ugba 10

Principles of Business
February 2011
Module 2: Business, Government, and Society
David Vogel
Office: F 587 Haas vogel@haas.berkeley.edu
Office Hours: Wed 10-12: 2/9, 2/16, 2/23

Lec Date Topic Reading Ch is Ebert & Griffin Notes

® readings in Reader: Haas 2011
1 2/9 - Wed. Government Regulation ® 223 Rational for Regulation In section this week:
of Business Return and review of
2 2/11 – Fri. The Financial Crises: ® 244 Rational Irrationality Mod 1 exam and paper;
Causes, Implications ® 249 Performance Pay Perplexes Lead-in discussion:
and Policy Responses ® 250 Crazy Compensation Regulation
(see next page)
® 251What the Financial Crisis
® 252 Failure to control

3 2/14 Mon Business Ethics and ® 319 Is good citizenship good Discuss paper topic
Corporate Social ® 337 Changing the Game Corporate Social
Responsibility ® 341 Market for virtue Responsibility.
(see next page)
4 2/16 –Wed. Business Ethics and ® 344 Milton Friedman
Corporate Social Chapter 2, “ Business Ethics and
Responsibility Social Responsibility”

5 2/18 –Fri. The Comparative ® 254 Vogel, “The Hare and the
[2/21 is Politics of Protective Tortoise Revisited: the New Politics
Presidents Day] Regulation of Risk Regulation in Europe and
the United States”

6 2/23 – Wed. Business Participation in ® 267 Business Government Section Discussion Topic:
the Political Process ® 283 Business Participation in Global Climate Change
Politics (see next page)

7 2/25 Fri. Module Exam in class in

Wheeler
Week 1 Lead-in Discussion—Where should we reduce government regulation of business?

In this State of the Union President Obama stated:

“To reduce barriers to growth and investment, I’ve ordered a review of government regulations. When we
find rules that put an unnecessary burden on businesses, we will fix them. But I will not hesitate to create
or enforce common-sense safeguards to protect the American people. That’s what we’ve done in this
country for more than a century. It’s why our food is safe to eat, our water is safe to drink, and our air is
safe to breathe. It’s why we have speed limits and child labor laws.”

Discussion questions: Is the distinction between regulations that are “unnecessary” and “common-sense
safeguards,” as clear-cut as the president suggested? Can you think of any examples of regulations that clearly fall
into either category? How should policy-makers decide which regulations fall into which category?

Week 2: Paper Topic—What do corporations say about their social responsibility efforts?

Log onto the web site of a well-known corporation and read its most recent annual corporate social responsibility
or sustainability report.

1. What is your overall impression of this report?

2. Select two of the firm’s social or environmental initiatives, policies or programs that you consider to be
most important.
3. Linking your analysis to two of the assigned readings, explain why the firm has undertaken each of them
(reputation, public pressure, business benefits etc) .
4. Critically assess the effectiveness of the two policies or programs.
5. Should the firm do more that it is now doing in each area or is it doing the best it can?

Week 3: Discussion topic—Climate Change

To prepare for this discussion, please read ® 295 Past the tipping point? And ® 308 Global climate change. As you
are reading the articles, think how you would respond to each of these questions:

How personally worried are you about the risks of global climate change?

How well informed about this topic do you consider yourself?

What dimensions of its causes and consequence are you confused or uncertain about?

Why do you think it has been so much more difficult for policy-makers to address the risks of global
climate change than many other environmental risks such as local or regional air or water pollution?

Why do you think American regulations are much weaker than those of other developed countries?

What would it take to make the American government take a more active role in address addressing this
problem?