The notion of “professionalism” doesn’t matter if you drive revenue

I wrote something similar to this years and years ago, after a “ribald” conversation with some guys I was trying to do work with (that “work” only somewhat panned out), but I wanted to bring back the concept here for a moment. Basically, I’m of the belief that no one will ever say anything to you about “professionalism” if you drive revenue well for a company. In fact, in most of those roles, you can pretty much get away with anything, from female ass-slapping to straight-up sexual talk to latent racism. It doesn’t matter in the name of the firm.

I’ve been having this conversation for years with guys at events, bars, charity stuff, etc. — and almost everyone agrees with me. “Professionalism” is a suitcase word (it carries many definitions), and it’s become increasingly abstract because some of the biggest companies in the world are run by guys who wear jeans and hoodies to do their job. As such, is the 1950s Wall Street suit model dead? It’s not dead, and it will always exist in professional services and financial worlds, but is it increasingly less relevant, after the “engineers who create companies” boom and then COVID? I’d argue yes.

I’d argue professionalism is a weapon, conceptually, in a lot of companies. If someone doesn’t like you for another reason — personality, process, style, clothing — they…