Corporate reformers speak with forked tongue about performance pay for teachers.
When it comes to government handouts, the conservative billionaires don’t necessarily practice what they preach.
Corporate Members Event
Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE
Raj Kulasingam, Senior Counsel, Dentons
Megan McDonald, Head of Investment Banking (International), Standard Bank Group
Chair: Dr Alex Vines OBE, Managing Director, Ethics, Risk & Resilience; Director, Africa Programme, Chatham House
Theresa May’s announcement in 2018 on the UK’s ambition to become the G7’s largest investor in Africa by 2022 has been followed by similar stated ambitions at the recent UK-Africa Investment Summit, which saw the attendance of 16 African heads of states. Such ambitions mirror overtures from various international players including a call for a ‘comprehensive strategy for Africa’ by the EU in 2019. While the UK’s recent expansion of its diplomatic networks in Africa and the signing of the Economic Partnership Agreement with the Southern African Customs Union and Mozambique appear promising, there are significant challenges to deepening partnerships including visa restrictions and complex business environments.
At this event, the panellists will assess the future of trade and investment relations between the UK and Africa. Amid a proliferation of new trading partners including Asia’s emerging economies, Russia and the Gulf states, what are the points of change and continuity in the long-standing relationship between Africa and the UK? And what are the challenges and opportunities facing governments and businesses in Africa and the UK in efforts to build long-lasting economic ties?
This event will be followed by a drinks reception.
This event is open to Chatham House Corporate Members and corporate contacts of Chatham House's Africa Programme only.
Not a member? Find out more. For further information on the different types of Chatham House events, visit Our Events Explained.
Invitation Only Research Event
Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE
John Patton, Argentem Creek
Rachel Cook, Peters & Peters
Tom Mayne, University of Exeter
Olga Bischof, Brown Rudnick LLP
Isobel Koshiw, Global Witness
Anton Moiseienko, RUSI
The widespread practice of illicit acquisition of a business or part of a business in the former Soviet states, known as ‘reiderstvo’ or asset-grabbing, is a major risk that disincentivises investment in the region.
It is distinct from the way corporate raiding occurs in the West and enabled by factors such as corruption and weak protection of property rights.
This roundtable will assess the practice of corporate raiding in Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan: its evolution over time, knock-on effects and potential solutions. The speakers will also address the implications for the UK legal system and possible policy responses.
Invitation Only Research Event
Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE
John Patton, Argentem Creek
Rachel Cook, Peters & Peters
Tom Mayne, University of Exeter
Olga Bischof, Brown Rudnick LLP
Isobel Koshiw, Global Witness
Anton Moiseienko, RUSI
The widespread practice of illicit acquisition of a business or part of a business in the former Soviet states, known as ‘reiderstvo’ or asset-grabbing, is a major risk that disincentivises investment in the region.
It is distinct from the way corporate raiding occurs in the West and enabled by factors such as corruption and weak protection of property rights.
This roundtable will assess the practice of corporate raiding in Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan: its evolution over time, knock-on effects and potential solutions. The speakers will also address the implications for the UK legal system and possible policy responses.
Corporate Members Event
Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE
Dr Yu Jie, Senior Research Fellow on China, Asia-Pacific Programme, Chatham House
David Lubin, Associate Fellow, Global Economy and Finance Programme, Chatham House; Managing Director and Head of Emerging Markets Economics, Citi
Jinny Yan, Managing Director and Chief China Economist, ICBC Standard
Chair: Creon Butler, Director, Global Economy and Finance Programme, Chatham House
Read all our analysis on the Coronavirus Response
The coronavirus outbreak comes at a difficult time for China’s ruling party. A tumultuous 2019 saw the country fighting an economic slowdown coupled with an increasingly hostile international environment. As authorities take assertive steps to contain the virus, the emergency has - at least temporarily - disrupted global trade and supply chains, depressed asset prices and forced multinational businesses to make consequential decisions with limited information.
Against this backdrop, panellists reflect on the country’s nascent economic transition from 2020 onward. What has been China’s progress towards a sustainable innovation-led economy so far? To what extent is the ruling party addressing growing concerns over job losses, wealth inequality and a lack of social mobility? And how are foreign investors responding to these developments in China?
