全球视野 | 什么是“股东基金会”?为什么巴塔哥尼亚创始人要用这种结构来经营公司?

 
 
 
 

 

当一个公司(比如巴塔哥尼亚)将所有权转让给非营利组织时会发生什么?

What Happens When a Company (Like Patagonia) Transfers Ownership to a Nonprofit?

 

作者:

Arthur Gautier与Joel Bothello

来源:

哈佛商业评论/Harvard Business Review

 

 
 
 

文章《What Happens When a Company (Like Patagonia) Transfers Ownership to a Nonprofit?/当一个公司(比如巴塔哥尼亚)将所有权转让给非营利组织时会发生什么?》发布在哈佛商业评论/ Harvard Business Review上。作者是Arthur Gautier与Joel Bothello。Arthur Gautier是ESSEC商学院的助理教授和ESSEC慈善讲座的执行主任。Joel Bothello是康考迪亚大学复原力和机构研究主席,也是考迪亚大学约翰·莫尔森商学院管理学系的副教授。两位作者介绍了目前巴塔哥尼亚公司所采用的所有权结构——股东基金会。股东基金会虽然目前在美国还算新鲜,但在欧洲已经蓬勃发展了几十年。通过对于欧洲的股东基金会的研究,作者们认为股东基金会在财务表现、创始人遗产管理以及慈善事业上更具优势,虽然股东基金会也会面临关于公司治理方面的挑战。

 
 

 

 

On September 14, Yvon Chouinard, the owner of Patagonia, publicly donated all his voting stock to the Patagonia Purpose Trust, and all his nonvoting stock to the Holdfast Collective, a nonprofit organization “dedicated to fighting the environmental crisis and defending nature.” The move was intended to shield the company from the “pressure to create short-term gain at the expense of long-term vitality and responsibility,” while simultaneously creating long-term funding for philanthropic causes around environmentalism. 

 

9月14日,巴塔哥尼亚公司的老板伊冯·乔伊纳德/Yvon Chouinard公开将其所有有投票权的股票捐赠给巴塔哥尼亚目的信托基金,并将其所有无投票权的股票捐赠给Holdfast Collective。这是一家“致力于对抗环境危机和捍卫自然”的非营利性组织。此举旨在保护公司免受“以牺牲长期活力和责任为代价,创造短期利益的压力”,同时为关于环保的慈善事业创造长期资金。 

 

Patagonia’s move follows other American companies that have undergone a similar transformation in ownership structure. For instance, the family-owned, Pennsylvania-based construction firm High Industries, which had revenues of $570 million in 2021, announced earlier this year that their eponymous High Foundation would assume control and ownership. A few years ago, such arrangements would have been impossible; a 1969 tax-reform law limited foundation ownership in corporations to 20%. In 2018, however, new tax legislation passed allowing charitable organizations to hold 100% of voting rights in a corporation. Accordingly, we can expect to see more of these foundations emerge in the future. 

 

在巴塔哥尼亚采取这一举措之前,其他美国的公司也在所有权结构上经历了类似的转变。例如,位于宾夕法尼亚州的家族式建筑公司High Industries。该公司2021年的收入为5.7亿美元,在今年早些时候宣布他们同名的High基金会将接管公司的控制权和所有权。几年前,这种安排还是不可能的。美国1969年的税收改革法将基金会在公司的所有权限制在20%。然而,在2018年新的税收立法通过,允许慈善组织在公司中持有100%的投票权。因此,我们可以期待在未来看到更多这样的基金会出现。 

 

Outside of the U.S., this form of ownership is not new. “Shareholder foundations” have quietly prospered for decades in continental Europe, particularly in Denmark, where a quarter of the largest 100 firms are foundation-owned, including the three largest firms in the country: Carlsberg, Maersk, and Novo Nordisk. In many instances, the initiative comes from successful senior entrepreneurs like Chouinard, who decide to bequeath ownership of their company to a newly created foundation to ensure the long-term stability of both business and philanthropic activities. In some cases, a foundation controls both voting and equity shares. In others, like Patagonia, two entities are formed: a trust or holding retaining control through voting rights, and a foundation with the equity and philanthropic activities. 

