Profit. The driving force of any company. The motivation of any manager. The primary concern of the shareholders. Drucker to Mintzberg to Porter to Taleb. Books on business become bestsellers because anecdotes and contexts can be

cherry-picked and applied to generate profits. Five forces to BCG to Six Sigma to Balanced Scorecard. These frameworks became popular because implementing them could possibly improve margin.

In principle, if an organization is effective, it could produce a “good” product. And if it efficient, it could produce “more” products. A review of the market indicates that it has an oversupply of “good” products. And the market is stimulated to purchase “more” of the “good” products. Perhaps, to generate profits and increase margin for the organizations, this is inevitable.

At the close of 2012, consumer debt in the United States has risen to an all-time high of $2.7 trillion. As of the fourth quarter of 2011, total rentable space in some 20,000 self-storage facilities in the United States is roughly triple the size of Manhattan Island in New York City. One in 10 US households currently rent a self-storage unit, this is an increase of 65 percent from the last 15 years. Most of these storage spaces are used to keep “good” products that the market was stimulated to purchase.

Apple is the most valuable company in the world today. From unveiling new products twice a year, Apple now does it once every quarter. Consumers can hardly warm their hands with Apple’s latest offering, when they will be out again buying the next product incarnation. The implication on the market, the impact on the environment, and the effect on culture and values are enormous.

Using Apple as an example, noted business thinker and strategist Gary Hamel, in his book What Matters Now, articulates that issues on innovation, adaptability, and ideology are at the core of an organization in order “to win in a world of relentless change, ferocious competition and unstoppable innovation.” These are nothing new. However, before these issues are addressed, Hamel asserts that values is the primary issue that is of paramount importance. Stewardship, he calls it. According to him, the values of stewardship are the bedrock of an organization.

The relentless pursuit of profit transforms managers into mercenaries. Stewardship reminds us that resources at one’s command and disposal is a trust rather than a means for potential gain. It rekindles the willingness to consider first the interest of others. It recommits one to safeguard the future even as one takes advantage of the present. And it helps realize the sense that one’s actions will have systemic consequences.

In post-war Japan, Konosuke Matsushita understood that business does not exist in order to make profit. Rather, business exists in order to benefit society.

After all, the legendary founder of Panasonic concludes, “Profit is simply society’s reward for the job well done.”

Real Carpio So is an entrepreneur and management consultant. He coaches selected clients on strategic planning and marketing. He lectures on Strategic Management, Management Principles and Organizational Behavior at the Ramon del Rosario College of Business at De La Salle University-Manila. He welcomes comments at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . The views expressed above are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the official position of DLSU, its faculty and its administrators.