Recently in Business Studies, we have been trialling some advanced level research questions to challenge those students who feel they would like to stretch themselves intellectually. Below is an extract from an essay written by Harry Smith in Year 11 and a link if you wish to read the full document. I’m sure you will agree, Harry has certainly risen to the challenge. There were a number of other excellent pieces of work that we would love to showcase, but sadly we’re unable to show them all. Nevertheless, congratulations to all those accepting the challenge.

Mrs Hawley

Subject Lead for Business Studies

The late economist Milton Friedman was famously quoted to have said, “The business of business is business.” Discuss

In an article from the New York Times published in 1970, Milton Friedman wrote about “the social responsibility of business” being to maximise profits. These profits were only to be returned to the firms’ owners (shareholders and sole traders) and could be put to charitable associations to bear the social responsibility as the stake holders see fit, if at all.

Whilst Friedman’s work often included philosophical economic theories, Friedman was a known advisor to some of the most influential politicians of the 1980’s, Republican President Ronald Reagan, and Conservative Prime Minister Margret Thatcher. A poignant relevance to this is the Thatcher administration and the privatisation of government run industries, this extends to Friedmans political philosophies and virtues of free market economy with minimal government in social matters… (read on)