We have the greatest admiration for Mr. Couinard, who has chosen to turn his vast fortune over to the cause of fighting climate change. But as we have often observed, it is not easy to keep a commercial enterprise vital and sustainable when it is owned by a non-profit. Their risk tolerances as very different….
Category: capitalism
Memo to Corporate Directors: Three Lessons from the Exxon-Mobil Activist Victory
Exxon-Mobil spent $35 million, added new directors, and made promises to do better, all in an effort to defeat the dissident slate nominated by activist fund Engine No. 1. It failed, and, at this writing, Exxon-Mobil has lost at least two seats on the board of directors and votes for two others were still being…
If Black Lives Really Matter to the Rich, Philanthropy Isn’t Enough – The New York Times
Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation writes in The NY Times: No chief executive, investor or rich person wakes up in the morning, looks in the mirror, and says, “Today, I want to go out and create more inequality in America.” And yet, all too often, that is exactly what happens. Even before the…
The One Percent Begs Larry Fink to Lighten Up
In case you thought this period of re-assessment of policies and priorities might lead to a universal recognition of the importance of long-term sustainability, we can now assure you that is not the case. Indeed, we believe that it is the prospect of a better alignment to prevent corporate leaders from externalizing their costs that…
Nell Minow and Peggy Foran on Corporate Governance, ESG, and What Comes Next
VEA Vice Chair Nell Minow appeared on NPR’s On Point program with Prudential’s Peggy Foran to talk about corporate governance today, what’s better and what’s not, ESG, and what comes next.
Hospital Groups Sue to Block Price-Transparency Rule – WSJ
Corporations continue to try to pretend they deserve the same Constitutional rights as individuals, here arguing that the kind of disclosure requirements the government has successfully imposed for decades to make sure consumers get the information they need to make informed choices violate the First Amendment freedom of speech. The courts recognized that commercial speech…
Capitalism Is a Blessing — IQ2US Debates
The IQ Squared Debate series has experts debate today’s the most complex and hotly contested topics. Coming: Is what we get from capitalism worth what we pay for it? We will post a recording of the debate as soon as it is available. Recent polls show that two out of three Americans support capitalism. But…
Crash Course — The Corporate Governance/Strategy Failures of Boeing
At The New Republic, Maureen Tkacik writes about what went wrong at Boeing and how it relates to other corporate failures: Airplane manufacturing is no different from mortgage lending or insulin distribution or make-believe blood analyzing software—another cash cow for the one percent, bound inexorably for the slaughterhouse. In the now infamous debacle of the…
DealBook Briefing: What WeWork Faces After Its C.E.O. Steps Down – The New York Times
Andrew Ross Sorkin writes about the fallout from the collapsing IPO of WeWork, following the semi-resignation of founder Adam Neumann (he is staying on as Chairman), quoting VEA Vice Chair Nell Minow, who appeared with Sorkin on CNBC yesterday to discuss the IPO. His ouster may force a reckoning at several longtime WeWork backers: •…
The Market Response to Business: More Long Term/Public Good Focus
Andrew Ross Sorkin reports on the sense of one of the most significant business summits, the Milkin Institute Global Conference. The theme of this year’s meeting is significant in itself: “Driving Shared Prosperity.” And so are the results of the survey showing the need for more credible business leaders and products: Edelman’s latest “Trust Barometer:…
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