Oliver F. Williams

religious values at the office door. Apartheid was an evil, and business had great power in South Africa. Where there is power, there is also responsibil­ ity. I prayed about this long and hard. I pushed the companies as much as I thought I could. There were advances and there were setbacks, but finally we prevailed and the Blacks of South Africa secured their freedom. My effort in behalf of the Sullivan Principles was only one of a number of significant efforts of the anti-apartheid movement. All of those other efforts must be recognized, as well. The Sullivan Principles and the manner in which they were implemented in South Africa were in the nature of a grand experiment in the sociopolitical change and economic uplifting of the Black people of South Africa. What is even more important is that the Principles were driven by an ethical and moral imperative, and were voluntarily implemented by a group of enlight­ ened United States multinational corporations. No grand design or vision is ever perfect. We fall prey to human follies, limited understanding of the future, and necessary compromises to seek not what is perfect but what is possible. Thus, any such effort is subject to criticism from those who seek ideological purity and those who seek to minimize the impact of change from the status quo . .

Humankind, when employing creativity and technology, writes John Paul II in his Laborem Exercens, "shares in the activity of the Creator." In this volume, both scholars and business executives explore this new perspective on business, including Michael Novak, Joseph A. Pichler, Rev. Bryan Hehir, Rev. Ernest J. Bartell, C.S.C., Sister Amata Miller, I.H.M., George C. Lodge, Elmer Johnson. This volume was co-published with the Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Religious Values in Business.

Over the last 30 years, corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become a household term, reflecting a combination of factors that we have come to associate with that most catch-all of terms "globalization," including the widespread popular concern with such social issues as the environment and international human rights. Corporate Social Responsibility examines the history of the idea of business ethics (which goes back at least to ancient Mesopotamia) before exploring the state of CSR today. This book argues that a wide-ranging understanding of the purpose of business is necessary to create value for a community of stakeholders which in turn can generate a sustainable future. The book suggests that corporations still have a long way to go, but remains optimistic. The book’s sanguine interpretation of the current state of corporate affairs and a recommended way forward, results not only from the authors analysis, but also his direct experience. This book presents the case that we are in the midst of a major paradigm shift in our understanding of the purpose of business and that this new understanding holds much promise for business being a significant force for a more just and peaceful world.This work provides a concise overview of CSR and an important examination of the present and future work of the UN Global Compact and will be of interest to students of international organizations, international business and corporate social responsibility.

Over the last 30 years, corporate social responsibility (CSR) has become a household term, reflecting a combination of factors that we have come to associate with that most catch-all of terms "globalization," including the widespread popular concern with such social issues as the environment and international human rights. Corporate Social Responsibility examines the history of the idea of business ethics (which goes back at least to ancient Mesopotamia) before exploring the state of CSR today. This book argues that a wide-ranging understanding of the purpose of business is necessary to create value for a community of stakeholders which in turn can generate a sustainable future. The book suggests that corporations still have a long way to go, but remains optimistic. The book’s sanguine interpretation of the current state of corporate affairs and a recommended way forward, results not only from the authors analysis, but also his direct experience. This book presents the case that we are in the midst of a major paradigm shift in our understanding of the purpose of business and that this new understanding holds much promise for business being a significant force for a more just and peaceful world.This work provides a concise overview of CSR and an important examination of the present and future work of the UN Global Compact and will be of interest to students of international organizations, international business and corporate social responsibility.

religious values at the office door. Apartheid was an evil, and business had great power in South Africa. Where there is power, there is also responsibil­ ity. I prayed about this long and hard. I pushed the companies as much as I thought I could. There were advances and there were setbacks, but finally we prevailed and the Blacks of South Africa secured their freedom. My effort in behalf of the Sullivan Principles was only one of a number of significant efforts of the anti-apartheid movement. All of those other efforts must be recognized, as well. The Sullivan Principles and the manner in which they were implemented in South Africa were in the nature of a grand experiment in the sociopolitical change and economic uplifting of the Black people of South Africa. What is even more important is that the Principles were driven by an ethical and moral imperative, and were voluntarily implemented by a group of enlight­ ened United States multinational corporations. No grand design or vision is ever perfect. We fall prey to human follies, limited understanding of the future, and necessary compromises to seek not what is perfect but what is possible. Thus, any such effort is subject to criticism from those who seek ideological purity and those who seek to minimize the impact of change from the status quo . .

