Corporate Political Strategy

By electing politicians who appoint regulators, voters effectively set the “rules of the game” for all businesses. Recognizing this, firms invest resources to glean information about future political developments and shape their disclosure practices to potentially influence political outcomes. In this class, we will learn how businesses leverage information dynamics to manage the risks and opportunities presented by political systems. We will examine government regulation of industry, activist and public interest groups, the role of lobbying and campaign contributions in the policymaking process, ethical frameworks for corporate political strategy, and other related topics. Examples and cases will be drawn from the United States, developed democracies, and emerging markets.