Corporate Social Responsibility

The great economist and Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman famously stated that a corporation has "one and only one social responsibility - to increase its profits." Is this true today? As evidenced by the passage of the landmark Dodd-Frank legislation in 2010, the conduct and performance of several of America's leading corporations in recent years have seriously undermined confidence in U.S. businesses and their leaders. This course will explore contemporary trends in corporate governance and will examine whether a responsible corporation can integrate relevant societal concerns, such as environmental matters, and actually strengthen long-term shareholder value and the sustainability of both the corporation and the society in which is exists. This course is pass/fail.