Aside from the sheer stupidity of prioritizing a social construct above allegiance to the necessary truths of logic and whatever moral duties might exist, there are only so many ways the objective of always increasing returns can be carried out, such as by paying workers too little to do anything but perhaps barely survive on, firing employees, raising prices to extract more money from the same amount of consumers, or diminishing the quality and thus the expense of goods or services. One of the only ways to accomplish this that is not inherently exploitative is expanding the consumer base, but there is still only a finite number of potential new buyers to reach [1]. Somehow, paying executives less than their often incredibly undeserved levels of compensation [2] rarely seems to be considered as a serious option, if at all, by those in power.
The focus on the next quarter means that genuinely oppressive or materialistic tactics are very likely to be used with little to no regard for even how the company will have to deal with the ramifications later on, and this is at the level of pragmatic failure and its consequences, not even the higher moral or rationalistic ramifications. No matter the way that workers are treated, customers or clients are misled or exploited (by means like planned obsolescence or gratuitous price increases), financial records are altered or counterfeited, or the intrinsic necessities of reason are ignored, some companies might pathetically prepare a fine noose for themselves if only they can make it to the next quarter with better financial standing—aka, with more profits to go to the executives and shareholders—or the deception of better financial standing.
This of course ultimately sabotages companies or at least holds them back. Without workers, many businesses would not survive since they are not sole proprietorships. Without enough resources left in the natural world, businesses that rely on harnessing those resources would come to an end, yet a variety of corporate and consumer activities treat this as if it is trivial or will never actually happen. All of this seems to either never be thought of or to get dismissed as an obstacle to the goal of maximizing shareholder returns and company profitability in the immediate/near future. These people in question are non-rationalists, of course, so it is not as if they are intelligent and have true knowledge of anything in reality, just assumptions, passive perceptions, and personal preferences.
This emphasis on utilitarian short-term gains, if someone is truly committed to it, will inevitably lead someone to believe or do things that are irrational, destructive, or immoral as long as there is benefit to profitability or reputation—at least the illusion of profitability in order to manipulate the shareholding public or other investors. They could not truly be devoted to maximizing shareholder value or personal wealth above all else without actually acting like it. The way this pragmatically hinders long-term and thus greater financial success is ignored, but more foundationally, this is an inherently erroneous approach to reality since it is logic and whatever moral obligations that exist, along with everything these truths would entail, that alone would deserve such passion and dedication as that exemplified by corporate fools recklessly chasing after an endless increase for the next quarter.
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