Alan Ross Email: alanross@haas.berkeley.

edu Spring 2012

UC Berkeley Haas School of Business UGBA 107

UGBA 107 The Social, Political and Ethical Environment of Business

This is a survey course on the political, social, and ethical environment of business. It is designed to give you insight into complex and controversial social issues and public policy problems that complicate the task of managing American business. Topics covered include the historical development of American business, Americas competitiveness problems, and the debates over business ethics, corporate social responsibility, corporate governance and government regulation of business. We will study and consider the implications of several of the most perplexing paradoxes facing American business managers today: the conflict between our faith in a free market and our desire for regulations providing consumer and environmental protection; the contradiction between the historical success of American business and our growing competitiveness problems; and our confusion over how best to manage business given the conflicting demand from shareholder and stakeholder groups with incompatible short- and long-term interests. Text There is a reader of articles for the class available at www.study.net Additional articles will be posted on bSpace throughout the semester. In addition, daily reading of a business publication is expected.

Course Requirements and Grading Class Participation and Journal Midterm Exam Research Paper Final Exam 15% 15% 35% 35%

Jan. 23 Jan. 30

INTRODUCTION TO COURSE THE HISTORICAL SETTING Reading 1: Business and Politics in the U.S., Graham Wilson, Business & Politics, A Comparative Introduction, 2003 ETHICS IN THE BUSINESS SYSTEM Reading 2: The Cheating Culture, A Question of Character, David McCallahan, 2004 Reading 3: Individual Factors: Moral Philosophies and Cognitive Moral Development, O. C. Ferrell, John Fraedrich, and Linda Ferrell, Business Ethics, Ethical Decision Making and Cases, 2005 MAKING ETHICAL DECISIONS IN BUSINESS Reading 4: Ethics Must Be Global, Not Local; BusinessWeek, Feb 2011 President's Day CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY Reading 5: Corp. Social Responsibility, Whether or How, N. Craig Smith, Calif Mgmt Review, Summer 2003 Reading 6: Social Responsibility of Business Is to Increase Profits, Milton Friedman, NYTimes, 1972 Reading 7: The Case Against Corporate Social Responsibility, WSJ, Aug 2010 Reading 8: The Big Idea: Creating Shared Value, HBR, Feb 2011 Reading 9: Fedex's Chief on the Payoff of Corporate Giving, NYT, Nov 2010 CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN PRACTICE Reading 10: Strategic Approach to Corp Social Resp, Exec. Forum, Spring 2009

Feb. 6

Feb. 13

Feb. 20 Feb. 27

March 5

Mar. 12 Mar. 19 `

MIDTERM EXAM BUSINESS INFLUENCE IN THE POLITICAL PROCESS Reading 11: Money and Politics, Benjamin Ginsberg, Theodore Lowi, and Margaret Weir, We the People: An Intro to American Politics, 2007 Reading 12: Deal Sweeteners, James Surewiecki, New Yorker, 11-27-2006 Reading 13: Campaign Finance Reform Regulates Free Speech, Thomas Sowell, Capitalism magazine, 3-18-2002 Reading 14: Money Isn't Speech, Slate, Jan 2010

Mar. 26 April 2

Spring Break REGULATING BUSINESS ACTIVITY Reading 15: Government Regulation of Business and Regulatory Reform, Newman Peery, Business, Government, and Society: Managing Competitiveness, Ethics, and Social Issues, 1995 CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND INVESTOR AND EMPLOYEE STAKEHOLDERS Reading 16: How to Fix Corporate Governance, John A. Byrne, Bus. Week, 5-06-2002 Reading 17: The Pay Problem, New Yorker, Oct 2009 RESEARCH PAPERS DUE

April 9

April 16

THE COMMUNITY AND THE CORPORATION Reading 18: An Empire Built on Bargains Remakes the Working World, Abigail Goldman, Nancy Cleeland, LA Times, 11-23-2003 Reading 19: Golden Opportunity, case study, Wayne Dunn, Stanford Social Innovation Review, Winter 2004 Reading 20: Jobs for Life, Economist, 12-19-2007 Reading 21: Life Beyond Pay, Economist, 6-15-2006 Reading 22: Sick of Work, NYT, 9-05-2004 ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION Reading 23: Global Warming, John Carey, Bus. Week, 8-16-2004 Reading 24: An Invaluable Environment, Economist, 4-18-1998 Reading 25, Natural Capitalism, Mother Jones, Mar/Apr 1997

April 23