There's a fascinating story in the New York Times today on how the rise of a new class of billionaires marks our time as a New Gilded Age:
These days, Mr. [Sanford] Weill and many of the nation’s very wealthy chief executives, entrepreneurs and financiers echo an earlier era — the Gilded Age before World War I — when powerful enterprises, dominated by men who grew immensely rich, ushered in the industrialization of the United States. The new titans often see themselves as pillars of a similarly prosperous and expansive age, one in which their successes and their philanthropy have made government less important than it once was.
I call it "fascinating" because it reveals just how narcissistic many of these tycoons are. Turns out that, without them radiating their brilliance down upon the rest of us, the economy would have stalled out 20 years ago! Or at least, that's how they see it.
Lew Frankfort, chairman and chief executive of Coach, the manufacturer and retailer of trendy upscale handbags, who was among the nation’s highest paid chief executives last year, recaps the argument.
“The professional class that developed in business in the ’50s and ’60s,” he said, “was able as America grew at very steady rates to become industry leaders and move their organizations forward in most categories: steel, autos, housing, roads.”
That changed with the arrival of “the technological age,” in Mr. Frankfort’s view. Innovation became a requirement, in addition to good management skills — and innovation has played a role in Coach’s marketing success. “To be successful,” Mr. Frankfort said, “you now needed vision, lateral thinking, courage and an ability to see things, not the way they were but how they might be.”
All attributes which, of course, Mr. Frankfort believes that he is blessed with. Of course. Well, everybody knows that someone who makes more money than you is better than you, right?
Thankfully, there are a few who realize that their success was not all due to themselves being perfect little snowflakes. In fact, a couple even recognize that without the people who work for them, they'd never have made it:
James D. Sinegal, chief executive of Costco, the discount retailer, echoes that sentiment. “Obscene salaries send the wrong message through a company,” he said. “The message is that all brilliance emanates from the top; that the worker on the floor of the store or the factory is insignificant.”
For reference, the original Gilded Age was a time in which unscrupulous businessmen built empires by cutting corners, exploiting their workforce, and bribing a thoroughly corrupt government to let them do as they pleased without worrying about laws or regulations.
Sound familiar?
