Our profession is facing a growing tension between the drive for profit – the resurgent guiding principle of the 2000s – and the increasing demand for more social responsibility among businesses. Post-recession, we can add increased competition, the scrutiny of the business press and a growing focus on efficiency into the mix, all of which amounts to a potential recipe for trouble.
Although there is nothing intrinsically wrong with the familiar notion of equating success with profit, there is a risk that it can become all-consuming, resulting in selfish behaviour, disregard for others, treating people as costs, short-term thinking and an unattractive reputation for sweating the assets.
