Accountable

Author Warren Valdmanis and Michael O'Leary
Narrator Joe Knezevich
Publisher Penguin Books Ltd
Run Time 9 hours and 5 minutes
Format Audio
Genre Business ethics and social responsibility, Capitalism, Corporate crime / white-collar crime, Corporate finance, Corporate governance: role and responsibilities of boards and directors, Fraud, Human rights, civil rights, Political campaigning and advertising, Popular economics, Transformation law, change of corporate form.

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What to expect

Brought to you by Penguin.

Capitalism is failing and the tools we are relying on to fix it - corporate social responsibility, divestment, impact investing, and government control - are only making things worse.

-Chevron boasts about the $50 million per year it spends on renewable energy whilst it spends 200 times that on oil exploration

-Goldman Sachs touts its 10,000 Women initiative but its board ranks 358th out of the Fortune 500 for gender diversity and women earn 55% less than men do on average

By focusing on corporations rather than people, we've put our faith in empty trends and brand-focused window-dressing. Why should those responsible for our current crisis be trusted to fix it?

In Accountable, authors Michael O'Leary and Warren Valdmanis offer a blueprint for everyone to take responsibility for using their economic power as consumers, as investors, as employees, and as voters to trigger a fundamental shift away from an economy that is unethical, unfair, and destructive to our environment and institutions. Their investigation cuts through the tired dogma of current economic thinking to reveal a hopeful truth: if we can make our corporations accountable to a deeper purpose, we can make capitalism both prosperous and good.

Trenchant and gripping, this is an indispensable guide and call to action for citizens to take control of our economic power and hold corporations to a higher standard.

© Michael O'Leary, Warren Valdmanis 2020 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

Critics Review

A thoughtful, well researched and compelling way to rethink how to assure that prosperity and fairness are linked
Deval Patrick, Former Massachusetts Governor
Presents a fresh, balanced, highly readable and deeply informed case for how the pursuit of sustained financial success and the exercise of social responsibility to employees, consumers and society not only can-but must-go hand in hand if we are to have the world we seek in the future. I learned a lot
John Pepper, former Chairman and CEO of P&G
More than ever before, this is the book our economy needs
Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation
Unwilling to settle for easy answers or superficial changes, O’Leary and Valdmanis push us all to ask more of our economic system
United States Senator Michael F. Bennet
Striking in its clarity and insights borne from the authors’ experience as investors on the frontlines of capitalism’s excesses and potential. The case studies of some of the best-known companies and investors don’t pull punches while offering tangible examples of the changes in culture and rules of the game required for a new type of capitalism
Daniella Ballou-Aares, CEO and Co-Founder of the Leadership Now Project
Solving our biggest social and environmental problems means reshaping the role that businesses play in our society. This informative book addresses the challenges we face in achieving this crucial transformation
Sir Ronald Cohen, Chair GSG (Global Steering Group for Impact Investment)
In today’s reality, business represents a picture of dysfunctionality, of excesses benefitting the few, of gross injustice. Tomorrow’s business leaders have an obligation to create a different reality reflecting our better hopes and inspirations. Accountable takes you on that journey. It’s a wonderful trip
Peter Georgescu, Chairman Emeritus of Young & Rubicam
For decades the dominant view has been that the purpose of companies is to make money for their shareholders. No more. Combining compelling examples and analytical insights, O’Leary and Valdmanis explain why the world is changing and provide a roadmap for how shareholders and citizens can and must transform the corporate landscape to save capitalism from itself
Oliver Hart, Harvard University, Nobel Laureate in Economics, 2016
The authors have been at the forefront of thinking on how markets and business can better serve society for many years. Accountable captures not only the history that underpins modern-day corporate purpose, but its present and future. The central message-that capitalism can and must be part of the solution to society’s greatest challenges-has never been more important
Martin Whittaker, CEO of JUST Capital
The issues posed could not be more topical or provocative. The coronavirus pandemic has catapulted capitalism into the future, where we need new and better answers to the crucial questions ‘What matters most in our society’ ‘How should we organize work to support those priorities?’ and ‘What’s a fair way to pay people for their contributions?’ Accountable offers a fresh and compelling perspective on these questions.
David Roux, founder of Silver Lake

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