The Corporation: A Critical, Multidisciplinary Project
Lead Research Organisation:
City, University of London
Department Name: Law
Abstract
"Corporate rule is here" is a phrase we often hear in contemporary debate. Multinational corporations dominate the global economy, the size of the world's largest corporations exceeds that of most states, and as a result corporations exert unrivalled power in the global sphere. But what do we actually mean by "the corporation"?
In the contemporary academy, the nature of the corporation and its role in the global, and local, political economy is analysed from various different disciplinary perspectives.
The problem is that each discipline constructs its own, partial picture of the corporation. Significant gaps and blind spots exist, as well as discipline-specific biases that skew the picture of the corporation. In sofar as we even take considerations of other disciplinary aspects on board when we write from within one single discipline, we make assumptions based on highly simplified and often outmoded understandings of those disciplines and their concepts and theories. For example in legal scholarship, basic assumptions are made about economic and sociological aspects of the corporation that are often far removed from the way economists and sociologists actually view these issues.
The aim of this seminar series is to bring together the cutting edge scholarship, expertise and insights of scholars in law, management studies, economics, political science, anthropology and sociology/criminology and beyond. Each of the scholars participating in our seminars is an expert in their field and specialises in research on the corporation. Moreover, we will also invite people from practice, such as labour union organisers, NGO activists working with communities adversely affected by corporate activities, policy makers working on corporate regulation and others. By putting our ideas and knowledge together we will uncover the significant synergies that result from a collaborative analysis of the corporation. Together we aim to construct a comprehensive, and complete picture of the Corporation in its local and global context.
This complete picture of the corporation, while already valuable on its own, moreover leads to new perspectives on many of the most pressing issues in today's 'corporate' world. For example, on the nature and uses of corporate power on the global level, the ideological construction of the corporation as an agent of legitimate authority in global governance, the transnational corporation as an actor in the global political economy and the global economic crises, and the challenges of regulating or governing transnational corporate groups - between global communal, global class and local worker and/or victims' interests. Moreover, the collection will examine policy proposals designed to address these questions and ask to what extent these proposals can be expected to resolve the issues. It is hoped that our work will allow us to suggest adjustments or alternatives to such proposals where needed. The seminar series will lead to a number of public events where we will disseminate our findings and engage the wider public in discussion around these issues, and also in a 'Handbook' co-written by all of us for a wide audience. We hope that the seminar series, public events and handbook together will form a catalyst to constructive collaborative action and ultimately positive change.
In the contemporary academy, the nature of the corporation and its role in the global, and local, political economy is analysed from various different disciplinary perspectives.
The problem is that each discipline constructs its own, partial picture of the corporation. Significant gaps and blind spots exist, as well as discipline-specific biases that skew the picture of the corporation. In sofar as we even take considerations of other disciplinary aspects on board when we write from within one single discipline, we make assumptions based on highly simplified and often outmoded understandings of those disciplines and their concepts and theories. For example in legal scholarship, basic assumptions are made about economic and sociological aspects of the corporation that are often far removed from the way economists and sociologists actually view these issues.
The aim of this seminar series is to bring together the cutting edge scholarship, expertise and insights of scholars in law, management studies, economics, political science, anthropology and sociology/criminology and beyond. Each of the scholars participating in our seminars is an expert in their field and specialises in research on the corporation. Moreover, we will also invite people from practice, such as labour union organisers, NGO activists working with communities adversely affected by corporate activities, policy makers working on corporate regulation and others. By putting our ideas and knowledge together we will uncover the significant synergies that result from a collaborative analysis of the corporation. Together we aim to construct a comprehensive, and complete picture of the Corporation in its local and global context.
This complete picture of the corporation, while already valuable on its own, moreover leads to new perspectives on many of the most pressing issues in today's 'corporate' world. For example, on the nature and uses of corporate power on the global level, the ideological construction of the corporation as an agent of legitimate authority in global governance, the transnational corporation as an actor in the global political economy and the global economic crises, and the challenges of regulating or governing transnational corporate groups - between global communal, global class and local worker and/or victims' interests. Moreover, the collection will examine policy proposals designed to address these questions and ask to what extent these proposals can be expected to resolve the issues. It is hoped that our work will allow us to suggest adjustments or alternatives to such proposals where needed. The seminar series will lead to a number of public events where we will disseminate our findings and engage the wider public in discussion around these issues, and also in a 'Handbook' co-written by all of us for a wide audience. We hope that the seminar series, public events and handbook together will form a catalyst to constructive collaborative action and ultimately positive change.
Planned Impact
As the key questions around "the corporation" concern its role in the world and its impact, on the economy, communities and the environment, the Seminar Series will directly engage with Users affected by these issues, and Users working in a practical way to respond to these questions. The Seminar Group has a User member who has played a key part in identifying the research agenda for the Group. Moreover, the Seminar Group regularly consults with a number of Users and directly involves the intended Users of the research outcomes as speakers and participants.
