Shoshana Zuboff makes a few useful points on business ethics:
When I wondered last month how the insurance industry carries on when so many customers have lost faith in it, I had no idea my worst fears would be confirmed so soon. The short answer is that some of them cheat. That’s how companies can remain profitable while being despised and mistrusted by so many customers. This was captured piquantly by Vinay Saqi, a Morgan Stanley insurance analyst, who noted insurance companies have had “a difficult time making money when the game is rigged in their favor. We’re concerned they won’t fare well in a truly competitive environment.”
Among the wealth of wrongdoing in this still unfolding story, one fact looms over the rest: Thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of grown-ups knew about an array of fraudulent practices and failed to shout, “Wrong!” Instead, many regulators, independent watchdogs, brokers, executives in both the retail and commercial sectors, benefits consultants, and investment advisers joined together in a parallel moral universe. Collusion and conformity — “it’s not wrong because everyone is doing it” — is accepted. Obedience — “it’s not wrong because they told me to do it” — is okay. Opportunism — “it’s only wrong if I get caught” — is encouraged. And, of course, narcissism — “it’s not wrong if it’s good for us” — is celebrated.
