Beyond the Proxy Vote: Dialogues Between Shareholder Activists and Corporations [Book Review]
Journal of Business Ethics 87 (1):353-365 (2009)
Abstract
The popular view of shareholder activism focuses on shareholder resolutions and the shareholder vote via proxy statements at the annual meeting, which is treated as a “David vs. Goliath” showdown between the small group of socially responsible investors and the powerful corporation. This article goes beyond the popular view to examine where the real action typically occurs – in the Dialogue process where corporations and shareholder activist groups mutually agree to ongoing communications to deal with a serious social issue. Use of the capitalized word “Dialogue” is intended to distinguish this formal process between corporations and shareholders from all the other forms of dialogue or two-way communication exchanged between a corporation and its stakeholders. The phenomenon of Dialogue between a corporation and dissident shareholders has not been analyzed in the academic literature or in the popular press because it occurs behind the scenes and out of sight from media scrutiny. Yet this is where a great deal of social change initiated by shareholder activists is negotiated. This article contributes both theoretically and empirically to the study of Dialogues between shareholder activists and corporations. We explain how Dialogues occur in the context of the shareholder resolution process and examine two Dialogues that focus on international labor issues in two industries. Then data on Dialogues during the period, 1999–2005, from the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility are analyzed. This research contributes to knowledge about the Dialogue process and the emerging literature on corporation–stakeholder engagementDOI
10.1007/s10551-008-9807-z
My notes
Similar books and articles
Beyond the Proxy Vote: Dialogues between Shareholder Activists and Corporations.Jeanne M. Logsdon & Harry J. Van Buren - 2009 - Journal of Business Ethics 87 (1):353 - 365.
Beyond the Proxy Vote: Dialogues between Shareholder Activists and Corporations.Jeanne M. Logsdon & Harry J. Van Buren Iii - 2009 - Journal of Business Ethics 87 (S1):353 - 365.
Social Responsibility Ratings and Corporate Responses to Activist Shareholder Resolutions: Is There a Relationship?Jeanne M. Logsdon, Harry van Buren Iii & Kathleen Rehbein - 2008 - Proceedings of the International Association for Business and Society 19:307-317.
Non-governmental organizations, shareholder activism, and socially responsible investments: Ethical, strategic, and governance implications. [REVIEW]Terrence Guay, Jonathan P. Doh & Graham Sinclair - 2004 - Journal of Business Ethics 52 (1):125-139.
Changing the world through shareholder activism?Joakim Sandberg - 2011 - Nordic Journal of Applied Ethics 5 (1):51-78.
Corporate Targets of Shareholder Resolutions: What Do Green Resolutions and Poor Employee Relations Mean?Sara A. Morris - 2009 - Proceedings of the International Association for Business and Society 20:36-46.
Global labor and worksite standards: A strategic ethical analysis of shareholder employee relations resolutions. [REVIEW]Douglas M. McCabe - 2000 - Journal of Business Ethics 23 (1):101 - 110.
Effective Shareholder Engagement: The Factors that Contribute to Shareholder Salience.E. James & M. Gifford - 2010 - Journal of Business Ethics 92 (S1):79 - 97.
A Network Analysis of Shareholder Activism.Donald H. Schepers - 2007 - Proceedings of the International Association for Business and Society 18:351-356.
The Politics of Shareholder Activism in Nigeria.Emmanuel Adegbite, Kenneth Amaeshi & Olufemi Amao - 2012 - Journal of Business Ethics 105 (3):389-402.
Shareholder Activism: A Multidisciplinary View.Maria Goranova & Lori Verstegen Ryan - 2012 - Proceedings of the International Association for Business and Society 23:160-169.
Analytics
Added to PP
2013-11-22
Downloads
12 (#806,054)
6 months
1 (#451,971)
2013-11-22
Downloads
12 (#806,054)
6 months
1 (#451,971)
Historical graph of downloads
Citations of this work
Religion as a Macro Social Force Affecting Business: Concepts, Questions, and Future Research.Raza Mir, Jawad Syed & Harry J. Van Buren - 2020 - Business and Society 59 (5):799-822.
Corporate Responses to Shareholder Activists: Considering the Dialogue Alternative.Kathleen Rehbein, Jeanne M. Logsdon & Harry J. Van Buren - 2013 - Journal of Business Ethics 112 (1):137-154.
Engaging Ethically: A Discourse Ethics Perspective on Social Shareholder Engagement.Jennifer Goodman & Daniel Arenas - 2015 - Business Ethics Quarterly 25 (2):163-189.
Shareholder Engagement on Environmental, Social, and Governance Performance.Tamas Barko, Martijn Cremers & Luc Renneboog - 2022 - Journal of Business Ethics 180 (2):777-812.
Dominant Articulations in Academic Business and Society Discourse on NGO–Business Relations: A Critical Assessment. [REVIEW]Salla Laasonen, Martin Fougère & Arno Kourula - 2012 - Journal of Business Ethics 109 (4):521-545.
References found in this work
From CSR1 to CSR2 The Maturing of Business-and-Society Thought.William C. Frederick - 1994 - Business and Society 33 (2):150-164.
Non-governmental organizations, shareholder activism, and socially responsible investments: Ethical, strategic, and governance implications. [REVIEW]Terrence Guay, Jonathan P. Doh & Graham Sinclair - 2004 - Journal of Business Ethics 52 (1):125-139.
Business citizenship: From domestic to global level of analysis.Jeanne M. Logsdon & Donna J. Wood - 2002 - Business Ethics Quarterly 12 (2):155-188.
Business Citizenship: From Domestic to Global Level of Analysis.Jeanne M. Logsdon & Donna J. Wood - 2002 - Business Ethics Quarterly 12 (2):155-187.
Coping With Paradox Multistakeholder Learning Dialogue as a Pluralist Sensemaking Process for Addressing Messy Problems.Jerry M. Calton & Steven L. Payne - 2003 - Business and Society 42 (1):7-42.