Users include the following:
- Civil society groups and individuals involved in global trade, economic justice, fair trade and other key question advocacy topics;
- Policy makers in local and national governments, international organisations engaged in the design and implementation of policies around policy themes (see Case for Support) and in response to key questions;
- Corporate strategists and corporate professionals engaged in business ethics, communications and marketing seeking to respond to key questions and implement policy;
- Corporate social responsibility and corporate governance professionals, policy makers and advocates more generally seeking to understand the concept of the corporation in global economics and global governance;
- Researchers and other professionals in international trade unions and consumer organisations grappling with key questions and policy themes;
- Think tanks, lobby groups, policy foundations and financial/economic journalists around the world;
- Members of the general public affected by key questions or with a more general interest in the global political economy.
The key questions and policy themes around which the topics and formats of the Seminar Series (which consists of Seminar Group workshops and public events) have been designed in consultation with Users including Trade Union researchers and organisers, NGO professionals, advocates and legal practitioners working on corporate accountability as well as those engaged in policy research and lobbying.
Seminar Group members are already involved in a variety of existing policy, advocacy and other professional networks that we will continue to draw on and involve in the Seminar Series. By publicising among existing networks, mailing lists and websites (including our own "user-friendly" website), and accessing new ones, we anticipate a wide range of Users to attend our public events. As our research network grows, our professional network will grow and we will be able to fine-tune our academic work more precisely to the needs of Users.
Users include the following:
- Civil society groups and individuals involved in global trade, economic justice, fair trade and other key question advocacy topics;
- Policy makers in local and national governments, international organisations engaged in the design and implementation of policies around policy themes (see Case for Support) and in response to key questions;
- Corporate strategists and corporate professionals engaged in business ethics, communications and marketing seeking to respond to key questions and implement policy;
- Corporate social responsibility and corporate governance professionals, policy makers and advocates more generally seeking to understand the concept of the corporation in global economics and global governance;
- Researchers and other professionals in international trade unions and consumer organisations grappling with key questions and policy themes;
- Think tanks, lobby groups, policy foundations and financial/economic journalists around the world;
- Members of the general public affected by key questions or with a more general interest in the global political economy.
The key questions and policy themes around which the topics and formats of the Seminar Series (which consists of Seminar Group workshops and public events) have been designed in consultation with Users including Trade Union researchers and organisers, NGO professionals, advocates and legal practitioners working on corporate accountability as well as those engaged in policy research and lobbying.
Seminar Group members are already involved in a variety of existing policy, advocacy and other professional networks that we will continue to draw on and involve in the Seminar Series. By publicising among existing networks, mailing lists and websites (including our own "user-friendly" website), and accessing new ones, we anticipate a wide range of Users to attend our public events. As our research network grows, our professional network will grow and we will be able to fine-tune our academic work more precisely to the needs of Users.
Publications
Baars, G
(2016)
The role of law in global value chains: a research manifesto
in London Review of International Law
Collective Corporate Reform
(2014)
Fighting Corporate Abuse: Beyond Predatory Capitalism
| Description | ESRC Seminar Series final report - Key findings We established an international interdisciplinary and academic/professional research group composed of leading scholars and practitioners whose work focuses primarily on the corporation through a critical lense. We ran a series of closed research group seminars and public panel debates on various topical and urgent questions around the corporation. The workshops of the series were designed to be collective learning experiences which enriched each individual participant's research both within and outside the scope of the project. The public debates on topical questions were advertised to our own mailing lists as well as all Cass and City Law School staff and alumni, and lists such as CSR Chicks, Pol Econ Research network, Feminist political economy facebook group, twitter, etc. From our research group a vast international network was built. Many of the shcolars involved had not previously collaborated beyond their disciplinary boundaries on the Corporation and considerable synergy emerged from our workshops and events alone. The project led to spin-offs such as The Modern Corporation Project, The Purpose of the Corporation Project, and academic joint ventures such as the Global Value Chain group - each with their own series of events, engagements and outputs (e.g. the Hadden edited collection - see publication entry- launched at the House of Lords). The organisers of the seminar series have been invited to speak at numerous local, national and international events on the basis of their work on the Critical Corporation project, including at the House of Lords, the EU, at the Law & Society Annual Conference (multi-year invite), the IGLP conferences (multi-year invites), the LAEMOS conference in Cuba (2013), EGOS in Rotterdam (2013), Roskilde Gender & the Corporation expert workshop (2014) and many many more. We have moreover participated in many practitioner events and workshops. The Series' final 'impact day' was a hugely successful skillshare and cross-training