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Measuring the Mission: A New Defense of Profit Maximization

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 July 2025

Jessica Flanigan*
Affiliation:
Leadership Studies and Philosophy, Politics, Economics, and Law; https://ror.org/03y71xh61University of Richmond

Abstract

Institutional actors should aim to increase the long-term market value of their firms. This claim implies that firms should adopt a profit-maximizing mission. Business ethicists have been too quick to dismiss moral defenses of profit maximization. Even though there are limits to the moral benefits of profit maximization, a profit-maximizing approach is still morally better than alternative approaches to defining an institutional mission.

Information

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 2025 Social Philosophy and Policy Foundation. Printed in the USA

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References

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