Corporate Members Event
Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE
Antony Jenkins, Founder and Executive Chair, 10x Future Technologies; Group Chief Executive, Barclays (2012-15)
Tracey McDermott CBE, Group Head, Corporate Affairs, Brand & Marketing and Group Head, Conduct, Financial Crime and Compliance, Standard Chartered; Acting Chief Executive, Financial Conduct Authority (2015-16)
Chair: Patrick Jenkins, Financial Editor, FT
In recent years, FinTech start-ups and 'big tech' companies have expanded their foothold in the financial services market, using technology to radically transform the way in which banking services are delivered and used. These new entrants have brought with them digital and cloud-based innovations and, in the case of large technology majors, deep pockets, large customer bases and access to vast quantities of data.
Against this backdrop, the panellists will provide their outlook for the future of banking. What are the new technologies disrupting the financial services industry and to what extent are they reshaping society more broadly? Can traditional banks remain competitive in the face of increased competition, regulation and the high costs associated with maintaining legacy systems? And how can regulators manage the complex trade-offs associated with new entrants into the market including data protection, financial stability and inclusion?
The discussion will be followed by a reception at 7pm.
This event is open to Chatham House Corporate Members only. Not a member? Find out more.
For further information on the different types of Chatham House events, visit Our Events Explained.
Corporate Members Event
Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE
Raj Kulasingam, Senior Counsel, Dentons
Megan McDonald, Head of Investment Banking (International), Standard Bank Group
Chair: Dr Alex Vines OBE, Managing Director, Ethics, Risk & Resilience; Director, Africa Programme, Chatham House
Theresa May’s announcement in 2018 on the UK’s ambition to become the G7’s largest investor in Africa by 2022 has been followed by similar stated ambitions at the recent UK-Africa Investment Summit, which saw the attendance of 16 African heads of states. Such ambitions mirror overtures from various international players including a call for a ‘comprehensive strategy for Africa’ by the EU in 2019. While the UK’s recent expansion of its diplomatic networks in Africa and the signing of the Economic Partnership Agreement with the Southern African Customs Union and Mozambique appear promising, there are significant challenges to deepening partnerships including visa restrictions and complex business environments.
At this event, the panellists will assess the future of trade and investment relations between the UK and Africa. Amid a proliferation of new trading partners including Asia’s emerging economies, Russia and the Gulf states, what are the points of change and continuity in the long-standing relationship between Africa and the UK? And what are the challenges and opportunities facing governments and businesses in Africa and the UK in efforts to build long-lasting economic ties?
This event will be followed by a drinks reception.
This event is open to Chatham House Corporate Members and corporate contacts of Chatham House's Africa Programme only.
Not a member? Find out more. For further information on the different types of Chatham House events, visit Our Events Explained.
Corporate Members Event
Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE
Dr Yu Jie, Senior Research Fellow on China, Asia-Pacific Programme, Chatham House
David Lubin, Associate Fellow, Global Economy and Finance Programme, Chatham House; Managing Director and Head of Emerging Markets Economics, Citi
Jinny Yan, Managing Director and Chief China Economist, ICBC Standard
Chair: Creon Butler, Director, Global Economy and Finance Programme, Chatham House
Read all our analysis on the Coronavirus Response
The coronavirus outbreak comes at a difficult time for China’s ruling party. A tumultuous 2019 saw the country fighting an economic slowdown coupled with an increasingly hostile international environment. As authorities take assertive steps to contain the virus, the emergency has - at least temporarily - disrupted global trade and supply chains, depressed asset prices and forced multinational businesses to make consequential decisions with limited information.
Against this backdrop, panellists reflect on the country’s nascent economic transition from 2020 onward. What has been China’s progress towards a sustainable innovation-led economy so far? To what extent is the ruling party addressing growing concerns over job losses, wealth inequality and a lack of social mobility? And how are foreign investors responding to these developments in China?
Corporate Members Event
Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE
Dr Yu Jie, Senior Research Fellow on China, Asia-Pacific Programme, Chatham House
David Lubin, Associate Fellow, Global Economy and Finance Programme, Chatham House; Managing Director and Head of Emerging Markets Economics, Citi
Jinny Yan, Managing Director and Chief China Economist, ICBC Standard
Chair: Creon Butler, Director, Global Economy and Finance Programme, Chatham House
Read all our analysis on the Coronavirus Response
The coronavirus outbreak comes at a difficult time for China’s ruling party. A tumultuous 2019 saw the country fighting an economic slowdown coupled with an increasingly hostile international environment. As authorities take assertive steps to contain the virus, the emergency has - at least temporarily - disrupted global trade and supply chains, depressed asset prices and forced multinational businesses to make consequential decisions with limited information.