day bringing together activists form various campaigns and professional backgrounds, practitioners and scholars working in the very topical area of housing - with the property developing and construction companies increasingly being involved in providing social housing - giving rise to concepts such as 'architects' social responsibility'. I have co-convened three conferences at Harvard on the topic - Corporate Power in Global Society June 2014, The Corporation in Global Society June 2015 and Corporate Power II in June 2018. We have already created links with other research networks, such as the Law and Society Association group working on corporate power led by Prof. Laureen Snider, the Harvard Institute for Global Law and Policy group working on the corporation in global governance led by Profs Dennis Davis and Dan Danielsen, the European Society of International Law interest group on Business and Human Rights led by Olga Martin Ortega the European Consortium for Political Research group working on Business and Human Rights led by Damiano de Felice. The Corporation: A Critical, Multidisciplinary Handbook (CUP - March 2017), edited by Grietje Baars and Andre Spicer, with 45 chapter contributions, is targeted at a range of scholars from different disciplines, and different levels from graduate students to top experts in their fields. |
| Exploitation Route | We expect the Corporation, the first multidisciplinary handbook on the corporation, to be ground breaking, to draw a wide international readership and to remain a key scholarly reference as well as a core text on students' reading lists for many years. We expect members of our research group to continue to be involved in various projects carried out by members of our extensive network - which will include collaborative research projects (of which a number are already being discussed), joint funding applications, visiting fellowship invitations, (Grietje Baars- Harvard/Northeastern University) among others. We are and expect to continue to be formally and informally consulted on topics related to the corporation by NGOs, journalists, existing and prospective PhD students. |
| Sectors | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Creative Economy,Education,Environment,Financial Services, and Management Consultancy,Government, Democracy and Justice,Other |
| URL | http://www.city.ac.uk/law/research/the-critical-corporation-project |
| Description | Collaboration with Harvard IGLP on Corporation & Global Society group - co-hosting Corporate Power Conference at Harvard in 2014, and co-hosting Pro-Seminars on the Role of Law in Global Production Networks, all of which included non-academic collaborators from policy, industry, labour union and NGO sectors. Update: Corporation in Global Society conference at Harvard in June 2015 and Corporate Power II in June 2018, accompanied by another Pro-Seminar on the Role of Law in Global Production Networks. All our public events held by us under this grant included speakers from industry, NGOs, the media, activists and so did the audience. We held networking sessions after each public panel debate. It is impossible to say what the precise impact would have been though. Publishing a peer reviewed article on the role of law in the global value chain which included non-academic collaborators. Plus, a general public book: The Corporation, a critical, interdisciplinary handbook - which is aimed at a broad audience also beyond academia. Published March 2017. Secondly, a spin-off publication also aimed at the general public (Corporate reform collective: Fighting corporate abuse: from predatory to responsible capitalism), which was launched at the European Commission and from which corporate reform lobbying efforts have arisen. Activists and academics skillshare day (June 2015): Corporate Capitalism and the Housing Crisis: This workshop was themed broadly around resistance to neoliberal corporate capitalism - and specifically around the recent London housing activists' struggles with private corporate developers, public bodies and their professional advisers. The broad purpose of the day was to connect housing activists/professionals with academics that can either fill knowledge gaps, supply data or research, or more generally help talk through ideas, and to lay connections for future collaborations and networking. The idea (which was developed through discussions with activists, professionals and academics and aimed at being completely responsive to their needs and wants) was broadly for Concrete Action (and the other activists) to have sessions with each of the academics - a mixture of a masterclass and brainstorming/strategising session on the particular area of the academic's expertise, as per the schedule below. The day ended with a panel discussion open to the public - to which we invited other housing activists, and a drinks/networking reception. Informally we know that collaborations have arisen out of this day and are continuing. |
| Sector | Communities and Social Services/Policy,Education,Government, Democracy and Justice,Other |
| Impact Types | Cultural,Societal,Economic,Policy & public services |
| Description | IGLP GVC pro-seminar |
| Organisation | Harvard University |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | I have been invited to co-host and co-organise the IGLP Pro-seminar on The Role of Law in Global Production which had a 3 day meeting in 4-6 June 2014 and will have its second meeting on 25 & 26 October at City University in London. It includes as participants some members of the Critical Corporation Network. We are paying for some of the travel of October 2014 joint seminar as well as the catering. Another meeting of the GVC group was held at City on 28 February and 1 March with some of the travel funded by us, most funded by IGLP. A further meeting was held in June 2015 at Harvard. I co-hosted both these meetings. |
| Collaborator Contribution | IGLP invited me/us and hosted the June 2014 Pro-seminar and is funding most of the travel of participants to the October 2014 seminar; the Feb/March 2015 seminar and the June 2015 seminar. |
| Impact | No outcomes yet but being discussed. Multidisciplinary: Law, management, economics, geography. Output: Article in the London Review of Internaitonal Law (see separate entry) |
| Start Year | 2014 |
