19617: Stance or Strategy? The Challenging Terrain of Corporate Sociopolitical Activism

Sunday, July 27, 2025

10:15 - 11:45 CEST (GMT+2)

Location: Bella Center: Hall C- C1-m4

Session Type: Symposium (panel)
Orientation: Practice,International,Research,Diversity
Shareable link: https://cdmcd.co/ra6xYa

Organizer(s)

YL

Yu Li

U. of South Carolina, United States
BP

Beatrisa Pucalev

University of Mississippi, United States

Panelist(s)

AC

Andrew Crane

U. of Bath, United Kingdom
IM

Ishva Minefee

U. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States
HS

Haram Seo

Texas A&M U., Mays Business School, United States
GW

Georg Wernicke

HEC Paris, France
PW

Patrick Wright

U. of South Carolina, United States

Corporate sociopolitical activism (CSA), where companies take public stances on contentious sociopolitical issues such as climate change, LGBTQ rights, and gun control, is emerging as a provocative force reshaping the role of business in society. CSA literature mainly evolves around three critical inquiries—why, how, and what if firms engage in CSA? This panel symposium intends to extend these lines of research, emphasizing both the practical and theoretical challenges of CSA. Specifically, we will delve into key challenges, such as deciding whether to engage in CSA, aligning CSA with traditional corporate political activity, navigating CSA within multinational corporations, and examining the role of businesses in democratic processes. The symposium will highlight the theoretical tensions CSA introduces and offer future research directions in this emerging area.