Business Social Responsibility To say that businesses have a social responsibility does not make much sense Individuals responsibilities and corporate virtual responsibilities If a corporate executive wants to help a cause he should do it as an individual as opposed to spending consumer and stockholder Free society social responsibility should be put on individuals Spend your own money not someone else s Rethinking Social Responsibility Whole Foods John Mackey Whole Foods best businesses put customer happiness first Milton Freedman Customers employees investors vendors communities environment Investors supported donating 5 believe it is for the common good Finding appropriate balance and creating value for stakeholders Typically a reason behind actions of social responsibility i e providing amenities to a community it has a store in Best to maximize profits Different tax laws regarding donations TJ Rodgers Mackey is completely wrong Shareholders should have opportunity to spend the money not the company Companies should solely focus on profits and leave moral causes to ppl To a certain extent they are ok not when spending shareholder though John Mackey Companies are not required to participate in philanthropic activity It is the right thing to do however some companies designed solely to maximize profits but not all businesses are like this Create value for customers employees communities Respect Freedman s remarks not Rodgers Rodgers compares him to Ralph Nader Karl Marx Business purpose provide goods and services that improve customers lives provide jobs and meaningful work for employees create wealth and prosperity for investors and be a responsible and caring citizen This philosophy encourages and taps into more powerful motivations than self interest alone The Divine Right of Capital Stockholders do not fund major corporations unless it is common stock Corporations raise water level in one compartment by lowering in another Inconsistent concept maximizing returns to shareholders Employees 401k gains wonder why there are layoffs Capital is being extracted and converted to financial capital at alarming rate Corporations beginning to dominate the world increasing size shrinking ownership functions rise of knowledge economy increasing damage to ecosystem Six principles upholding the needs of property owners above all other needs worldview privilege property governance liberty sovereignty Giving shareholders as much income as possible while giving employees little income is an issue Today s free market reserves liberty for property holders as it denies liberty to employees and the communities How Shareholders are Ruining American Business Banks that tumbled during financial crisis of 2007 were shareholder friendly Most of a bank s funding comes from depositors and bondholders Corporations should balance interests of shareholders against employees customers suppliers debt holders and society at large In 2000 stock prices began to be less reliable gauges of corporate value Most successful companies are driven by goals and principles rather than shareholder returns Corporations are using too many resources in an effort to maximize shareholder value both natural and economic