Governments around the world have a duty to provide an enabling environment in which businesses can flourish. As in many other countries where the capital city drives the economy, London is the ‘beating heart’ of the UK; it serves not only as the capital of the UK, but also as the financial capital of Europe. It is in London that the UK government is based and where it makes its decisions.
The government should be recognised as the custodian of stability in the country. However, this appears to be a tall order for the UK government when considering various events in the UK and around the world. When the government is known to be in financial uncertainty or unable to deal with an economic crisis ─ or is unable to win an absolute majority or even to agree on matters that affect citizens or communities ─ the need to look elsewhere arises. As a result, there is a sense of insecurity, and fears abound about whether social programmes can be achieved. The only other ‘structured and organised’ entities are businesses and companies headed by corporate managers. They must carry the burden that the government is slowly off-loading.
Decisions made by top-level managers, and implemented by middle-level managers, remain the driving force of businesses. Consider the issue of bank bonuses, which despite being blamed for causing the 2008 financial crisis, have not been stopped by the government. Attempts by the UK government to rein in the city bosses and organisations have vanished into thin air. Although the government argued strongly for corporate parsimony, corporate managers soundly rejected its desire for bank bonuses to be reduced. They stated that this would have a negative effect on the UK’s competitiveness ─ and a domino effect on employees, investors, competitors and the community. So, the government had to back down.
On a positive note, the corporate world has continued to improve its image by appearing to be stable or to recover quickly in the wake of harsh economic realities. As agents of their organisations, these corporate managers are expected to make decisions that benefit many different stakeholders:
- They must decide how to invest for the benefit of their principals
- They must steer their organisations through a dynamic business environment, hoping for profits
- They must ensure that they support the government’s programmes of creating and sustaining jobs
- They must also ensure that they identify and support good causes in the communities that host their organisations.
The success of their organisations is dependent on how well they serve all these stakeholders.
How can corporate and tactical managers achieve all this? First, they should identify and anticipate the changing interests and expectations of all stakeholders, including the local community. In London, for instance, rising levels of youth unemployment are a major challenge. By identifying and appreciating this, corporate managers can be proactive in devising effective responses. Second, they should develop policies to sustain the financial and operational stability of their organisations, and showcase these policies to their stakeholders through well-considered long-term management plans, which would include anticipated salary increments, opportunities for apprenticeship and searches for new markets, to mention but a few. These issues indicate that the corporate world has become very influential in the country.
It is evident that the role of corporate managers is becoming increasingly important. Corporate bodies, with their direct or indirect influence on national policies, have continued to show stability and resilience in a way unmatched by governments. Organisations must therefore evolve alongside their stakeholders in order to be stable and responsive to the dynamic needs of all parties involved.
