Professionalism and Responsiblity in the Advertising Industry

Money Can't Buy Professionalism

Spoiler alert: This is not an article about super-skinny retouched models or sales of poisonous substances. It's about management.

With the worldwide labor pool of photo retouchers growing at breakneck speed, some companies think they can get high quality work and fat profits while turning a blind eye to responsibility to the society in which they do business. It doesn't work that way.

No business or government can last indefinitely. However, they can insure a more sustainable course of growth if its workers and citizens are in a positive state of mind and in good mental and physical health. This means you can keep a staff of domestic retouchers and a team of contractors (in your country or another country), while still making profits.

However, if you want good work and service for which you can make profits, you must commit a large share of time and money into your workers with their dignity in mind. There are no precise formulas to build and maintain a profitable business. However, there is a simple standard by which each and every leader of a business should annually assess. It is an addage famously known as the Golden Rule:

Do unto others that which you would have them do unto you.

If you are an owner of a business, and have suddenly been put in the shoes of your highly-skilled and humble employee, would you like someone to just lay you off in an hour's—or days notice? It happens to all of us. However, does that have to be the rule—or could it be the exception?

So times get hard. What is a manger to do? First of all, it means leaving at least half of your high wage retouching jobs untouched, regardless of the ups and downs. By doing so, you keep a legacy of knowledge and talent in which you can invest more money during profitable times. The expenses of hiring a brand new team is astronomical over the long-term. Cut your expenses through consultation with staff. Don't just send down edicts like some king of old. Business owners and managers have a lot of responsibility. However, the secret of handling that responsibility is not in the hiring of some high-paid manager!

Wise owners and managers don't make wise decisions. Wise owners and managers find wise decisions from their workers and then facilitate the execution of plans to the end. This fosters great respect, loyalty and all around good will within the company and the society. Be professional. However, be responsible.