All Briefs
2018
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China’s new pollution tax – a breath of fresh air for MNCs, but with important risks to monitor
July 04 | Anke Schrader, Former Research Director, Asia, The Conference Board | Minji Xie, Senior Researcher, China Center for Economics and Business, The Conference Board | Comments (0)China’s new Environmental Protection Tax Law (EPT Law) came into effect on January 1. It replaces the old Pollutant Discharge Fees System. Taxation could increase, as more headroom for localities allows to set higher tax rates. Some leveling of the playing field is possible, as non-compliance and tax evasion are addressed. Supply chain costs may be impacted.
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Culture and Brand Are Interconnected, Research from The Conference Board Finds
July 03 | Dr. James Gregory, Senior Fellow, The Conference Board | Comments (0)A strong culture of innovation can energize and enable a company’s innovation performance. In turn, continuous innovation keeps a brand relevant and refreshed during periods of intensifying competition and frequent market disruptions.
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What’s the Purpose of Purpose?
July 03 | Mike Arauz, Founding Member, August | Comments (0)Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, started the year with a provocative challenge to the CEOs of the world’s biggest and most influential companies: What’s your purpose? As Fink framed it in his open letter, companies need to have a compelling long-term vision for how their business will sustainably benefit all of its stakeholders, including shareholders, employees, customers, and the community.
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Podcast on Social Purpose: The Conference Board’s Executives and Members Opine
July 03 | ESG Center | Comments (0)The Bottom Line, a podcast on social progress, spoke to thought leaders associated with The Conference Board on the letter that BlackRock CEO Larry Fink wrote calling for companies to positively contribute to society.
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On Governance: Dual Class Share Voting versus the 'Empty Voting' of Mutual Fund Advisors’
July 02 | Bernard Sharfman, Associate Fellow, R Street Institute | Comments (0)Why voting in dual class shares is a value maximizing result, but empty voting has become a systemic risk. Mutual fund advisors have a lack of economic interest, despite having the voting rights to the associated securities.
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Sustainability in the mainstream: Investors ESG interaction with companies
June 29 | Anuj Saush, ESG Center Leader, Europe, The Conference Board | Comments (0)Increasing recognition of the impact of environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks and opportunities on portfolio value is driving institutional investors engagement with companies on ESG.
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As Political and Societal Crises Impact Brands, PR’s Role Is More Important Than Ever
June 28 | Tina McCorkindale, President and CEO, Institute for Public Relations | Comments (0)Brands of all sizes and in all industries are increasingly being impacted by America’s divisive political, social and cultural storms. This new reality makes the roles of communications leaders like CCOs and CMOs as strategic decision makers, planners and guardians of a brand’s goodwill more vital—and more challenging—than ever before.
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How Did Marketers Let GDPR Happen?
June 28 | Mike Moran, Chief Product Officer, SoloSegment | Comments (0)I teach classes for the Rutgers Business School Executive Education, so I cross paths with savvy digital marketers on a constant basis. I have been asking them the same question for the last three years, “If people are really getting creeped out by the way marketers are sneaking around with their data, how come no one has started a business around data privacy?” And I never really got an answer that I understood. Not once.
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On Governance: Why and How Companies Should Now Review Their Director Compensation Plans
June 27 | James D. C. Barrall, Senior Fellow in Residence, Lowell Milken Institute for Business Law and Policy, UCLA School of Law, ESG Center Fellow | Comments (0)Recent settlements in two cases appear to have been heavily influenced by the Investors Bancorp decision in ways that do not bode well for directors who determine their own compensation under shareholder-approved plans that do not limit their discretion to amounts that would not make it worthwhile for the plaintiffs’ lawyers to sue, or could be protected by the business judgment rule.