| Description | IGLP/CritCorp Corporate Power conference |
| Organisation | Harvard University |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Because of our similar research interest, the "Corporation in Global Society" group within the IGLP Network invited me to participate as a docent in the IGLP January 2014 Workshop and subsequently the we (Andre Spicer and I), through the Critical Corporation Project, co-organised an international and interdisciplinary conference entitled "Corporate Power in Global Society: Explication,engagement, critique and resistance" at Harvard Law School/IGLP on 2-3 June 2014. Participants included several members of the Critical Corporation network and linkages were laid between individula members of our network and the IGLP network, and vice versa. In June 2015 we organised another series of Corporation in Global Society' Panels at the IGLP conference at Harvard Law School - some of these built directly on the panel debates organised in London (see separate entries) on 'Sexing the corporation' and we invited some of the same speakers in order to develop the relationships and build on the research/discussion thus far. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The IGLP group hosted and funded the January 2014 workshop as well as the June conference and provided logistical and administrative support. We coordinated on the substance of the events jointly. The IGLP group also funded the June 2015 panels. |
| Impact | Multidisciplinary: law, international politics, management, geography, anthropology, economics |
| Start Year | 2013 |
| Description | Corporate Capitalism and the Housing Crisis: 'Activists meet academics' training and skillshare day |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Corporate Capitalism and the Housing Crisis: 'Activists meet academics' day 24 June 2015, Cass Business School, Bunhill Row, London EC1Y 8TZ This workshop was themed broadly around resistance to neoliberal corporate capitalism - and specifically around the recent London housing activists' struggles with private corporate developers, public bodies and their professional advisers. The broad purpose of the day was to connect housing activists/professionals with academics that can either fill knowledge gaps, supply data or research, or more generally help talk through ideas, and to lay connections for future collaborations and networking. The idea (which was developed through discussions with activists, professionals and academics and aimed at being completely responsive to their needs & wants) was broadly for Concrete Action (and the other activists) to have sessions with each of the academics - a mixture of a masterclass and brainstorming/strategising session on the particular area of the academic's expertise, as per the schedule below. The day ended with a panel discussion open to the public - to which we invited other housing activists, and a drinks/networking reception (see separate entry). 9:30 coffee and arrival 10: welcome session: aims of the day and introductions 11: Masterclass 1 Duncan Bowie (Westminster): The London Mayor's housing strategy and how to engage with public sector decision makers 12: lunch 1:00 Masterclass 2: Paul Watt (Birkbeck): Neoliberal housing policies, privatisation, public space and hypersecuritisation 2: 00 Masterclass 3: Megan Waugh (Leeds): public housing/estate regeneration in England under the controversial Private Finance Initiative (PFI) and public accountability 3:00 Tea 3:30 Masterclass 4: Bob Colenutt (Northampton): Financial viability assessments: how to read, and challenge them 4:30 Masterclass 5: Stewart Smyth (Sheffield): Analysing the numbers behind the privatisation of social housing 6:00 break (tea/coffee/juice/snacks) In the evaluation at the end of the day the participants stated that the training sessions had been very useful and informative. Many plans to collaborate in future were made, and each individual linked the new connections they made into their own existing networks. The day also functioned to make technical jargon and e.g. financial data accessible to a new audience of activists and academics, thus opening up whole new sets of literature/other resources to them. The Corporate Watch participants |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| Description | Public debate: Corporate responsibility in end times: between critique and change |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Public debate Debating Corporate Social Responsibility in end times: Critique or Change? Speaker(s) Bobby Banerjee, Professor at Cass Business School and author of 'Corporate Social Responsibility: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly'. Claire Fauset, the author of "What's Wrong with CSR", a Corporate Watch publication. Peter Fleming, Professor at Cass Business School (from April 1 2013), and author of 'The End of CSR'. Ewa Jasiewiæs, union organiser and activist, most recently with the "No Dash for Gas" campaign. Anne Lindsay, Director of the Corporate Responsibility Coalition and Lead Analyst - Private Sector at CAFOD. Ronen Shamir, Professor of sociology, Tel Aviv University who has written extensively on CSR. Description The panel debated the question of Corporate Social Responsibility's emancipatory potential in this time of crises. CSR has undoubtedly changed business behaviour - but can we see positive real world impact or should we be cynical about CSR's mere 'window-dressing'? The participants asked whether CSR still offers an opportunity to hold businesses to account or whether we have really come to the end of CSR. We had many new additions to the project mailing list, added new members to our network, cemented burgeoning research relationships, many cards were exchanged, hopefully people will have kept in touch and are now collaborating or exchanging information in some way. Hopefully individual members will have been given food for thought and have expanded their thinking which has had repercussions in their work. One specific outcome is that one of the speakers challenged the management of the business school on its own CSR credentials when it was discovered that the wait staff were not being paid the London Living wage (LLW). This gave rise to a Union-led campaign on the LLW within the university and the university pledging LLW for new contract staff going forward. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.city.ac.uk/law/research/the-critical-corporation-project/events/debating-csr |
