I have cancelled two previous trips to the North East due to last minute emergencies but this week I finally fulfilled my wish to make it there, this time as a panelist of Tripura’s first startup conclave, Startup Tripura held at Agartala. My co-panelists included the Health & IT minister, Shri Sudip Roy Burman, Deepak Daftari, Anil Joshi, Mohit Gulati and Binod Kumar Homgai.

During a panel, there was a question from the audience that should have been a panel discussion topic in of itself viz “What is the importance of ethics in a successful startup?” I did not get a chance to answer that question due to time constraints but I would have said the following if I did. Ethics are extremely important for a business but what is even more important is how you define ethics for a business/venture. The definition of what are ethics or ethical actions for a business has evolved. But a business/venture has two primary duties

1. Make a profit for its shareholders
2. Make a net positive impact on society

Actions taken by a business that are in congruence with both these objectives are ethical and important.

Actions that achieve just one (or none) of both those objectives are unethical.

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