What Is the Purpose of a Corporation? Shareholder Primacy in the Age of Stakeholder Activism

Debate: To many, the boardroom is not a place for debate on social issues. Others hold that you cannot say that you are monitoring the bottom line if you ignore the concerns of stakeholders whose satisfaction plays a role in a company’s success or failure. Should boards take the concerns of employees, customers, suppliers and communities into account? And how should a company decide whether to take a position on a political or social issue? Should the CEO seek the board’s approval before the company takes a position?

For additional information on the debate, please see the article, “A Corporation’s Purpose: Disagreeing Without Being Disagreeable”.