| Description | Public debate: Corporation, Community and Identity |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The Critical Corporation Project presented an interdisciplinary panel to debate the question of the corporation and its relationship to the community. Questions debated included: How does corporate capitalism affect and shape communities and identities? How does an extraction company talk to the local community whose land it seeks to use, and how do legal frameworks help or hinder them? Does Coca-Cola's 'women's empowerment programme' create successful entrepreneurs or blame women for their own poverty? Does Gender Budgeting account for gender equality or does it just count women's bodies at work? How do individuals and communities resist commodification? Speakers: Sofie Tornhill, Stockholm University Ulrike Marx, University of Leicester School of Management Kinnari Bhatt, Greenwich University of School of Law A lively discussion arose between the panellists and audience members, which continued over the drinks reception. Several NGO and policy professionals made themselves known to the speakers and expressed an interest in collaborating with the speakers and other academic audience members and many cards were exchanged. Generally audience members and panellists reported having learnt a lot from the discussions. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| URL | http://bunhill.city.ac.uk/media/events.nsf/(AllEvents)/6470976EC3E1B9B180257E36002CE69B/?OpenDocumen... |
| Description | Public debate: Do corporations run the world? |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Public panel debate on Corporate Power with the following speakers: • Dan Danielsen (Professor of Law, Northeastern University, Boston), a critical international lawyer who writes on "How corporations rule" through law and regulation and will discuss the need to shift focus from the impact of corporate power on state power to a broader conception of the firm as among the most significant institutional forms in modern life and culture, and • Susanne Soederberg, Professor of Global Political Economy, Queen's University Canada who will speak about 'Debtfare States and the Poverty Industry', and draw on cases such as the bankruptcy and securitization aspects of student loans, the role of a large Mexican cement producers in supplying microfinance loans to the poor. • Anastasia Nesvetailova (Reader in International Political Economy, City University) - whose research focuses on the role of shadow banking in the latest financial crisis, and who will discuss The Power of Finance and Financial Innovation • Lorraine Talbot (Associate Professor of Law, University of Warwick) - a critical company lawyer who writes on 'progressive corporate governance' and will speak on shareholder empowerment and ask why shareholders shouldn't vote. Panel discussion with academic, professional and policy speakers. Very wide audience of alumni, students, academics, professionals, policy makers, journalists etc, much audience participation; drinks reception for networking afterwards. Video of the event uploaded to youtube and added to our project website. Much positive feedback received. we had many new additions to the project mailing list, added new members to our network, cemented burgeoning research relationships, many cards were exchanged, hopefully people will have kept in touch and are now collaborating or exchanging information in some way. Hopefully individual members will have been given food for thought and have expanded their thinking which has had repercussions in their work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.city.ac.uk/law/research/the-critical-corporation-project/events/do-corporations-rule-the-... |
| Description | Public debate: From Rana Plaza to the High St: Can sustainable fashion deliver? |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Public panel discussion on the fashion supply chain and sustainable fashion. The Critical Corporation Project presented a star-studded panel to highlight and debate all sides of the 'Sustainable Fashion' question. Sustainable fashion has emerged over the past years, and after several 'fashion faux pas' such as the Rana Plaza disaster, as an alternative to 'fast fashion'. Can Sustainable fashion deliver a more equitable deal for garment workers, a reduction in toxic waste, and an end to the exploitation of cotton farmers, or will the demand for a 'new black' every season, with the profit opportunity that this provides, win out? Adam Elman, Global Head of Delivery for Plan A - who aims to make Marks & Spencer the most sustainable retailer in the world, will discuss this topic with Tansy Hoskins, author of Stitched Up: The Anti-Capitalist Book of Fashion, Leah Borromeo, director of Dirty White Gold, a film about Indian cotton farmers, and Alex McIntosh Business manager of the London School of Fashion's Centre for Sustainable Fashion. The event will include a screening of the (15 min) promo for Dirty White Gold. Copies of Tansy Hoskin's book Stitched Up: The Anti-Capitalist Book of Fashion will be available for purchase. Panel discussion with academic, professional and policy speakers. Very wide audience of alumni, students, academics, professionals, policy makers, journalists etc, much audience participation; drinks reception for networking afterwards. Video of the event uploaded to youtube and added to our project website. Much positive feedback received. we had many new additions to the project mailing list, added new members to our network, cemented burgeoning research relationships, many cards were exchanged, hopefully people will have kept in touch and are now collaborating or exchanging information in some way. Hopefully individual members will have been given food for thought and have expanded their thinking which has had repercussions in their work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
| URL | http://www.city.ac.uk/law/research/the-critical-corporation-project/events/from-rana-plaza-to-the-hi... |
