In the last year or so numerous tech companies, including Google, Yelp, Amazon, and LinkedIn have been accused of unethical actions. (I was especially appalled by the Wall Street Journal’s report about how Yelp blackmailed small business owners by removing positive reviews if they didn’t advertise.)
There’s a lot of criticism of corporations and what they do. William McGurn recently wrote in the WSJ, “Progressivism is the fear that someone, somewhere might be making a profit.”
This is nothing new. Neither is the opposite end of the spectrum where some people think anything a business does is acceptable if they make a profit from it. Not pay overtime, okay. Keep an employee’s hours at 30 per week when 32 are required for benefits, okay. You get the point.
The bottom line is people not corporations make decisions. I’m sure business psychologists have analyzed this to death so my opinion might be taken as an “amateur’s opinion.” Here are my top three reasons:
They fear losing their job so they do what they think their boss will want, even though he or she also fears losing their job for the same reasons.
They want career advancement and feel they must take risks to show incredible growth and profit, and the heck with whoever gets in their way.
They just don’t get it and don’t understand their superiors have the same ambitions, motivations, and issues and are treating them the same ruthless way (they are treating their customers).
I know a lot of my business buyer clients see the above, have experienced the above, and decide to take control of the situation by buying a business. So they can do things the right way.
“Our growth depends not on how many experiences we devour, but on how many we digest.” Ralph W. Sockman
