Should Companies Have A Social Responsibility To Be “Great Businesses”?, with John Kay

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The public often imagines corporations as self-contained actors that provide a set of goods and services to consumers. Underpinning this image have been ideas of ownership, rights to capital and intellectual property, and corporate responsibility to stakeholders including consumers, workers, and shareholders. But what if almost everything we are told about the essence of the firm is wrong? So writes Sir John Kay, a British economist, corporate director, and longstanding fellow of St John’s College (Oxford) in his new book, The Corporation in the 21st Century. The book revolves around contrasts between historical conceptions of corporations, capitalism, and contemporary practices. Kay…