Against this backdrop, panellists reflect on the country’s nascent economic transition from 2020 onward. What has been China’s progress towards a sustainable innovation-led economy so far? To what extent is the ruling party addressing growing concerns over job losses, wealth inequality and a lack of social mobility? And how are foreign investors responding to these developments in China?
Corporate Members Event
Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE
Penny Abeywardena, Commissioner for International Affairs, New York City
Chair: Dr Beyza Unal, Senior Research Fellow, International Security Department, Chatham House
Cities are strong engines of growth and job creation accounting for some 85 per cent of global GDP. By 2030, more than 60 per cent of people worldwide will live in cities and they will be on the front lines of managing issues transcending borders such as climate, migration and sustainability. International organizations like the United Nations are striving to meet these challenges but relying on traditional multilateral agreements is growing ever more unpredictable. If cities and local governments are key to global prosperity, how can their power and influence be harnessed to accelerate impact for their citizens?
Drawing on the pioneering work of New York City in the area of foreign policy leadership at a municipal level, Penny Abeywardena will discuss how the influence of subnational leadership and diplomacy is more important than ever as national governments are abdicating their responsibility at the multilateral level. How can the Sustainable Development Goals be localized among cities on policy issues that impact communities? And what can large cities, beyond the capital, do to remain influential and harness job growth?
This event will be preceded by an informal sandwich reception from 12.30pm-1pm. The roundtable discussion to follow will take place from 1pm-2pm.
This event is corporate members only. If you'd like to attend, please RSVP to Linda Bedford.
To enable as open a debate as possible, this event will be held under the Chatham House Rule.
Corporate Members Event
Chatham House | 10 St James's Square | London | SW1Y 4LE
Dr Yu Jie, Senior Research Fellow on China, Asia-Pacific Programme, Chatham House
David Lubin, Associate Fellow, Global Economy and Finance Programme, Chatham House; Managing Director and Head of Emerging Markets Economics, Citi
Jinny Yan, Managing Director and Chief China Economist, ICBC Standard
Chair: Creon Butler, Director, Global Economy and Finance Programme, Chatham House
Read all our analysis on the Coronavirus Response
The coronavirus outbreak comes at a difficult time for China’s ruling party. A tumultuous 2019 saw the country fighting an economic slowdown coupled with an increasingly hostile international environment. As authorities take assertive steps to contain the virus, the emergency has - at least temporarily - disrupted global trade and supply chains, depressed asset prices and forced multinational businesses to make consequential decisions with limited information.
Against this backdrop, panellists reflect on the country’s nascent economic transition from 2020 onward. What has been China’s progress towards a sustainable innovation-led economy so far? To what extent is the ruling party addressing growing concerns over job losses, wealth inequality and a lack of social mobility? And how are foreign investors responding to these developments in China?
Corporate Members Event
Chicago Council on Global Affairs, Chicago, US
Ivo H. Daalder, President, Chicago Council on Global Affairs
Bryon G. Ehrhart, Global Head of Strategic Growth & Development, Aon
Laura Haim, Political Journalist; Former Spokesperson for the Presidential Campaign of Emmanuel Macron
João Vale de Almeida, Ambassador of the European Union to the United Nations; Former Ambassador of the European Union to the United States
Thomas Raines, Research Fellow and Programme Manager, Europe Programme, Chatham House
Charles A. Kupchan, Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations
Thomas Wright, Director, Center on the United States and Europe, The Brookings Institution
Shawn Donnan, World Trade Editor, Financial Times
Ignacio Garcia Bercero, Director, Directorate General for Trade, European Commission
Laura Lane, President of Global Public Affairs, UPS
Further speakers TBC
The US and the EU face many of the same challenges today: they must maintain economic growth in the face of global competition, harness and manage rapid technological change and respond to diverse security threats. Yet a transatlantic alliance that has endured since the end of the Second World War now appears increasingly divided over how to respond.
The 2016 Brexit referendum and the US presidential election resulted in victories for populist campaigns that questioned the core values and institutions of this alliance. More recent elections in Europe have bolstered centrist candidates, and helped to rejuvenate the EU. But on questions of trade, security, climate change and relations with Russia, Europe’s leaders have frequently been at odds with the Trump administration. On these and other critical issues, an opportunity and impetus has arisen for the EU to assume a global leadership role that many feel the US is abandoning.
