You've captured all the economic incentive of the portfolio companies, but what of the investor?
The presence of "underutilized potential" doesn't mean that there's a triage opportunity. Free cash flow (and liquidity thereof) still needs to pencil out.
If exits are mostly a no-go into perpetuity, then the only way to realize actual cash-on-cash returns (e.g. for a net present value calculation) is ultimately dividends -- that, or creating a marketplace for private stock transactions in such companies.
The presence of "underutilized potential" doesn't mean that there's a triage opportunity. Free cash flow (and liquidity thereof) still needs to pencil out. If exits are mostly a no-go into perpetuity, then the only way to realize actual cash-on-cash returns (e.g. for a net present value calculation) is ultimately dividends -- that, or creating a marketplace for private stock transactions in such companies.