INTRODUCTION TO BUSINESS & ITS PUBLICS
INTRODUCTION TO
Business & Its Publics introduction by
MATT STATLER Clinical Assistant Professor of Management and Organizations Richman Family Director of Business Ethics and Social Impact Programming
Business & Its Publics, a foundation course of our Social Impact Core, focuses on how businesses and markets interface with government, non-governmental organizations, and other social institutions. Within this context, students observe and reflect on timely issues, such as sustainability, social justice, and social entrepreneurship. The dynamic format of the course involves: a lecture series involving prominent business, government, and academic leaders; an inquiry session taught by senior Stern faculty; and a discourse session taught by Stern faculty communications experts. For the written assignments, students select and analyze topics, then compose a final essay advocating a concrete course of action. In this way, NYU Stern undergraduate students take initial steps toward achieving the learning objectives that unify the four-course Social Impact Core Curriculum; specifically, students: »» Become more aware of multiple stakeholder perspectives on important business issues; »» Develop a more nuanced understanding of the many relationships between corporations, governments, NGO’s, market economies, and civil society; »» Begin the process of developing professional ethics in harmony with their own personal values; and »» Learn to articulate, defend, and reflect critically on a point of view. The essays in this volume were selected by the BIP discourse faculty as exemplary of the kind of engaged reflection that will help the students become future leaders.
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THE CALL FOR CORPORATE ACTION