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Nice linkbait, but the problem is elsewhere. The problem is the focus on short term Shareholder Value and quarterly profits. It destroys the companies in the l
by yaix 15y ago
Nice linkbait, but the problem is elsewhere.
The problem is the focus on short term Shareholder Value and quarterly profits. It destroys the companies in the long term. Worse, it undermines the trust employees in their companies, because they know that they can get fired anytime for the sake of short term profits. They know that investors make big money, while they earn less and less each year (after inflation).
The Western economic system (that developed in northern Europe from the 1500s on and then went to North America, Australia, etc with the English colonization) is build on mutual trusting relationships (a high degree of Social Capital, see eg books F. Fukuyama, "Trust" or R. Putnam, "Bowling Alone"). That is what made the West economically so successful.
But to maintain our high degree of Social Capital, people need to feel that what is happening in society and in companies is mostly fair. Its doesn't really matter who is running the show. The problem with current MBAs is, that they are trained on short term Shareholder Value instead of long term stability.
- Vivtek 15y agoI'm trying to see how linking to TIME is linkbait, but ... don't you think maybe this short-term mercenary outlook is the effect of the problem, not the cause? I mean, you're not at all wrong.