A framework for business in the 21st century

The synthesis of the ten themes covered by our research has brought out three principles which could help in the development of a new framework for the future of the corporation: corporate purpose, trust and culture. A corporation must have a set of…

Five levers of change to reform business for the 21st century

There are a range of possible tools and levers available to business leaders and governments to promote change. Here we consider five: ownership, corporate governance, regulation, taxation, and investment. But this list is…

Why we need to re-shape business for the 21st century

The bond between the corporation and its public purpose has waxed and waned since corporations were first established nearly two millennia ago. This has happened in response to socio-economic and geopolitical shifts, but the…

The case for reconsidering the nature of the corporation

There is a strong and growing ambition to reconsider and reinterpret the nature of the corporation, especially in terms of enabling better alignment between business and public interests. History tells us there is nothing radical in…

The Future of the Corporation: towards humane business

Professor Colin Mayer FBA

Abstract

This paper sets out a radical reinterpretation of the nature of the corporation that focuses on corporate purpose, its…