Given today’s version of capitalism in the United States, consider the arguments in the stakeholder versus shareholder debate. Choose an approach to champion in the debate.

1 – investors. open it up by discussing how Wall Street is too concerned with quarterly profits and does not prioritize long term strategic planning. You can add in an example of how companies could destroy long term profits if they don’t invest in the future, thereby taking a short term loss. Numerous companies have been destroyed by the innovators dilemma. Add in a citation for this but and example is how blockbusters was killed by Netflix because they didn’t want to kill their cash cow (dvd rentals) when it came to investing in streaming (which had years of large unprofitability)

 2 – employees. companies are more than just a product, they are made up of employees. Another key stakeholder are employees of a company. While not in the shareholders best interest for a quarter (due to lower profit margins driven by higher amounts paid for salaries and benefits), it is in a companies best interest to fairly compensate employees. Add in a citation about how much it costs companies each year for employee turnover. In the long run companies will be more profitable with higher employee engagement (add in citation). 

3 – suppliers. Companies need to keep suppliers happy in order to ensure they aren’t destroying long term growth.  An example could be if starbucks doesn’t invest in sustainable farming they might not have the raw material beans (quality or quantity) to meet customer demand in the future. 

Add in some wording about how all successful companies who have contributed to societal good have all had proper business models and effectively balanced shareholder and stakeholder demands. Companies must be profitable to have a positive impact on society. You can add in some citation about Patagonia and how they have successfully been profitable while contributing to their mission causes (ie the environment) through these balanced goals.