FT Start-Up Stories Series 2: Ethics versus the bottom line 5/10
Mar 28, 2016
Jamie Waller, founder and CEO of JBW Group, discusses his journey from car sales to debt collection, emphasizing the importance of ethics in a typically skeptical industry. He shares personal experiences in instilling ethical values and confronting dilemmas faced by vulnerable individuals. David de Kramer, a business ethics expert from Judge Business School, joins the conversation to explore how a strong organizational culture can promote proactive ethical thinking. Together, they advocate for a values-driven approach that prioritizes well-being over mere compliance.
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From Car Sales To Enforcement
- Jamie Waller discovered the enforcement industry after his car sales business collapsed due to new London red routes and congestion charges.
- He pivoted by becoming a self-employed enforcement agent and then built JBW Group from that experience.
Violence Shaped His View Of The Job
- As a young enforcement agent, Waller faced daily hostility including being attacked, spat at and once held at gunpoint in a client's home.
- Those dangerous encounters shaped his view of the job and whether to remain in the industry.
Ethics Can Reshape An Industry
- Waller realised many enforcement firms lacked empathy and prioritised profit over values, prompting him to embed ethics into debt recovery.
- He argues that values-driven practice compelled competitors and government contractors to change how they operate.
