Two news items in the Portland Press Herald, our local newspaper in southern Maine. The Portland City Council has joined the ranks of other local governments to condemn “corporate personhood” and encourage our congressional delegates to support a constitutional amendment to overturn the Citizens United decision. It’s interesting to…
Ignoring corporate governance is not an option for managers
Baruch Lev is a world class thinker on accountancy and corporate operational matters. I have long admired his work and am very much taken with his new book. Writing from the view of corporate management, he recognizes the legitimacy of corporate governance efforts and believes in the essential role…
Democracy works when citizens are involved
Our system of government requires citizen involvement in order to work and unfortunately, this is where things have broken down. As citizens – and as owners or consumers, voters, constituents, etc. – we have ignored our responsibilities. We’ve left it to others to “represent” us and in doing that…
Revolving Door between Congress and K Street
A great chart came out late last year showing retired members of Congress and their new jobs on K Street (lobbying and government affairs). The accompanying article, “Former members of Congress always welcome on K Street,” reports that one lobbying firm, Advantage Associates International, “…markets itself as a collaboration…
Corporate Governance 2011 — Year End Reflections
1. The Elephant in the Living Room. The single best indicator of the state of corporate governance – a system of accountable power – is the capacity of senior management to increase their own compensation that has been going on for two decades. The metaphor of the elephant in…
