Let’s be honest. There’s not a business anywhere that is without problems. Business is complicated and imperfect. Every business everywhere is staffed with imperfect human beings and exists by providing a product or service to other imperfect human beings.

Parsons frames organizational dysfunction as a universal condition rather than a scandal or exception. By stressing that businesses are “complicated and imperfect” because they are made of—and serve—imperfect people, he shifts the reader from idealized expectations to pragmatic realism. The point is not to excuse failures but to normalize them: problems are inherent in commerce, so effective leadership focuses on diagnosing, prioritizing, and continually improving rather than chasing a fantasy of flawlessness. The quote also implies humility and empathy: since everyone involved is fallible, sustainable success depends on systems that anticipate human error and cultures that respond constructively when it occurs.