My Stanford Press blog post on The 360º Corporation.

“For decades, we have mythologized Milton Friedman’s 1970 dictate that corporations have a primary responsibility to deliver financial returns to their shareholders. But, the winds are shifting.

Former Unilever CEO Paul Polman is calling for “heroic chief executive officers” to achieve sustainable development goals such as more inclusive business practices and reduced carbon use. Larry Fink, the CEO of Blackrock, an investment firm that manages over $1 trillion in assets wrote in his own Letter to CEOs: “Society is demanding that companies, both public and private, serve a social purpose. To prosper over time, every company must not only deliver financial performance, but also show how it makes a positive contribution to society. Companies must benefit all of their stakeholders, including shareholders, employees, customers, and the communities in which they operate.”

For the full text, see here.