Here’s an interesting essay in Fortune online: David Gergen on how American business can recover – May. 4, 2009

He suggests leadership, not policy is the cause for corporate misdeeds and eventual economic collapse. He also says that turning management into a profession (like law or accounting) with ethics and review boards is a potential solution:

“…advancing an idea envisioned in the early days of industrial growth – that management should become a true profession like law or medicine, with a code of conduct, commitment to social responsibility, and professional boards of enforcement. Their efforts represent the beginnings of what must become a longer, deeper conversation about a new social compact between corporations and society. Our worst business leaders did indeed play a role in creating this mess. Now it is apparent that our best business leaders – and there are many out there – must step up and forge a path forward.”

I don’t know what to think about this. Despite ethics and review boards, the professions of law and accounting remain full of irresponsibility. It is still individual responsibilty and leadership that separate excellent lawers and accountants from the rest.

What do you think?