Two out of three executives say they place their company’s interests ahead of national interests when making business decisions.
An equal amount said their primary motivation was earning as much as possible for their shareholders.
The results of the Greens Analyseinstitut poll fly in the face of calls by the prime minister for businesses to do their part to help create jobs in Denmark. Management specialist Steen Hildebrandt, of the University of Aarhus, said putting profit before patriotism was “only natural”.
“Corporate management has the best interests of shareholders in mind,” Hildebrandt added.
Other experts agreed, but some expected that the concept of creating value for shareholders would eventually come to include making contributions to the communities where businesses operate.
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