Jul

2

There are hugely important issues concerning firms' culture and overall purpose, management's core responsibilities, and the future of capitalism. Related to this, here is a video of a presentation I have been making to business students at DePaul University titled "Capitalism and Management's Core Responsibilities."

Key Points:

1. We are increasingly following a path of crony capitalism which eventually leads to a social environment like Italy or Greece. In contrast, free-market capitalism enables consumer choice and competition to work to the benefit of all, especially the least well off.

2. There is a wall of miscommunication, with words having strikingly different meanings, between those in favor of maximizing shareholder value and those opposed—better to shift attention to management's core responsibilities.

3. Running their businesses in ways consistent with the recommended five core responsibilities would enable management to both create wealth and earn the moral high ground.

4. Analysis of firms' historical track records provides a lens to understand capitalism from the ground up; i.e., customers, employees, and shareholders have mutual, long-term interests. This is illustrated via three company examples using Credit Suisse/HOLT company data used by worldwide money management firms and by Barron's for the annual Barron's 500 Scorecard.

5. The public's low level of trust in corporations results in a lack of faith in capitalism. Who can lead in moving the corporate world to better deliver on their core responsibilities—one of which is to promote free-market capitalism? Large asset owners (pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, endowment funds, and the like) have a vested interest in the long-term success of free-market capitalism and are in a unique position to reorient how firms are managed to create long-term wealth that benefits all stakeholders.


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