I was really reflecting more about my own experience working on different teams over the years than making a blanket statement about economics. I've found that

I was really reflecting more about my own experience working on different teams over the years than making a blanket statement about economics. I've found that the most dynamic and egalitarian teams are the ones that focus on making money because those are the ones where people are incentivized to keep an open mind and expect compensation for greater effort. On government and charitable projects, not so much. I don't really know why, but like the author, I suspected incentives have something to do with it. When your project is just a cost center, anything out of the norm will be seen as another risk or cost to avoid. As an engineer, this doesn't produce a great culture. It surprised me to learn this because, like many commenters, I always associated corruption and overall shadiness with making money. But my career has shown me that there's either no correlation or the opposite. At least at the team or project level.