Today in our seminar, the presenter discussed about manager myopia. The presentation was heated about the research design and what it means for the market and the policy makers. However, what I found fascinating was the final comments by two renowned senior professors.
The first point was that although the public market may want less disclosure due to the ugliness of the meet-or-beat earnings game, managers actually faster real time data. They want the internet of things right in their finger tips. They want all information right now, which is quite a contrast when they complain that quarterly earnings lead to manager myopia.
The second point was very deep and fundamental. The professor argued about the source of the myopia, where is the myopia coming from? He said it is the consumers. The consumers want new phones, new model car, new clothes… And managers are just trying to cater to the consumers. Yup, our world is right now so obsessed with the next thing from the next Iphone, next Audi, fast fashion…We are creating a big mess in the long term.
So what can we do? Well, we can start by not being so obsessed with the next thing. Use products longer. Don’t buy things that you don’t need. Focus on your long term goals, do not be swayed by the short term. It will take some time to fix the short term outlook but we have to start somewhere and NOW.
Pureum's Perspective 