It is increasingly easy to be appalled by the short-term thinking of so many leaders in the corporate world as they run around like they have ants in their pants, embracing one fad after another.

And many current management strategies seem to encourage such behaviour – an obsession only with the new at the expense of things which have been built up over a long time. There is the danger with such cultures that organisations lose sight of what they are about.

Of course, some sectors inevitably face major change with the acceleration of artificial intelligence development to breakneck speed. That said, it is crucial even in these sectors to keep things in perspective and not throw the baby out with the bathwater.

The Scotch whisky sector looks much more immune than many others to the AI revolution.

However, it is also one that has faced challenges in recent times. And far too many times, across big companies in a raft of different industries, you see detrimental short-term decisions which often destroy value somewhat quickly.

All of this made it all the more heartening this week to see Scott McCroskie, chief executive of The Macallan and Highland Park owner Edrington, focus on the long term in his statement in the Scotch whisky distiller’s annual report.

This was no great surprise, having covered Edrington over many years and Mr McCroskie’s time at the helm in depth.

And Edrington has the advantage of having a principal shareholder for which long-term value and profits are key.

Glasgow-based Edrington is owned by The Robertson Trust.

More than a decade ago, I had the pleasure of joining a few of the students The Robertson Trust was supporting through university for dinner with the late Sir Ian Good, who played such a key role in building........

© Herald Scotland