Exxon Mobil NOT Investing in Alternative Energy

My first reaction to this article, from Fortune, about Exxon Mobil not investing in alternative energy was to think, as some critics mentioned in the article do, that CEO Rex Tillerson and Exxon Mobil has a short-term (or not long enough) view of their business and that it's a mistake. Tillerson won't be around long enough to be hurt by such a view.

Of course, I think it's extrememly important for a company the size Exxon Mobil to make the move to investing in alternative energy. Without companies like them on board, it makes it harder for the technologies to become more mainstream and more affordable. That being said, the way business is structured, can he be blamed for this thinking? In other words, in the short-term, he may be hurting Exxon Mobil's profits and isn't that against everything his job description calls for? Taking the longer term perspective, should he even be blamed for not investing in the research and development? I've said before in this blog, my thought about Exxon Mobil is that they'll sit back and earn their hefty profits without making any investments. When the time comes that a technology looks promising and profitable, Exxon Mobil will use their loads of cash and buy up a few companies. They don't have to "waste" their money now (of course, I believe if they threw their money into the R&D, something viable would come quicker), but can sit back, profit as they traditionally have, and invest when there is more return guaranteed on their investment.

It's easy for me to make Tillerson out as a bad guy. But as business rules as they are where there is no cost applied to companies who contribute to global warming or pollution, CEO's are really discouraged from making the responsible choice for the world and are encouraged to make the responsbile one for their company's shareholders.

Tillerson may not be a bad guy, but he certainly will never be a "profile in courage".