Apology for Capitalism?

Edited by Helen Disney
November 2004
Stockholm Network
ISBN: 0954766318
128 pages, 5” x 7 ¾”
$27.50 Paper Original

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The demise of communism has left the market economy victorious upon the world stage. This triumph has, however, prompted a searching examination of capitalism’s limits and failings. High-profile corporate scandals and the growth in anti-capitalist activism have thrown corporations into the spotlight and left them seeming more unpopular than ever before. Many are asking if business has a responsibility to society and, if so, how far its duties should extend.

Should companies be cheerleaders for capitalism or is the growth of corporate and social responsibility evidence of a new way of doing business and doing it better? Is it time for policymakers and business leaders to be more aggressive with business failure? Yet a backlash is emerging too among those who think companies are becoming overly timid and apologetic.

Too much of this risk aversion could be damaging not just to profits but to faith in capitalism itself. With books critical of global corporations topping best-seller lists across the world, how can corporations answer their critics – and should they even try? This book assembles leading thinkers to debate the limits of corporate and social responsibility. It questions whether corporations deserve the flak and asks if it is now time for them to embrace the business of saying sorry.

Contents:
Preface
Introduction
Refereeing Capitalism
No Time for Apologies
The Business of Business is Business
Setting the Rules of the Game
Reputation brings its own Rewards
Sorry Isn’t Good Enough
Let Business Take Care of Itself
In the company of Fear
Precaution – The Enemy Within
Necessity is the Mother of Invention
Ignoring CSR is a Risky Business
Parting Company with Government
Why their Business is None of Ours
Changing the World Through Business

Economics & Politics

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