Adam Smith - Modern Study of Economics

Adam Smith founded the modern study of economics on the premise that all businesses are driven by the invisible hand to seek as much profit as possible while society will take care of itself. However, as the public’s opinion of big business has steadily declined in the recent decades, big business has developed a social conscience to improve all aspects of society from worker compensation to protecting the environment to helping the needy. As Stephen Cook indicates in the January 2003 edition of Management Today: “Everyone cares these days. You can hardly walk through the door of a major company in the western world without tripping over stacks of glossy reports telling you how they care for the environment, their community, their stakeholders.” John G. Ruggie believes that the increase in corporate social responsibility (CSR) stems from three reasons.Adam Smith founded the modern study of economics on the premise that all businesses are driven by the invisible hand to seek as much profit as possible while society will take