Corporate ethics and governance

Embracing corporate governance and ethics should not just be a box-ticking exercise, but a strategic investment in the long-term sustainability and success of your small business. By committing to principles of integrity, transparency and accountability, you earn the trust of stakeholders, customers and the broader community – enhancing  your brand’s reputation and credibility.

This collection of educational resources, including books, articles and reports, provides actionable guidance for small business owners to establish and maintain sound corporate governance frameworks and ethical business practices.

Books:

1. Corporate Governance: Principles, Policies, and Practices by Bob Tricker – Written by the ‘father of corporate governance’, this text is an authoritative guide to the frameworks of power that govern organisations.
2. Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making & Cases by O. C. Ferrell and John Fraedrich – Using a proven managerial framework, this accessible, applied text addresses the overall concepts, processes, and best practices associated with successful business ethics programs – helping readers see how ethics can be integrated into key strategic business decisions.
3. A Better World, Inc.: Corporate Governance for an Inclusive, Sustainable, and Prosperous Future by Alice Korngold – This book is organised to address environmental, social and governance practices, which are priority interests for investors, media, the public, government and others to assess company practices and profitability.

Articles:

1. The Five Pillars Of Good Corporate Governance by Forbes – To help ensure good corporate governance, here are five key pillars you should focus on.
2. A Guide to the Big Ideas and Debates in Corporate Governance by Harvard Business Review – The issue of how shareholder interests should be considered in corporate decision making is particularly contentious. This article is a resource for understanding today’s key debates around governance and identifying the main areas in which changes are being called for.

Reports:

1. Corporate governance reporting highlights by Deloitte – In making this report, Deloitte hope to help companies deliver more effective reporting and provide the information which investors and wider stakeholders seek.
2. Governance for all: the implementation challenge for SMEs by ACCA – This report aims to encourage understanding of what corporate governance means for SMEs.
3. Corporate governance framework by gov.uk – This document sets out the responsibilities and procedures that the SSRO use to make sure they govern their organisation to a high standard.

Podcasts:

1. Engage Governance by CGIUKI – A podcast from CGIUKI covering a range of subjects for governance professionals through a range of conversations, monologues and discussions to help you improve your technical knowledge and skills.
2. The Voice of Corporate Governance by CII – The Voice of Corporate Governance is the number #1 rated corporate governance podcast by FeedSpot. The target audience for their podcast is CII Members, other institutional investors, public companies, securities lawyers, proxy advisory firms and other institutional investor service providers.

The resources highlighted above offer a comprehensive foundation for small business owners to understand and implement effective corporate governance frameworks and ethical practices.