Life After Lockdown - Corporate Purpose

 

In a post-COVID-19 world, is Corporate Purpose an essential part of building stronger and more inclusive businesses, or is it a luxury business can no longer afford?


2019 was a year of bold ideas about redefining corporate purpose. The Business Roundtable in the US abandoned shareholder primacy and called for corporations to improve society. The World Economic Forum’s meeting at DAVOS demanded stakeholder capitalism for a sustainable world. Corporations from Philip Morris to BHP made public commitments to lofty purpose statements. Pundits declared that the times were-a-changing for the role of business in society. In the wake of these warm sentiments, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought harsh economic realities to the top of mind for CEOs. Does this means that corporate purpose is a luxury business can no longer afford? Are corporations society’s fair-weather friends who are nowhere to be found at troubled times? Or will business prioritise purpose, as part of building a more inclusive and sustainable sector that aims to create value for all stakeholders as well as shareholders. Which, if any, corporations will have the strength of character to maintain –or even strengthen - a social purpose?
Join us for an open and interactive discussion with leading experts from UTS and the business world to explore what COVID-19 means for the future of relations between business and society.

 

Panel
Alison Watkins, Group Managing Director , Coca-Cola-Amatil

Tim Reed, President, Business Council of Australia

John Lydon, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company

Professor Carl Rhodes, Deputy Dean, The Dean's Unit, UTS

Dr Rosemary Sainty, Lecturer, Management Discipline Group, UTS


Moderator
Professor Prabhu Sivabalan, Associate Dean, External Engagement, The Dean's Unit, UTS

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