| Description | Public debate: Happiness Incorporated |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Monday 29 June 2015, 18:30-20:00 Speakers: Will Davies, Goldsmiths University of London, author of The Happiness Industry Carl Cederström, Stockholm Business School, co-author of The Wellness Syndrome. Eliane Glaser, Former BBC producer and the author of Get Real: How to See Through the Hype, Spin and Lies of Modern Life. Andre Spicer, Cass Business School, co-author of The Wellness Syndrome. The following questions were discussed: Should corporations make their employees happy? Today, large corporations have started to try to measure and manage the happiness of their workforce. Some firms employ 'funsultants' and 'chief happiness officers' to pep up the workforce. A new breed of wearable technologies now allows bosses to track the moods of their workforce. Will this lead to more upbeat and engaged workforce? Or will corporate happiness initiatives actually undermine employee's sense of wellbeing? In this session, led by Andre Spicer (co-author of the wellness syndrome) William Davies (author of 'The Happiness Industries'), Carl Cederström (co-author of 'The Wellness Syndrome') and Eliane Glaser (author of 'Get Real') will tackle these questions. There was a wide ranging discussion of about 45 minutes after the speech. Participants in the audience came from a wide range of backgrounds including healthcare, management consultancy, social policy, entertainment and education. This gave excellent opportunities for cross sectoral dialogue. After the event, panellists were invited to participate in a regular podcast based in San Francisco. I was invited to speak at an event held by a consultancy called 'Happy Company'. There was also significant twitter discussion related to the event. Both Will Davies and Andre Spicer had earlier appeared on 'Thinking Allowed' - the BBC Radio 4's flagship social science programme. After the event, panellists were invited to participate in a regular podcast based in San Francisco. I was invited to speak at an event held by a consultancy called 'Happy Company'. There was also significant twitter discussion related to the event. Both Will Davies and Andre Spicer had earlier appeared on 'Thinking Allowed' - the BBC Radio 4's flagship social science programme. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| URL | http://bunhill.city.ac.uk/media/events.nsf/%28httpMainEvents%29/F0848693D493186180257E5B0035D558?Ope... |
| Description | Public debate: How can academics, activists and professionals work closer together to challenge neoliberal corporate capitalism? |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | How can academics, activists and professionals work closer together to challenge neoliberal corporate capitalism? Panel discussion Wednesday 24 June 2015, 18:30-21:00 Cass Business School, 106 Bunhill Row, London EC1Y 8TZ Room: 2002 Speakers - Concrete Action: A platform for architecture and planning professionals to support the current housing stuggles in London - Geraldine Dening/Architects for Social Housing: ASH is a group trying to address gap between residents' needs and Local Authority/developer economic desires - Andrew Sanchez (University of Kent): Dr Andrew Sanchez is a lecturer in Social Anthropology whose work focuses on Capitalism, Class, Corruption, Economy, India, Industry, Organised Crime, Urban Anthropology, Work and Labour - Garry Gray (University of Victoria, Canada): Dr Garry Gray is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Victoria and a Network Fellow at the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University. He works on the social organization of unethical behaviour inside a variety of institutions of public trust. - Benjamin Franks (University of Glasgow): Dr Benjamin Franks is a lecturer in Social and Political Philosophy working on Marxist, anarchist, post-Marxist and post-anarchist political theory and applied ethics especially in the fields of (anti-)political action, education and social research. The Critical Corporation, as part of its ESRC funded seminar series, presents: Public panel discussion: How can academics, activists and professionals work closer together to challenge neoliberal corporate capitalism? With the group Concrete Action and Geraldine Dening of Architects for Social Housing as well as activist-academics Andrew Sanchez (University of Kent), Garry Gray (University of Victoria) and Benjamin Franks (Glasgow University)." Many housing/anti-gentricifaction activists, policy and planning professionals attended the discussion and new relationships were formed, also with the panellists. The idea was to stimulate connections between academics and professionals/activists and open channels of communication and information/skills exchange. Many cards were exchanged, meetings arranged and discussions held in the panel and at the drinks reception afterwards. This evening event followed our closed invite - only training day on housing activism (see separate entry). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| URL | http://bunhill.city.ac.uk/media/events.nsf/(httpMainEvents)/187FC4DA75E281C980257E62003C2CE0?OpenDoc... |
| Description | Public debate: Sexing the Corporation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Critical Corporation ESRC Seminar Series: "Sexing the Corporation" Panel discussions Tuesday 17 March 2015, 18:30-20:00 The Critical Corporation Project presents an interdisciplinary panel to debate the question of gender and sexuality and the corporation. Speakers: SWETHAA BALLAKRISHNEN, PhD Candidate, Dept. of Sociology, Stanford University JO LITTLER, Dept. of Culture and Creative Industries, City University London MELISSA TYLER, Professor in Work and Organisation Studies, Essex Business School ADRIENNE ROBERTS, Lecturer in International Politics, University of Manchester The panel and audience discussed the following questions: Would corporate capitalism fare better if run by women? (How) does the corporation reproduce, legitimate or subvert traditional (Western) gender patterns and expectations around sexuality? Are "women's empowerment" in corporations and "gender lense investing" emancipatory or merely rhetorical? What can Feminist and Queer Theory tell us about corporate power and ideology? Can we queer the corporation? The debate was announced and reported in the various panel members' newsletters, twitter feeds, etc (see key findings also on communication/media strategy) This was an entirely novel topic to most of the audience members so all were very much stimulated into taking the gender and sexuality dimension into their thinking and work on the corporation. The discussion also informed the panellists' own writing projects (as they have reported subsequently) as well as the design of new collaborative research projects on this topic. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| URL | http://bunhill.city.ac.uk/media/events.nsf/(AllEvents)/765D73F03AAA4DA580257DEE004CFE99/?OpenDocumen... |
