General
The inaugural Conference on Inclusive Capitalism, which took place on 27 May 2014, brought together leaders from across the world in finance, industry, economics and policy for an agenda-setting conference on the future of capitalism.
PURPOSE OF THE CONFERENCE
- The first Conference on Inclusive Capitalism aimed to define and set out the reasons why all societies need Inclusive Capitalism, including:
- Affirming the ethical basis of capitalism and the responsibility of business to rebuild trust
- Extending the benefits of capitalism by increasing opportunity, facilitating mobility and stimulating employment growth, including by matching education to the jobs society needs
- Taking a long-term approach to business strategy and investment that balances fiduciary duties and stakeholder expectations
- Scaling inclusive capitalism into a global movement through the efforts of all stakeholders
Participants
- Lionel Barber
- Dominic Barton – Global Managing Director, McKinsey
- Philippe Camus
- Mark Carney
- David Cote
- Tony O Elumelu, CON – Chairman, Heirs Holdings
- Sergio P Ermotti
- Chrystia Freeland
- Jeremy Grantham
- Philipp Hildebrand
- Jin Keyu
- Lim Chow Kiat
- Christine Lagarde
- Guilherme Leal
- Jin Liqun
- Professor Roger Martin
- John Micklethwait
- Adrian Orr – Chief Executive Officer, New Zealand Superannuation Fund
- Sir John Peace
- Paul Polman – Chief Executive Officer, Unilever
- Stuart Roden
- Lady Lynn Forester de Rothschild – Founder and Chief Executive
- David Sainsbury
- Eric Schmidt
- Michael Sommer
- Ng Kok Song
- Lawrence H Summers
- Tidjane Thiam
- His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales
- Mark Wiseman- Global Head of Active Equities, BlackRock
- Sir Andrew Witty
- Martin Wolf CBE – Chief Economics Commentator, Financial Times
- Adrian Wooldridge
- Alderman Fiona Woolf
- Dr Fang Xinghai
- Chen Yilong – Chairman and President, Sunshine Kaidi New Energy Group
Agenda
8:00 am – Breakfast and Registration
9:00 am – Opening Remarks
Fiona Woolf, Lord Mayor of the City of London
9:05 am – Opening address
HRH The Prince of Wales
9:10 am – Conference Introduction
Lynn Forester de Rothschild, Chief Executive, E.L. Rothschild
9:15 am – Keynote address: Economic inclusion and financial integrity
Christine Lagarde, Managing Director, International Monetary Fund
9:45 am – Panel:
‘The social responsibility of business is to increase its profits’ ~Milton Friedman
Milton Friedman was highly critical of attempts by business to promote “desirable social ends” over and above the pursuit of profit. In his famous essay of 1970, he argued that the esponsibility of corporate executives is to act solely in the interests of the shareholders of the company. In 2014, in light of growing public resentment toward finance and business, many argue that usiness should actively assume a much broader role in society that addresses the demands of other key stakeholders, alongside their duty to create shareholder value. This session will explore why and how usinesses and investors are changing their strategies and practices to build value and renew trust.
Jeremy Grantham, Co-Founder and Chief Investment Officer, GMO
Roger Martin, Academic Director, Martin Prosperity Institute, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, and author, Fixing the Game
Paul Polman, Chief Executive Officer, Unilever
Mark Wiseman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board
MODERATOR: Adrian Wooldridge, Management Editor and Schumpeter Columnist The Economist
10:30 am – Panel: What can businesses do to facilitate a shift to values and purpose-led approach?
Adam Smith assumed that prudence, justice, generosity and self-control would underpin the capitalist system and create a society with high levels of trust in its institutions and an economy with fair competition, broad-based opportunity and free exchange. The global financial crisis and corporate scandals of the last decade have brought these assumptions into serious doubt and have hurt capitalism’s reputation. Cultivating values-led and purpose-driven cultures inside firms is vital if we are to restore public trust in business and demonstrate the benefits of capitalism to all of its stakeholders. This session will look at the specific ways that companies are tackling the challenge of establishing corporate cultures and good business practices at all levels of their organisations, and how they are renewing a sense of corporate purpose.
Sergio Ermotti, Group Chief Executive Officer, UBS
Sir Andrew Witty, Chief Executive Officer, GlaxoSmithKline
MODERATOR: Chrystia Freeland, Member of Canadian Parliament
11:00 am – Coffee/Tea Break
11:20 am – Panel: How labour and management can work together to increase the benefits of capitalism
Labour’s share of national income has been falling across much of the world since the 1980s. Productivity gains no longer seem to be generating more jobs or better pay for workers. hat needs to change so that capitalism once again provides broad opportunities for work and advancement? The example given by Germany suggests that it is possible for businesses to be both highly competitive and to maintain decent wages; to pursue ever greater productivity while also protecting the rights and dignity of workers. Other models, which include broad-based profit-sharing and forms of employee ownership, are being put forward as a means to align the interests of workers and employers in ways that benefit both parties, improving company performance while increasing worker well-being. At the same time, there is increasing awareness among corporate leaders and policy- makers of the importance of investing in education and training to give workers the skills they need to improve their prospects. This session will explore how labour, management and capital can partner to create jobs, boost training, and generally increase the benefits of capitalism for both workers and their employers.
