We believed that businesses were made up of people who deserved to be treated with respect. If all you did as an acquirer was slash costs and take out money until a business collapsed, you would be hurting employees, families, and their communities. Your reputation would suffer, and decent investors would be scared off. But if you invested in improving the companies you bought, not only would their employees benefit from working for a stronger company, but your reputation would be enhanced and you would earn much higher long-term returns—“Friendly