 

在美国之外,这种所有权形式并不新鲜。几十年来,“股东基金会”在欧洲大陆悄无声息地蓬勃发展,特别是在丹麦。在丹麦,那里最大的100家公司中,有四分之一是基金会拥有的,包括该国最大的三家公司:嘉士伯、马士基以及诺和诺德。在许多情况下,这一举措来源于像乔伊纳德这样成功的资深企业家,他们决定将其公司的所有权留给一个新成立的基金会,以确保商业和慈善活动的长期稳定。在某些情况下,基金会同时控制投票权和股权。在其他情况下,如巴塔哥尼亚公司,则会成立两个实体:一个是通过投票权来保留控制权的信托或控股公司,一个是拥有股权和慈善活动的基金会。 

 

In collaboration with the philanthropy consultancy firm Prophil, we have studied shareholder foundations in Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, and France and have developed important insights on how they operate. 

 

在与慈善咨询公司Prophil的合作下,我们研究了丹麦、德国、瑞士和法国的股东基金会,并对它们的运作方式提出了重要见解。 

 

Firstly, despite claims that firms will flounder without human owners and “market discipline,” foundation-owned firms have similar (and in some cases superior) financial performance compared with their investor-owned counterparts. Danish corporate governance researchers have demonstrated the benefits of this ownership structure: Foundation-owned firms have more stable growth, are less volatile during crises, invest more in R&D, and have a longer lifespan compared with conventionally owned firms. 

 

首先,尽管有人声称,如果没有人类所有者和“市场纪律”,公司将举步维艰。但与投资者拥有的公司相比,基金会拥有的公司具有类似的(在某些情况下甚至是更高的)财务业绩。丹麦公司治理研究人员已经证明了这种所有权结构的好处。基金会拥有的公司有更稳定的增长,在危机期间波动较小,在研发方面投资更多,与传统拥有的公司相比有更长的寿命。 

 

The second insight concerns philanthropy. For firms listed on the stock market, corporate philanthropy is “nice to have,” but is often secondary to profit maximization. Oftentimes, the two are in conflict: For instance, out of thousands of companies accorded B-Corp (Benefit Corporation) certification, only four have managed to go public in the U.S., one of which surrendered its status shortly after being listed in order to become more profit-oriented. The shareholder foundation model pragmatically overcomes this tradeoff: Because the shareholder is a philanthropic foundation, maximizing shareholder returns (via dividends) also maximizes potential donations. Given the size and revenues of many foundation-owned firms, the philanthropic budgets of shareholder foundations can be substantial. 

 

第二个见解是关于慈善事业的。对于在股票市场上市的公司来说,公司的慈善事业是“不错的选择”,但往往排在利润最大化之后。很多时候,这两者是相互冲突的。例如,在数千家获得B-Corp/共益企业认证的公司中,只有四家成功在美国上市。其中一家在上市后不久就放弃了它的认证,以便变得更加以利润为导向。股东基金会模式务实地克服了这种权衡:因为公司股东是一个慈善基金会,最大化股东回报(通过分红)也能最大化潜在的捐赠。鉴于许多基金会所拥有的公司的规模和收入,股东基金会的慈善预算可能会是很可观的。 

 

A third insight concerns legacy. For firm owners focused on maintaining their economic and philanthropic mission in the long term, there are few compelling options available to them. Selling or listing a company rarely leaves the founder’s vision intact, but family succession is no less problematic because subsequent generations might mismanage it. Beyond this, there is the risk in some countries that high succession taxes will dilute ownership over time. As a result, only 10% of family businesses survive as privately-owned entities by the third generation, as exemplified by the adage “shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations.” The foundation skirts this issue by creating an entity that will guard the values of the founder in perpetuity — even if that means their children relinquish much (if not all) their inheritance in the process. 

