The demand for harmony does not mean that society should abandon its right to limit the exercise of economic power on the part of the corporation.
Economic purpose does not mean that the corporation should be free from social obligations. On the contrary it should be so organized as to fulfill, automatically, its social obligations in the very act of seeking its own self-interest. An individual society based on the corporation can function only if the corporation contributes to social stability and to the achievement of social aims independent of the goodwill or the social consciousness of individual corporation managements.
At the same time, the demand for harmony does not mean that society should abandon its needs and aims and its right to limit the exercise of economic power on the part of the corporation. On the contrary, it is a vital function of rulership to set the frame within which institutions and individuals act. But, society must be organized so that there is no temptation to enact, in the name of social stability or social beliefs, measures that are inimical to the survival and stability of its representative institutions.
ACTION POINT: Until early in 2004 many well-known mutual funds permitted large customers to trade funds after the close of business, which gave these large customers the advantage of knowing the sell price at the time of sale, a benefit unavailable to the common shareholder. Send an e-mail to the chairman of a mutual fund in which you own shares and ask for proof that you were not harmed by this practice.
Concept of the Corporation
* Source: The Daily Drucker by Peter F. Drucker