Philippe Camus, Chairman, Alcatel-Lucent
Jin Liqun, Chairman, China International Capital Corporation
Sir Charlie Mayfield, Chairman, John Lewis Partnership, and Chair, UK Commission on Employment and Skills
MODERATOR: Zanny Minton Beddoes, Economics Editor, The Economist
12:00 pm – Panel: The role of innovation in boosting growth and opportunity
A debate has begun across the world about this new era of automation and technological change. Enthusiasts point towards the gains in productivity and the rising prosperity generated y innovation, which should lead to wealthier societies with greater demand for goods, services and labour. Pessimists question whether it will be possible to find new uses for labour at the pace at which innovation is displacing mid-skilled jobs and disrupting the jobs market overall. This session will address whether innovation can be directed to create enough jobs and prosperity for a growing global population, and what actions need to be taken by business and government to mitigate the harsher effects of technological change.
Lord David Sainsbury
Eric Schmidt, Executive Chairman, Google
Chen Yilong, President, Sunshine Kaidi New Energy Group
MODERATOR: Lionel Barber, Editor, Financial Times
12:40 pm – Lunch
1:35 pm – Viewpoint
Lawrence H. Summers, Charles W. Eliot University Professor at Harvard
2:00 pm – Panel: Which type of capitalism works best to build economic and social value?
In light of increasing inequality, sluggish job growth and deepening global discontent with business and political institutions, key thought leaders from different political and ultural systems explore the various types of capitalism that have evolved around the world and whether some have a greater capacity than others to solve economic problems and create social value.
Lawrence H. Summers, Charles W. Eliot University Professor at Harvard
Tony Elumelu, Chairman, Heirs Holdings
Fang Xinghai, Adjunct Professor, China Europe International Business School (CEIBS)
Ng Kok Song, Chair, GIC Global Investments
MODERATOR: John Micklethwait, Editor-in-Chief, The Economist
2:50 pm – Panel: How can corporate CEOs drive the long-term agenda?
Despite significant discussion of the benefits of adopting a long-term strategy, businesses are still failing to make the transition away from an excessive focus on maximising short term results. This session will gather CEOs from a range of sectors to look at the specific actions that must be taken within businesses to shift to a long-term approach, including redefining company objectives and implementing board-level strategies to achieve them; changing what companies measure and identifying long-term metrics indicative of future value creation; improving how companies communicate with investors; recalibrating management and employee incentives to support a long-term strategy, and fostering corporate spirations to achieve long-term goals.
David M. Cote, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Honeywell
Guilherme Leal, Co-founder and Board Member, Natura and Founder, Arapyaú Institute
Andrew Liveris, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, The Dow Chemical Company
Tidjane Thiam, Group Chief Executive, Prudential
MODERATOR: Dominic Barton, Managing Director, McKinsey and Company
3:35 pm – Coffee/Tea Break
3:55 pm – Panel: How can large institutional investors and asset managers drive the long-term agenda?
It is unrealistic to expect leaders of public companies to resist the continuing pressure from financial markets to maximise short-term results without stronger support from investors themselves. The most effective way to counter short-termism is for the investment strategies of the largest players in the market – the big asset owners, which include pension funds, insurance firms, sovereign wealth funds, endowments and mutual funds – to take a long-term approach in public markets. This session will gather leading owners and managers of capital to discuss the strategies they re implementing to maximise long-term results and thereby support greater corporate investment, higher economic growth and better returns.
Elroy Dimson, Chairman, Strategy Council, Norwegian Government Pension Fund Global
Philipp Hildebrand, Vice Chairman, BlackRock
Lim Chow Kiat, Group Chief Investment Officer, GIC
Adrian Orr, Chief Executive Officer, New Zealand Superannuation Fund
MODERATOR: Dominic Barton, Managing Director, McKinsey and Company
4:40 pm – Chair’s summary: Polling questions
Dominic Barton, Managing Director, McKinsey and Company
4:50 pm – Introduction of closing Keynote speaker
Lynn Forester de Rothschild, Chief Executive, E.L. Rothschild
5:00 pm – Keynote address: A way forward
President Bill Clinton, Founder of the Clinton Foundation and 42nd President of the United States
6:00 pm – Closing remarks
Fiona Woolf, Lord Mayor of the City of London
6:30 pm – Cocktail Reception
7:15 pm – Call to Dinner
7:55 pm – Introduction
Fiona Woolf, Lord Mayor of the City of London
8:00 pm – Keynote address
QA with audience
Mark Carney, Governor, Bank of England
CHAIR: Zanny Minton Beddoes, Economics Editor, The Economist
9:30 am – Entertainment
INTRODUCED BY: Lynn Forester de Rothschild, Chief Executive, E.L. Rothschild
9:50 pm – Closing remarks
Invitation to guests for after-dinner drinks in the Crypt
Fiona Woolf, Lord Mayor of the City of London
11:30 pm – Guests depart
