Economic systems

Why should that be a surprise?

While the global financial meltdown and its aftershocks have unleashed a flood of indignation, condemnation, and protest upon Wall Street, the crisis has exposed a deeper distrust and implacable resentment of capitalism itself. Capitalism might be the greatest engine of prosperity and progress ever devised, but in recent years, individuals and communities have grown increasingly […]

We don’t need to reinvent capitalism. We just need to practice it.

The verdict is in, and it serves as a convenient end point for the era of shareholder capitalism: Say-on-pay has been a dud. Fewer than 100 corporations, about 1.5%, lost these mandatory but nonbinding votes on executive pay practices. Most got well over 90% in favor. Say-on-pay may have led some to modify their practices […]

There are better ways to manage $20 trillion.

Our work on the evolution of global capitalism rests on a core idea: systems with feedback and selection evolve. That’s a foundational idea in evolutionary biology — it’s the reason that Darwin’s finches had different beaks — but we note that it is also true in political economy. In fact, socially constructed systems (like capitalism) […]

How did we get to the point where the financial services industry is one of the least respected professions in America? What are the social consequences...

Business can't thrive in an environment of unhealthy employees, customers, and communities, an at-risk planet, and a fractured society. To transition...

Some bits and pieces to chew on from the Capitalism 2.0 front lines: Another day, another protection racket. Protecting yesterday is the surest path to...

We need a more human purpose.

In 2007, Chris was on a guided tour of Beijing and happened on a curious, newly built neighborhood: it was a cul de sac of oversized faux Tudors looking...

To serve more than just shareholders, businesses have to dramatically transform their performance metrics.

We think economic growth is our friend. Here’s why it’s not.

Companies talk the talk of creating stakeholder value, but most don't walk the talk. In this article, the author outlines two major reasons why - an insular...

The rules of the game need to change.

How to identify and attract investors who will support your long-term, stakeholder-focused plans.

Charles Clinton Spaulding and Maggie Lena Walker built operations that supported and strengthened the communities around them.

Whole Foods CEO John Mackey on his deep conviction that business leadership should not be only about maximizing profits for shareholders, but also about...

Dial 1298 for Ambulance, a new 911-style emergency dispatch service in Mumbai and neighboring cities, is a for-profit company with an intriguing business...

“The notion that capitalists should allow communists to buy their companies is, some argue, taking economic liberalism to an absurd extreme. But that is just what they should do, for the spread of Chinese capital should bring benefits to its recipients, and the world as a whole.” — “China buys up the world,” The Economist, […]