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Uber, Jeffrey S. Harrison, Bryant Holden, Kelli Mckenna, Scott Mcquiddy, Alex Wiles

Robins Case Network

Uber focuses primarily on the ride-hailing industry, which puts the company in direct competition with regular taxis. The company is like a lot of tech-driven, fast growing entrepreneurial firms in that it still struggles for profitability. Also, the popularity of this new form of transportation has put the company and its close competitors, such as Lyft, in the spotlight of government lawmakers and regulators. If they classify Uber drivers as employees rather than independent contractors, it could dramatically alter the Uber business model. This case is written in the aftermath of the ouster of one of the company’s co-founders as …

Stakeholder Theory, Robert A. Phillips, Jay B. Barney, R. Edward Freeman, Jeffrey S. Harrison

Management Faculty Publications

Though there is clearly a “family resemblance” to the work that is typically done under its bailiwick, stakeholder theory continues to resist precise circumscription. Like the organizations it attempts to understand, the boundaries of the theory remain contentious. While various attempts have been made to clearly define the parameters of stakeholder theory (i.e., Clarkson Center for Business Ethics, 1999; Donaldson & Preston, 1995; Freeman, et al., 2010; Jones & Wicks, 1999; Phillips, 2003; Phillips, Freeman & Wicks, 2003), none of these efforts has gained universal acceptance. The following, which combines ideas from a variety of well-known sources (Freeman, 1984; Freeman, …

Sustainable Wealth Creation: Applying Instrumental Stakeholder Theory To The Improvement Of Social Welfare, Thomas M. Jones, Jeffrey S. Harrison

Management Faculty Publications

This chapter briefly reviews core ideas and research results in the existing instrumental stakeholder theory (IST) literature and then applies the IST concept to the simultaneous pursuit of two objectives—advancing social welfare, the presumed goal of morally legitimate social systems in general, and preserving the key elements of shareholder wealth enhancement—the traditional goal of the corporation. In so doing, we expand the range of ethical approaches to IST beyond deontological principles (e.g., treat stakeholders fairly; be trustworthy in dealing with stakeholders) present in extant versions of IST, to a consequentialist focus (i.e., a utilitarian concern for “the greatest good for …

[Introduction To] Stakeholders, Robert A. Phillips, R. Edward Freeman

Bookshelf

This landmark book takes a retrospective look at the most important and influential works in the study of stakeholders since Freeman’s 1984 publication, Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach. 2009 marked the 25th anniversary of this watershed in organizational scholarship, so now is an excellent time for Phillips and Freeman to revisit this topical and exciting subject.

From the tremendous upsurge in the literature, the editors have carefully selected ground-breaking works on topics including corporate governance, stakeholder-agency theory, management models, ethical theory and stakeholder orientation. This invaluable volume will shape the thinking of scholars and academics for the next 25 years.

Is Organizational Democracy Worth The Effort?, Jeffrey S. Harrison, R. Edward Freeman

Management Faculty Publications

Organizational democracy is frequently associated with increased employee involvement and satisfaction, higher levels of innovation, increased stakeholder commitment, and, ultimately, enhanced organizational performance. However, democratic processes can also absorb significant time and other organizational resources and bog down decisions, which may lead to reduced efficiency. This article summarizes the pros and cons of organizational democracy. It also introduces and integrates ideas from the three other articles in this special forum. In the end, we conclude that although the economic arguments for organizational democracy may be mixed, increased stakeholder participation in value creation and organizational governance can benefit both society and …

Beware Of The Ides Of March: The Demise Of Hih Insurance, Bonnie Buchanan, Tom Arnold, Lance Nail

Finance Faculty Publications

Despite differences in corporate governance systems in the United States and Australia, the corporate governance failures that led to each country’s largest bankruptcy are strikingly similar. WorldCom in the United States and HIH Insurance in Australia were both created by a rapid series of major acquisitions, failed after their last major acquisitions, and attempted to hide their declining performance with aggressive and/or fraudulent accounting practices. In this paper we present a clinical examination of the corporate governance failures that led to the demise of HIH Insurance and show that corporate governance failures are not endemic to the existing corporate governance …