth management.
  • Worked with a client base of 200 small businesses, primarily in San Francisco.
  • A major consulting client was Research & Planning for Business (see above), which led to a partnership in January 1986.

— President & CEO

Living Lightly, Inc., San Francisco, 1980-1983

Alternative Energy/Appropriate Technology Retail Store.

  • General Manager, 10% shareholder, and Chairman of the Board.
  • Managed 3,000 ft2 retail space.
  • Duties included:
    • bookkeeping
    • purchasing
    • sales
    • new product research & testing
    • marketing and promotion
  • Store specialized in reasonably priced, environmentally safe products for energy conservation and city living. Most of the inventory had been previously reviewed in The Whole Earth Catalog.
  • Inventory included:
    • energy efficient wood burning stoves
    • demand hot water heaters
    • energy saving space heaters
    • water and energy saving devices
    • energy-saving kitchen items and appliances
    • nomadic furniture for city dwellers
    • drip irrigation and organic gardening supplies
    • tools
    • books
    • outdoor gear
  • Developed a unique marketing approach which included a newsletter and classes on:
    • “San Francisco Community Gardens”
    • “Organic Gardening in The City”
    • “Home Canning”
    • “Energy Conservation for City Dwellers”
    • “Emergency Food Storage”
  • Primary responsibility for the design and implementation of systems and procedures that allowed the store to grow in 9 months from $50,000 in annual sales to $300,000.
  • Supervised seven employees and three assistant managers.
Living Lightly Organic Gardening and Drip Irrigation
Living Lightly—Organic Gardening and Drip Irrigation
Living Lightly Kitchen and Home Canning
Living Lightly—Kitchen and Home Canning
Living Lightly Book Department
Living Lightly—Book Department

— Owner

Special Services, San Rafael, California, 1979-1984

Alternative Energy/Appropriate Technology Distribution Company.

  • Started and operated a successful one-person distribution company pre-dating but selling many of the same products as the Living Lightly retail store (see above).
  • Living Lightly was originally a customer until I joined the company as a new investor and general manager.

— General Manager

E.V. Warehousing, San Leandro, California, 1977-1979

Business-to-Business Public Warehousing.

  • Provided storage, shipping, and receiving services for small businesses.
  • Designed and implemented management and traffic control systems for a 10,000 ft2 public warehouse.
  • Duties included systems and forms design, and employee supervision and training.
  • Supervised three full-time and 20 part-time employees.
  • Developed a liquidation system for surplus goods.

— President & CEO

Harmony, Inc., Santa Rosa, California, 1975-1976

Small cosmetic manufactory.

  • One-third owner of the corporation.
  • Corporate duties as secretary/treasurer.
  • General manager of 2,600 ft2 natural cosmetics & toiletries manufacturing facility.
  • Duties included:
    • bookkeeping
    • purchasing
    • production management
    • shipping
    • sales
    • product development
    • label design.
  • Mostly private label contracts and institutional sales. But included three product labels:
    • Harmony Products
    • J.N. McMartin
    • Clear Creek
  • Products included:
    • Hand cream
    • Shampoo
    • Hair rinse
    • Beard groom
    • Suntan lotion
    • Massage oil
    • Incense
    • Soap
    • Scented lamp oil
  • Supervised two employees and personally handled 30 retail accounts.
Tools of the Trade: perfumes. bottle filler funnel, assembly-line belt
Tools of the Trade: perfumes. bottle filler funnel, assembly-line belt
Tools of the Trade: Hobart Mixer
Tools of the Trade: Hobart Mixer

Business Analyst (38 years)

— Social Weaver

Awakening Technology, Lake Oswego, Oregon. February 1996 to October 1996

Action Research Project.