| Description | Public debate: Shareholder value and the corporation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Public panel discussion on the topic of shareholder value. The idea that corporations should aim to maximise shareholder value seems to be under attack from many corners. Commentators have pointed out that corporations have a wider range of goals they should pursue which go beyond just building shareholder value. Some have even pointed out that simply pursuing shareholder value can actually be destructive for the long term prospects of the corporation. This has led to calls for a radical rethinking of the ultimate purpose of the corporations and how they should be structured. In this discussion we asked whether corporations should focus on the pursuit of shareholder value. Is a focus on maximising shareholder value a vital discipline that stops manager from using the shareholders hard earned money to feather their own nests? Or is a relentless focus on maximising shareholder value 'the dumbest idea in the world' (to quote Jack Welch)? To explore these questions, we have bought together a range of experts to discuss whether corporations should focus on maximising shareholder value. The panel will include Professor Colin Mayer (Past Dean of the Said Business School at Oxford University and author of 'Firm Commitments: why the corporation is failing us and how to restore trust'), Professor Paddy Ireland(Kent Law School), Dr Arad Reisberg (Director of the Commercial Law Centre at UCL), Dr Daniel Summerfield (Head of Responsible Investments at USS) and Professor Igor Filatotchev (Associate Dean, Cass Business School). The debate will be moderated by Joris Luyendijk from the Guardian. Panel discussion with academic, professional and policy speakers. Very wide audience of alumni, students, academics, professionals, policy makers, journalists etc, much audience participation; drinks reception for networking afterwards. Video of the event uploaded to youtube and added to our project website. Much positive feedback received. We had many new additions to the project mailing list, added new members to our network, cemented burgeoning research relationships, many cards were exchanged, hopefully people will have kept in touch and are now collaborating or exchanging information in some way. Hopefully individual members will have been given food for thought and have expanded their thinking which has had repercussions in their work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.city.ac.uk/law/research/the-critical-corporation-project/events/shareholder-value |
| Description | Public debate: The corporation in/at war |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | The Corporation in/at war Critical Corporation ESRC Seminar Series Tuesday 21 April 2015, 18:30-21:00 The Panel debated the question of the corporation in, and at, war. There is increasing talk of corporate complicity in war crimes, wars being fought for Big Oil, private mercenary companies fighting states' wars by proxy, and companies profiting of conflict more generally. Beyond the newspaper headlines, what are the facts and figures? How are we to think about these issues, can we temper or avoid for-profit involvement in wars or is it inevitable? What are we to make of arms companies' CSR efforts, and the various soft law instruments that have emerged on the topic? Speakers: Sorcha McLeod, Sheffield University Law School David Whyte, Liverpool University Sociology Tom Anderson, Corporate Watch Vino Kanapatipilai, SOAS Law School Academic and professional members of the audience and panel engaged in debate, it was clear that everyone learned a lot from each other, future collaborations were also discussed. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
| URL | http://bunhill.city.ac.uk/media/events.nsf/(AllEvents)/0F82D4EF52B8082780257E28002FB34C/?OpenDocumen... |
| Description | Seminar: Alternatives to the corporation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | 24 June 2014: Critical Perspectives on the Corporation: Alternatives to the Corporation Roundtable with three speakers discussing the questions: What would decorporatized life look like? What alternative organizational forms might we imagine? What normative criteria might we articulate for articulating these non-corporate modes of organizing? Marc Schneiberg (Reed - Sociology): This contribution is entitled "Resisting or regulating corporations through alternative organizational forms: the US case." It explores how producer groups and state officials have organized systems of cooperative, mutual and local state-owned enterprises to contest and even regulate corporations in the American economy, that 'well spring of corporate capitalism.' It locates the origins of those alternative enterprise systems in both local struggles in markets against corporate concentration and broader political struggles over the shape of American capitalism. And it traces how public officials and private actors subsequently drew on those systems to regulate corporations, upgrade markets and foster more decentralized forms of regional economic development. Will Davies (Warwick - Economic history): Corporations can be understood as giant co-operatives, but which are increasingly placed in the service of finance. This chapter looks at how the already existing logic and ethos of co-operation can be extended further, to encompass ownership and governance, thereby overcoming the inevitably ironic element of so much management and Human Resources discourse. Martin Parker (Leicester - Management): Organizing is a form of politics made durable, and the corporation is no exception. In this discussion I will explore alternatives to the corporation in terms of a different set of values - autonomy, community and responsibility - which open into multiple alternatives to shareholder led giganticism. The three speakers -presented their works in progress to the research group - book chapters for the CUP Critical Corporation handbook. The discussion allowed them to see how their topics/questions are approached in different disciplines, to learn of the other authors' ideas and thus to work on a second draft incorporating these ideas. The remainder of the research group engaged in the debate allowing the deepening of their own knowledge and understanding as well as finding synergies, crossovers and contradictions between the various disciplinary approaches and frames of reference. PhD students attended and participated in the seminars and reported greater understanding of the subject matter. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
