It's all about corporate values, writes Dr. Richard J. Atkins in his article When Dollars And Cents Meet Heart And Soul: The Cost Of Dedication In The Music Industry. The industry is in "decline and disgrace" and must change if it is to survive.

He says "The day-to-day operations of the business speak loudly of the problems within. Bands are signed and dropped in the twinkling of an eye. Artists are promised the moon and then shown to the dumpster. The whimsical winds of taste determine the flavor of the week without regard for greater potential in later days. Through it all, the question is raised, where is the sense of loyalty? What happened to all those campaign promises prior to election? In such a bleak environment, it is difficult or even impossible for an artist to create."

Atkins concludes:

" Put simply, (the music) industry needs to put values first. By addressing the intangibles before profits, greater results will follow. To get the stakeholders to trust in that process will take some great selling. They need to see the benefit in such a "risk." But ethical gains will create true profit. Through taking care of improving people, stability of jobs and personnel will provide Continuity that serves employees, artists, and individual consumers well. People are creatures of habit and want some kind of predictability. This same constancy and steadiness will yield another beneficial effect-the ability to forecast appropriately for the industry, and a greater capacity to cooperate with industry trends.

According to most music business insiders, it's a broken industry; it's not working as is. Some would say it's without hope. To sell such "unorthodox practices" such as operating the industry as a values-driven enterprise, the question to ask is, "Is the current methodology working?" If the answer is "No," it's time to try something different.

Values, stability, foresight, and development-these are some of the strongest qualities that will carry any limping industry further into the 21st century. "