1. Introduction
Which goals and values ought to determine corporate behaviour? This is a recurring question that is yet again a relevant issue due to recent extreme business conducts: on one side the Enron and Madoff frauds and on the other the proliferation of socially responsible business behaviours that are apparently dissociated from profit maximization. For example, Volkswagen plants a tree for every car it sells to combat climate change, Starbucks has a coffee purchasing system that rewards suppliers that offer better working conditions and respect the environment.
The Nobel Prize winner in economics, Milton Friedman, defended in a famous and provocative article that profit maximization should be the sole objective of businesses.
See full Article, in pdf format: http://www.crei.cat/files/filesOpuscle/36/120321092822_ENG_30_ANG.pdf
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