Sharing Profits ─ The Ethics of Remuneration, Tax and Shareholder Returns

Any decision by a company on how it applies its profits – to pay tax, remuneration or shareholder returns - has ethical implications. Governments have failed to adapt legislation to match the business environment, notably with regard to the internet and globalisation – using tax as a source of comparative advantage but excoriating companies for tax avoidance. Using ethical rules to put strict limits on executive remuneration is unlikely to work, but it can provide a valuable framework for taking decisions. Shareholders are entitled to earn a return, and accepted asset allocation methods can help promote equality of opportunity, but will irreconcilably conflict with wider concerns about inequality. Companies need to adopt clear prioritised ethical frameworks of rights and duties to make informed decisions on how profits are used, and to be transparent about what values are used and how they are implemented. Sharing Profits reviews high-profile ethical issues facing companies in how profits are used, and proposes a framework for understanding the ethical implications of decisions.

John N. Reynolds is the author of Ethics in Investment Banking (with Edmund Newell). He has been described in the media variously as 'God's stockbroker', a 'world class investment banker' and 'highly intelligent but aggressive'. His 20 year career in investment banking covered equity research, mergers & acquisitions, financial restructuring and principal investment. He was a top rated equity analyst, led ground-breaking multi-billion dollar acquisitions, and successfully originated high-return investment strategies. Prior to becoming an investment banker John studied theology at Cambridge University. From 2006 to 2011 he chaired the Church of England Ethical Investment Advisory Group, which advises the Church's major investment bodies on ethical and governance issues in their global investment portfolio. He is currently a director of the Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church and a member of the Scottish Episcopal Church investment committee, as well as being a director of a number of companies. A Fellow of the Institution of Engineering & Technology, and a Fellow of the Energy Institute, John received an OBE in 2012 for his services to Save the Children.