On the Issues: Battles In the Boardroom

Introduced by veteran newscaster John Chancellor, this episode of the four-tape panel discussion series On the Issues features moderator Elizabeth Warren, a visiting professor of law at Harvard University, who leads several CEO's, journalists, and regulatory agency heads through a handful of tough scenarios. Like whether a CEO should pull down 1.5 million per annum or 2 million and chump change (which, of course, is the kind of question most of us face each day). Additional concerns include a money-hungry CEO who tries, on the verge of retirement, to drive the stock prices up with the announcement of a new product that may not be all he claims; cost-cutting decisions over exporting American plants; and the increasing propensity of shareholders taking an active role in their company's decisions. Does the mock panel really get down to the nitty gritty of power plays behind corporate closed doors? Please. The biting HBO movie Barbarians at the Gate offers more insight into Fortune 500 follies than does the opening half-hour of Battles in the Boardroom. Still, the program does pick up a bit during the second half, when discussions of transplanting factories and shareholder activism perk the interest of more than just folk with 7-figure incomes. The other titles in the series are: Washington Under the Influence, Sexual Politics at Work, and Products on Trial. While business and law schools will surely want to consider On the Issues, it's an optional purchase for others. (R. Pitman)