Business has a bad name for many people. It's easy to point to unethical and damaging behavior by companies, and it may seem straightforward to blame either individuals, or more generally, ruthless markets and amoral commercial society.  Dr. James Otteson argues that business activity can be valuable in itself. The primary purpose of honorable businesses is to create value - for all parties. They look for mutually beneficial transactions, so that all sides of any exchange benefit, leading to increased prosperity not just for one person or group at the expense of others, but for everyone involved. 

James R. Otteson is the Thomas W. Smith Presidential Chair in Business Ethics, Professor of Economics, and Executive Director of the Eudaimonia Institute at Wake Forest University. He received his undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame and his PhD from the University of Chicago. He specializes in political economy, political philosophy, business ethics, and the history of economic thought. He is author of Adam Smith's Marketplace of Life (2002), Actual Ethics (2006), and The End of Socialism (2014). His most recent books are The Essential Adam Smith (2018) and Honorable Business: A Framework for Business in a Just and Humane Society (2019).

This program is free and open to all. It is presented by The Center for Free Enterprise and is part of the Center's Menard Family Lecture Series and the BB&T Speaker Series.

Free pizza will be served to attendees.