In a moral society the public good must always rest on private virtue.
To make what is good for the country good for the enterprise requires hard work, great management skill, high standards of responsibility, and broad vision. It is a counsel of perfection. To carry it out completely would require the philosopher’s stone that can translate the basest element into pure gold. But, if management is to remain a leading group, it must make this rule the lodestar of its conduct, must consciously strive to live up to it, and must actually do so with a fair degree of success. For in a good, a moral, a lasting society, the public good must always rest on private virtue. Every leading group must be able to claim that the public good determines its own interest. This assertion is the only legitimate basis for leadership; to make it a reality is the first duty of the leaders.
ACTION POINT: Make a list of three new products or services that have failed and will fail because you and your organization have ignored the public good.
The Practice of Management
* Source: The Daily Drucker by Peter F. Drucker