Are the EU and the US on divergent paths? How are changing geopolitical and economic realities transforming the transatlantic alliance? And how committed is this alliance to defending the global institutions and rules it created? Chatham House and the Chicago Council on Global Affairs will convene policy experts, journalists and practitioners for a half-day event to chart these trends and consider their implications.
Please note, this event will take place in Chicago between 2.30pm and 7pm Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).
Chatham House members will be able to follow a livestream of the event here on the day.
This event is being co-hosted with the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.
Corporate Members Event
Chatham House, London
Dr Christopher Smart, Whitehead Senior Fellow, Chatham House; Senior Fellow, Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government, Harvard Kennedy School; Special Assistant to President Obama, International Economics, Trade and Investment (2013-15)
Chair: Kenneth Cukier, Senior Editor of Digital Products, The Economist
As US and European governments grapple with the challenges of reinforcing their economic relationships, traditional negotiations over tax and trade policy may soon be overwhelmed by a far thornier issue: the regulation of data storage, protection and analysis. As traditional global trade in goods and services has levelled off, cross-border data flows continue to expand rapidly.
Christopher Smart will outline the economic promise of data analytics to drive dramatic productivity gains, particularly for industry and financial services. He will explore contrasting political debates in the United States and Europe over personal privacy and national security and analyse how these have influenced many of the assumptions that drive the regulation of data flows.
This event is open to coporate members only.
This event will be preceded by an informal, welcome reception from 12:15.
To enable as open a debate as possible, this event will be held under the Chatham House Rule.
Last August, the Business Roundtable – an association of CEOs of America’s biggest corporations – announced with great fanfare a “fundamental commitment to all of our stakeholders” and not just their shareholders.
They said “investing in employees, delivering value to customers, and supporting outside communities“ is now at the forefront of their business goals — not maximizing profits.
Baloney. Corporate social responsibility is a sham.
One Business Roundtable director is Mary Barra, CEO of General Motors. Just weeks after making the Roundtable commitment, and despite GM’s hefty profits and large tax breaks, Barra rejected workers’ demands that GM raise their wages and stop outsourcing their jobs. Earlier in the year GM shut its giant assembly plant in Lordstown, Ohio.
Nearly 50,000 GM workers then staged the longest auto strike in 50 years. They won a few wage gains but didn’t save any jobs. Barra was paid $22 million last year. How’s that for corporate social responsibility?
Another prominent CEO who made the phony Business Roundtable commitment was AT&T’s Randall Stephenson, who promised to use the billions in savings from the Trump tax cut to invest in the company’s broadband network and create at least 7,000 new jobs.
Instead, even before the coronavirus pandemic, AT&T cut more than 23,000 jobs and demanded that employees train lower-wage foreign workers to replace them.
Let’s not forget Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon and its Whole Foods subsidiary. Just weeks after Bezos made the Business Roundtable commitment, Whole Foods announced it would be cutting medical benefits for its entire part-time workforce.
The annual saving to Amazon from this cost-cutting move is roughly what Bezos – whose net worth is $117 billion – makes in a few hours. Bezos’ wealth grows so quickly, this number has gone up since you started watching this video.
GE’s CEO Larry Culp is also a member of the Business Roundtable. Two months after he made the commitment to all his stakeholders, General Electric froze the pensions of 20,000 workers in order to cut costs. So much for investing in employees.
Dennis Muilenburg, the former CEO of Boeing, also committed to the phony Business Roundtable pledge. Shortly after making the commitment to “deliver value to customers,” Muilenburg was fired for failing to act to address the safety problems that caused the 737 Max crashes that killed 346 people. After the crashes, he didn’t issue a meaningful apology or even express remorse to the victims’ families and downplayed the severity of the fallout to investors, regulators, airlines, and the public. He was rewarded with a $62 million farewell gift from Boeing on his way out.
Oh, and the chairman of the Business Roundtable is Jamie Dimon, CEO of Wall Street’s largest bank, JPMorgan Chase. Dimon lobbied Congress personally and intensively for the biggest corporate tax cut in history, and got the Business Roundtable to join him. JPMorgan raked in $3.7 billion from the tax cut. Dimon alone made $31 million in 2018.
That tax cut increased the federal debt by almost $2 trillion. This was before Congress spent almost $3 trillion fighting the pandemic – and delivering a hefty portion as bailouts to the biggest corporations, many of whom signed the Business Roundtable pledge.
As usual, almost nothing has trickled down to America’s working class and poor.
