Opinion piece:
In a business world increasingly governed by algorithms, metrics, and the incessant pursuit of quarterly efficiency, I’m often asked what the most critical and, paradoxically, most underestimated asset in an organization is. My answer, forged over more than two decades at the heart of large corporations and in strategic consulting, moves away from numbers and focuses on a much deeper concept: corporate culture. And not just any culture, but one founded on humanist principles.
This conviction is not a passing fad or a theory learned from a manual. Its roots run much deeper. Firstly, it stems from a family upbringing where respect, integrity, and the value of one’s word were the bedrock of any project, however modest. Subsequently, this intuitive vision was greatly enhanced and given a solid intellectual framework during my time at two exceptional academic institutions: Universidad de Deusto and IESE Business School. Both, leaders in the business field, taught me that humanism is not only compatible with business but is, in fact, its most solid and enduring foundation.
I’ve come to understand that culture is the true operating system of a company. It’s that set of shared values, beliefs, and unwritten norms that determine how decisions are made when no one is watching. It’s the difference between a company with a soul and a mere structure for generating money. And it is precisely here that many strategic analyses fail: they underestimate its power, treating it as a secondary element instead of the driving force that defines long-term success or failure.
The biggest mistake of modern management is to pose a false dilemma between values and profit. From my perspective, this represents strategic myopia. The pursuit of profit at any cost — by pushing employees to exhaustion, squeezing suppliers, or deceiving customers — is, as we popularly say, «bread for today, hunger for tomorrow.» It builds fragile companies, without internal or external loyalty, and exposed to devastating reputational risks.
A humanist culture, on the other hand, does not oppose profit; it redefines its quality. It seeks sustainable profit, a direct consequence of doing things well. It’s a profit born from customer trust, employee commitment, and supplier collaboration. Throughout my career at Arthur Andersen (Deloitte), Naturgy, and now as a partner at Auren, I have seen time and again how organizations that invest in their people, that foster psychological safety for innovation to flourish, and that act with unwavering integrity, are the ones that best navigate crises, that attract and retain the best talent, and ultimately, that generate greater sustained value for their shareholders.
A company is not an island; it’s an ecosystem. Its actions generate ripples that impact all its stakeholders. Employees are not resources; they are people seeking a life project where they can grow. Customers deserve fair value and a relationship based on trust. Suppliers are strategic partners, not adversaries in a negotiation. Public administrations and society as a whole provide us with the environment, security, and talent to operate, and they deserve to receive genuine value from us, beyond mere legal compliance.
This comprehensive vision is what institutions like Deusto and IESE instill. They teach us that people are at the center of every organization, and that the creation of lasting economic value is the natural consequence of first generating human and social value. This approach not only creates more prosperous companies but also fosters positive externalities: by training our teams, we elevate society’s human capital; by innovating with ethical criteria, we create solutions that benefit everyone; by being demanding with our value chain, we drive the improvement of an entire sector.
In short, my professional and personal experience has led me to the firm conviction that 21st-century business leadership must be humanist leadership. The great challenge — and the great opportunity — for today’s executives is not just to achieve business plan objectives, but to do so by building organizations that are economically efficient and, at the same time, humanly fulfilling. Because at the end of the day, the most admired, and also the most profitable companies, will be those that demonstrate that the best way to take care of the balance sheet is to start by taking care of people.
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