The business world is sometimes unfairly caricatured, as a world where everyone knows the price of everything and yet appreciates the value of nothing. It is our moral imagination that allows us to become sensitive to the dimensions of a situation that are likely to lead to the harming of human welfare. The essays gathered in The Moral Imagination: How Literature and Films Can Stimulate Ethical Reflection in the Business World show how, through literature, art, and film, society might learn to develop a sense of moral imagination. The premise of this collection is that the more interesting and prior question is Who are we? rather than What shall we do? Cultivating the imagination through art, literature, and film illuminates our understanding of what it means to be human and thus brings us closer to answering this fundamental question. By having a genuine sense of self, one can expand an impoverished moral vision and open the way for the greatness of heart that is needed to guide us through an ethical life in business. The focus on moral images in business ethics is credited, in part, to Aristotle. Some of these essays can be seen as arguing for a retrieval of the Aristotelian insight on ethics for the business ethics of our time. Ethics in this perspective is not primarily concerned with analyzing situations so that we can make correct decisions but rather with reflecting on what is constitutive of the good life. The fostering of this philosophical tradition can bring a crucial corrective to the way business ethics is practiced today.

In this book, eleven distinguished contributors examine such recent cases as the Exxon Valdez crisis, Johnson and Johnson's Tylenol decisions, and Procter and Gamble's Rely product recall to assess the contribution of narrative theology and theories of virtue on the current discussion of the ethics of business management. Co-published with the Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Religious Values in Business.

How do we realize economic justice in our global society? What is economic justice? Are materialism, consumerism, and capitalism a threat or a promise to a peaceful earth? There is one voice that continues to offer a prophetic challenge both to Marxist collectivism and capitalism. Pope John Paul II has authored On Social Concern that has much to say to our times. Is the religious social teaching in this document in such contrast to the prevailing wisdom of political economy that it might properly be called countercultural? Does this teaching offer a new vision, a different way of interpreting economic events? The Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Religious Values in Business convened a symposium to address these issues, assembling business executives, labor leaders and scholars.

How do we realize economic justice in our global society? What is economic justice? Are materialism, consumerism, and capitalism a threat or a promise to a peaceful earth? There is one voice that continues to offer a prophetic challenge both to Marxist collectivism and capitalism. Pope John Paul II has authored On Social Concern that has much to say to our times. Is the religious social teaching in this document in such contrast to the prevailing wisdom of political economy that it might properly be called countercultural? Does this teaching offer a new vision, a different way of interpreting economic events? The Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Religious Values in Business convened a symposium to address these issues, assembling business executives, labor leaders and scholars.

This volume explores whether the concept of the common good might be retrieved and become central in contemporary religious social thought. Contributors include: Charles C. West, John J. Collins, Ralph McInerny; J. Philip Wogaman, Charles E. Curran, Richard John Neuhaus, Dennis P. McCann, Ernest Bartell, Michael Novak, Charles K. Wilber, John W. Cooper, Gar Alperovitz, Richard T. DeGeorge, Gerald Cavanagh, William J. Cunningham, Peter Mann, Bette Jean Bullert and David Vogel. Co-published with the Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Religious Values in Business.

The American Catholic Bishops, in preparing a pastoral on the American economy, sought the assistance of the Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Religious Values in Business. This book represents the resulting 15 research papers by business/labor leaders and theologians and is focused on four themes: employment generation, income for the poor and disadvantaged, U.S. trade with the Third World, and the possibilities for cooperation and planning in the U.S. economy.

The American Catholic Bishops, in preparing a pastoral on the American economy, sought the assistance of the Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Religious Values in Business. This book represents the resulting 15 research papers by business/labor leaders and theologians and is focused on four themes: employment generation, income for the poor and disadvantaged, U.S. trade with the Third World, and the possibilities for cooperation and planning in the U.S. economy.