| Description | Seminar: Corporate Power |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Roundtable discussion with three speakers presenting their draft CUP Corporation Handbook chapters: Susanne Soederberg (Queens Canada - Political Science) Susanne Soederberg will explore the capitalist nature of corporate power as it is expressed in, and exercised through, what I refer to as the corporate governance doctrine. The author suggests that the latter masks the class-based power that underpins corporate power. Drawing on a Marxian lens, she interrogates interrelated assumptions of corporate democracy as well as limits and openings created by shareholder activism. Andrew Sanchez (Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology - Anthropology) (tbc) Based upon original ethnographic research in the Indian industrial city of Jamshedpur, Andrew Sanchez will discuss the relationship between criminal coercion and corporate authority in liberalising economies. Through an interrogation of the role played by trade union corruption and the intimidation of worker activists in reshaping industrial labour regimes, this paper considers how corporate power is related integrally, rather than incidentally, to informal criminal practice. Dan Danielsen (Northeastern - Law) This contribution builds on the author's past work, where he has sought to move beyond more traditional conceptions of corporate power in the framework of regulatory capture and state autonomy to explore how corporations themselves govern by creating rules, practices and social welfare effects not unlike nation states. In this presentation Dan Danielsen will examine how we might begin to consider much more broadly the social, psychological, political and economic significance of the corporation as among the most significant institutional forms through which modern life manifests itself. Result - as for the other seminars. As for the other seminars. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | Seminar: Global Value Chain & The Corporation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Seminar: Global Value Chains and the Corporation, 27 February 2014, speakers are David Hansen-Miller (ITF), Jennifer Baird (U of Colorado) and David Levy (UMass Boston). Questions discussed: In this workshop we explore how corporations are seeking to restructure global value chains? Is this leading to the disintegration of the corporation? What impact does this have on labour rights and consumer rights? What impact do global supply chains have on local communities? The three speakers -presented their works in progress to the research group - book chapters for the CUP Critical Corporation handbook. The discussion allowed them to see how their topics/questions are approached in different disciplines, to learn of the other authors' ideas and thus to work on a second draft incorporating these ideas. The remainder of the research group engaged in the debate allowing the deepening of their own knowledge and understanding as well as finding synergies, crossovers and contradictions between the various disciplinary approaches and frames of reference. PhD students attended and participated, reporting increased understanding. ITF, NGO and practitioners can be expected to have taken the increased understanding back into their respective practices. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
| Description | Seminar: The Corporation and Resistance |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | 25 September: workshop on Resistance against the corporation with Goldi Osuri (Warwick), Steffen Boehm (Essex), Sanjay Kak (Documentary filmmaker) Result as per other seminars. As per the other seminars, plus, the linked film screening of Red Ant Dream attracted a huge and varied audience mainly of human rights practitioners and negendered a lively debate with the film producer present. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | Seminar: The Multinational |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Research group seminar on the multinational corporation, on "The Multinational Corporation" with Glenn Morgan (Cardiff), Anastasia Nesvetailova (City) and Luc Fransen (Amsterdam) presenting. Format and result as per the other seminars. Impact as per the other seminars. Also, the seminar led to Andre Spicer being invited to participate in a discussion on Limited Liability at the House of Lords, organised by Stephanie Blankenberg of SOAS. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | William Lazonick Lecture: The Financialization of the US Corporation: Does Wall Street Rule Main Street? |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Lecture and discussion by a very famous US professor. Very wide audience of alumni, students, academics, professionals, policy makers, journalists etc, much audience participation; drinks reception for networking afterwards. Video of the event uploaded to youtube and added to our project website. Much positive feedback received. We had many new additions to the project mailing list, added new members to our network, cemented burgeoning research relationships, many cards were exchanged, hopefully people will have kept in touch and are now collaborating or exchanging information in some way. Hopefully individual members will have been given food for thought and have expanded their thinking which has had repercussions in their work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.city.ac.uk/law/research/the-critical-corporation-project/events/does-wall-street-rule-mai... |