Do Shareholders Come First?

One of the main objections for the stakeholder management has been between Shareholders and other stakeholders. Noted Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman has been quoted as profit maximization is the only goal for the corporation. This is on the premise that the shareholders are the true owners of the company. One need to go to the purpose of the corporation as it affects several other players in the society. It is known that there is no business without customers. Similarly there cannot be a product or service without the cooperation of the suppliers. Employees of the company are the first to be affected directly by what happens to the company. There is significant synergetic relationship between the company and its employees. Corporate entities have also impact on the environment of the community in which they are located. Polluting units may make profits for the shareholders but they would not be adding real value to the society unless they are obliged to take effective anti-pollution steps. A business must integrate social perspectives into its business and competitive strategy to put these principles into practice. Almost every activity a business's value changes, touches on the community in which it operates.This paper is an attempt to look at the contribution of various stakeholders for the survival and growth of the firm and also looks at the changes that has taken place in the last 50 years on the ownership patterns due to advancement in Information technology as well as the perceptions of the different types of stakeholders today on this issue