  • Working with a group of 50 corporate managers and consultants from around the country to experiment with deepening the connections possible through groupware-supported communications over the internet.
  • Responsibility for getting to know participants, helping them feel safe and welcome, acknowledged and expected.
  • And after they are comfortable, helping them connect with each other in powerful ways that support their individual and group quests.
  • Since the project is conducted on-line we automatically created a documentary record of our experiment which was then analyzed and reported to the professional literature.
  • (Awakening Technology’s founders, Peter and Trudy Johnson-Lenz coined the term “groupware” in 1978 [ http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=290575.290585 ]

— Associate Professor

"Master of Arts in Buisness," California Institute of Integral Studies, San Francisco. 1993 to 1995

  • Conducted ongoing research into the teaching and learning practices of transformative learning utilizing the qualitative research tools of:
    • action inquiry
    • empowerment evaluation
    • ethnographic auditing
    • ethnography
  • Designed and participated in evaluation studies of faculty and director roles, programs, and school.

— Coordinator

Briapatch Network, San Francisco. 1984 to present

  • Conduct periodic financial and demographic surveys of the membership.
  • Designed and implemented a qualitative study to measure characteristics of success.
  • Supervised five apprentices in the collection and analysis of data.

— Partner

Research & Planning for Business, San Francisco. 1985-1987

  • Conducted qualitative market research for corporations such as Apple Computer, Fujitsu America, Hibernia Bank, Pacific Bell, and Southland Corporation.
  • Participated fully in proposal preparation, research, analysis, and reports.
  • Produced special promotional events with a built-in market research component.
  • Developed computerized survey analysis.
  • Supervised one employee in the operation of the business and various subcontractors in the execution of projects.

Business Educator Experience (40 years)

Noren learning expedition visits Greens restaurant.

Primary subject areas:

  • Breaking Through to Good Work
  • Building Support for Right Livelihood
  • Running a One-Person Business
  • Marketing without Advertising
  • Personnel as if People Mattered
  • Growth Management and “Right-Sizing”
  • Honest Selling
  • Honest Consulting
  • Fun in Business

Other focuses:

  • Mindfulness
  • Meaningful Work
  • Community Building
  • Free Agentry in Business
  • Faculty Development Specialist:
    • Coaching and Training Faculty in the use of technology and the Internet in planning, building, & teaching virtual or blended courses for higher education institutions such as:
      • California Virtual Campus
      • Columbia College of California
      • Dominican University of California
      • King Abdul-Aziz University
      • Missouri State University
      • Modesto Junior College
      • Saybrook Graduate School
      • Thompson Rivers University
      • Universidad Interamericana, Recinto de Puerto Rico
  • Online Teaching and Learning
  • Planning, Building, and Teaching a Blended or Virtual Course
  • Learning Disciplines
    • Personal Mastery
    • Mental Models
    • Shared Visioning
    • Team Learning
    • Systems Thinking
  • Stewardship, Followership, and Transformational Leadership

Example Projects:

— Course Developer, Faculty Advisor

  • Designing and delivering modules on Systems Thinking and Leadership to:
    • The “Fellowship in Creating Healthier Communities” and the “Accelerating Community Transformation” project of the American Hospital Association’s Health Forum Fellowship.

— Curriculum Consultant/Project Manager

  • Lead a team of 12 faculty developers to create 16 modules and three certificate programs for the “Center for Professional Education” at the University of Phoenix-Online Campus.

— Founding Director and Associate Professor

Lead the development of a “new paradigm” graduate degree stressing social and environmental responsibility: the “Master of Arts in Business” at the California Institute of Integral Studies (a graduate school of philosophy and religion)—With 35 graduates, this experimental program was one of the first graduate business programs on the planet to be delivered online.

— Business Instructor

  • Adjunct faculty or instructor on a wide variety of topics to institutions including:
    • The Center for Good Work
    • Ecole Nationale des Ponts et Chausées
    • Goddard College
    • Heald Business College
    • Holy Names College
    • McKinnon School of Massage
    • New College of California
    • Noren Institute
    • Prescott College
    • Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center
    • Writers Connection

Recent Teaching Experience

— Instructor

Thompson Rivers University, Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada

— Instructor and Virtual Community Facilitator

"Big Apple Green: A Virtual Community for the Green Businesses of New York City"
The Consortium for Worker Education, New York

— Instructor

King Abdul-Aziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

“Educational Technologies for Online and Blended Learning”

Claude with KAU women professors
Claude with women faculty at King Abdulaziz University training program.