The truth is, American corporations are sacrificing workers and communities as never before in order to further boost runaway profits and unprecedented CEO pay. And not even a tragic pandemic is changing that.
Americans know this. A record 76 percent of U.S. adults believe major corporations have too much power.
The only way to make corporations socially responsible is through laws requiring them to be – for example, giving workers a bigger voice in corporate decision making, requiring that corporations pay severance to communities they abandon, raising corporate taxes, busting up monopolies, and preventing dangerous products (including faulty airplanes) from ever reaching the light of day.
If the CEOs of the Business Roundtable and other corporations were truly socially responsible, they’d support such laws, not make phony promises they clearly have no intention of keeping. Don’t hold your breath.
The only way to get such laws enacted is by reducing corporate power and getting big money out of our politics.
The first step is to see corporate social responsibility for the sham it is. The next step is to emerge from this pandemic and economic crisis more resolved than ever to rein in corporate power, and make the economy work for all.
(United States First Circuit) - The district court's preliminary injunction that restrained defendant, a former employee of plaintiff, from doing business with certain customers to whom he had sold products and services while in plaintiff's employ, is affirmed, where: 1) the identity of the party making initial contact is just one factor among many that the trial court should consider in drawing the line between solicitation and acceptance; 2) the evidence of record is adequate to underpin the lower court's determinations that defendant violated the non-solicitation covenant and that plaintiff is therefore likely to succeed on the merits; and 3) the district court narrowly tailored the preliminary injunction with respect to non-disclosure, enjoining only the use of information contained in defendant's notes.
More payday lending practice stories are coming out of the woodwork as ASIC says it is "building a casebook" for a possible ban.
Months after being given new powers, corporate watchdog ASIC is taking action against Gold Coast payday lender Cigno Loans, which is accused of exploiting vulnerable Australians.
By denying women their rights, we deny rights to the entire humanity for we are also ignoring the contribution of half of humanity.
Mark Kramer, managing director of FSG Social Impact Advisors.
The Corporate Whistleblower Center says, "We are appealing to a manager at a publicly traded company to call us anytime at 866-714-6466 if management is lying to investors about profitability or liabilities. Get rewarded for what you can prove."
The Corporate Whistleblower Center says, "If you work for a medical device/products company and your employer's product is defective-please call us at 866-714-6466 and hopefully get rewarded for what you know-and be a hero for consumers."
The Corporate Whistleblower Center says, "If you work for a contractor who calls his wife or girl friend the CEO of his construction company to get unfair treatment of federal or state bids-give us a call to discuss possibly significant rewards."
The Corporate Whistleblower Center is appealing to a MD or an RN to call them anytime at 866-714-6466 if they have proof a hospital is performing unnecessary medical procedures on Medicare and Medicaid patients-get a significant reward-save a life.
The Corporate Whistleblower Center says, "We are urging an employee at a drug rehab center that is supposed to be helping Medicaid patients with their drug addiction to call us if your employer is billing for services that didn't happen-get rewarded.
The Corporate Whistleblower Center is urging a RN. LPN or CNA to call them anytime at 866-714-6466 if they work for a long term care facility that is short on staff. There can be significant rewards for information about Medicare-Medicaid fraud.
The Corporate Whistleblower Center says, "COVID-19 was not supposed to be an opportunity for some hospitals to gouge Medicare-but we know this is happening. We are also urging states to stop dumping COVID-19 patients on nursing homes. It ends bad."
The Corporate Whistleblower Center is urging an employee of a medical device or drug company to call them anytime at 866-714-6466 if they possess proof their employer is selling consumers defective or dangerous products-Don't Get Mad-get rewarded!
The Corporate Whistleblower Center is an advocate for taxpayers, healthcare workers and patients and they are extremely worried the Coronavirus will explode in our nation's nursing homes and long term care facilities-because many are short staffed.
The Corporate Whistleblower Center is inviting a RN, LPN or CNA anywhere in the nation to call them at 866-714-6466 if they work far a nursing home that is so short staffed their patients are dying prematurely. This is a nationwide problem.
The Corporate Whistleblower Center says, "If you work for a healthcare provider that is gaming the Medicare system to keep their patients enrolled longer that they should have-please give us a call at 866-714-6466-especially if it is a IRF."
The Corporate Whistleblower Center is appealing to a hospital manager or MD to call them anytime at 866-714-6466 if their employer is involved in a scheme to gouge Medicare for unnecessary medical services. Get Rewarded!