Not everyone is wired for a sales&marketing job, and twisting themselves to fit in that role would also make a huge difference in life, in a more Faustian kind of way.
Now, without passing too much judgement, I'm starting to feel the unease comes straight from the cost/profit center distinction, as another way to define it is: profit center is what you do to get the money, so you can spend it on the cost center. The former is more exposed to market pressures, thus more likely to evolve into something ugly.