Article
Journal of the British Academy

The Social Purpose of Corporations

By: Nien-he Hsieh, Marco Meyer, David Rodin and Jens van ‘t Klooster

Format:Electronic

Abstract

To think about the purpose of corporations is to think about what corporations are for. In this article, we argue that the concept of a purpose has an important role in thinking about the moral evaluation of corporations. We make three contributions. First, we distinguish different uses of the concepts of social and corporate purpose. Social purpose concerns the contribution that the corporation makes to realising societal goals. Corporate purpose concerns the goals the corporation should actively pursue. Second, we investigate whether corporations ought to serve a social purpose and whether corporations ought to actively pursue their corporate purpose. Third, we explore critically what roles the concepts of social and corporate purpose can fulfil in moral reflection on and of corporations. In particular, we distinguish the constructive, the communicative, and the critical role of social and corporate purpose.

Keywords

Social Purpose; Corporate Purpose; The Corporation; Market Failures; Measurement Of Purpose; Organizations; Mission and Purpose; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Ethics

Citation

Hsieh, Nien-he, Marco Meyer, David Rodin, and Jens van ‘t Klooster. "The Social Purpose of Corporations." Journal of the British Academy 6, no. s1 (2018): 49–73. ( DOI: https://doi.org/10.5871/jba/006s1.049.)