An unseasonably chilly February evening in Karachi. A generic looking conference room in Corporatistan. The frosted glass creates an impenetrable bubble for the corporate executives from the outside world. A junior accounts officer fidgets in his chair once more as he is unsure of the protocol he is supposed to follow. His senior sitting next to him sits lower in his chair browsing his phone to kill some more time. A secretary sits in the corner of the room waiting for the board members to join. The meeting was called at 5 PM but it will eventually begin once the board members actually show up.
As the door opens, the first of the board members arrives. Salutations and greetings are shared before he takes his designated seat at the table. As more members start to arrive, there is a buzz of low conversation. Once the table is complete, the secretary is asked to commence the meeting as she starts to read the agenda items for the day.
It might seem like the meeting is taking place in February but the seeds of this meeting were sown nearly two months back when the company closed its accounts at the end of December. Once January started, the accounting department at the company started to tally up its revenues and expenses that need to be recorded. The junior staff at the company started to post the entries and carry out a reconciliation of its accounts with reality. The content in this publication is expensive to produce. But unlike other journalistic outfits, business publications have to cover the very organizations that directly give them advertisements. Hence, this large source of revenue, which is the lifeblood of other media houses, is severely compromised on account of Profit’s no-compromise policy when it comes to our reporting. No wonder, Profit has lost multiple ad deals, worth tens of millions of rupees, due to stories that held big businesses to account. Hence, for our work to continue unfettered, it must be supported by discerning readers who know the value of quality business journalism, not just for the economy but for the society as a whole.To read the full article, subscribe and support independent business journalism in Pakistan
