. Bell telephone magazine . owa and one of the speakers at the symposium,observed that businessmen today are torn betweentwo obligations: one to society as a whole and theother to the concept of free enterprise. Most busi-nessmen, he said, are quite rightly . . deeply con-scious of limitations on their power to choose policieswhich deviate very far from their profit-makinginterests. They feel, and they are, hemmed in by com-petition, by labor unions, by government control, andby the need to protect their sources of capital. Theirroom for maneuver is severely limited. And yet despite these limi
. Bell telephone magazine . owa and one of the speakers at the symposium,observed that businessmen today are torn betweentwo obligations: one to society as a whole and theother to the concept of free enterprise. Most busi-nessmen, he said, are quite rightly . . deeply con-scious of limitations on their power to choose policieswhich deviate very far from their profit-makinginterests. They feel, and they are, hemmed in by com-petition, by labor unions, by government control, andby the need to protect their sources of capital. Theirroom for maneuver is severely limited. And yet despite these limitations, the speakers atChicago pointed out, more and more companies arefinding that opportunities are open to them, thata balance between social and economic obligationscan be reached. As a result, many businesses arebreaking away from the traditional, somewhat pas-sive, concept of social responsibility that once pre-vailed. Gone are the days when social responsibilitystopped at contributing to the Community Chest — 11. The economic contribution a person makes is influenced by thehome he was raised in, the schools he attended, the food he ate— or didnt eat. Moreover, our economic institutions must bear aportion of the guilt we all share for the continuation of discrimi-nation in its various forms . . Gardner Ackley, chairman. Councilof Economic Advisors. worthy though that may be. Social responsibility inthat sense, said Harvards Emmanuel G. Mesthene,is what the original Rockefeller was dispensing inthe form of shiny new dimes. Todays businessman has come to recognize thathis responsibility to society is much greater — and notjust from a humanitarian standpoint. Everything thataffects the life of a community, affects the companiesthat do business there. Mr. Cook said. If the com-munity prospers, the companies are in a position to prosper, too If the community is gripped by social unrest, this unrest will seep into the local businessesand take its toll. In a way — as on
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