 

第三个见解与遗产有关。对于专注于长期保持其经济和慈善使命的公司所有者来说,他们几乎找不到有吸引力的选择。出售或上市一家公司很少能使创始人的愿景保持完整但家族继承的问题也不小,因为后人可能会管理不善。除此之外,在一些国家,随着时间的推移,高额的继承税将会导致所有权稀释的风险。因此,到第三代时,只有10%的家族企业能以私有实体的形式存活下来,正如“富不过三代”的这句谚语所说的那样。基金会通过创建一个实体来回避这个问题,该实体将永久捍卫创始人的价值观。即使这意味着他们的子女在这个过程中放弃了大部分(如果不是全部)他们的遗产。 

 

Nonetheless, our research has also revealed important governance considerations that Patagonia will face. The first is board composition: What balance must be struck in terms of corporate, philanthropic, and family representation, to ensure that no one party dominates decision-making in the long-term? Another involves decisions around profit allocation: Should profit be issued as a dividend to fund philanthropic activities or reinvested back in the firm? A third question involves whether to integrate philanthropy with corporate activities: As an example, the Novo Nordisk foundation funds basic science at Danish universities, and in doing so develops research (and researchers) that may benefit their pharmaceutical firms. If Patagonia followed a similar path, would it appear self-serving? 

 

尽管如此,我们的研究也揭示了巴塔哥尼亚将面临的重要治理考虑。第一个是董事会组成。董事会的组成必须在公司、慈善和家庭代表方面取得什么样的平衡,以确保没有任何一方在长期决策中占主导地位?另一个涉及到利润分配的决策。利润是应该作为股息发放,为慈善活动提供资金,还是应该再投资于公司?第三个问题涉及是否将慈善活动与企业活动相结合。例如,诺和诺德基金会资助丹麦大学的基础科学,并在这样做的过程中开展可能使其制药公司受益的研究(和研究人员)。如果巴塔哥尼亚走上类似的道路,它会显得是在图私利吗? 

 

These challenges should discourage neither Chouinard nor his family (who will be involved in the decision-making of both entities). Many foundation-owned companies that establish a successful balance go on to outperform their competition on multiple dimensions. Take the Robert Bosch Group, for instance, which is 94% owned by the Robert Bosch Foundation and 5% by the family, while their major competitor, the Siemens Group, is 65% owned by institutional investors like BlackRock, 23% by private investors, and 6% by the Siemens family. These are comparable companies: two leading German conglomerates, competitors in several markets, with similar economic performance (about 80 billion euros in sales and 5 billion euros in net income). However, as a shareholder, the Bosch Foundation spends roughly 100 million euros annually in philanthropic donations. That’s 10 times the amount distributed yearly by the Siemens Foundation, a traditional corporate foundation. The structure also provides an element of stability and resilience in turbulent times. In contrast to Siemens, Bosch avoided massive layoffs during the Great Recession while increasing sales and remaining profitable over the subsequent decade. 

 

这些挑战不应使乔伊纳德和他的家人(他们将参与两个实体的决策)感到沮丧。许多基金会拥有的公司建立了成功的平衡,然后在多个方面超越了竞争对手。以罗伯特·博世集团为例,该公司94%的股份由罗伯特·博世基金会拥有,5%由家族拥有,而他们的主要竞争对手西门子集团65%由贝莱德等机构投资者拥有,23%由私人投资者拥有,6%由西门子家族拥有。这是两个可以比较的公司。这两家都是领先的德国企业集团,是在几个市场上的竞争对手,且有着相似的经济表现(约800亿欧元的销售额和50亿欧元的净收入)。然而,作为股东,博世基金会每年在慈善捐款上花费约1亿欧元。这个数字是西门子基金会每年分配金额的10倍,而西门子基金会是一个传统的企业基金会。这种结构还提供了在动荡时期稳定和弹性的元素。与西门子形成鲜明对比的是,博世在大衰退期间避免了大规模裁员,同时增加了销售额,并在接下来的十年里保持盈利。 

 

As shareholder foundations become adopted by more American companies, they will undoubtedly be shaped by the legal, cultural and political environment in the U.S., which differs starkly from those in European economies. Nonetheless, such foundations have a track record of success, resilience and responsibility in many of the countries in which they are present. In uncertain times characterized by market volatility, rising inequality, and ecological crises, Chouinard will hopefully inspire more successful business owners to explore the possibilities of foundation ownership. 

 

随着股东基金会被更多的美国公司所采用,它们无疑将被美国的法律、文化和政治环境所左右,因为美国的环境与欧洲经济体的环境截然不同。然而,这种基金会在许多国家都有关于其成功的、具有弹性和责任感的记录。在这个以市场波动、不平等加剧和生态危机为特征的不确定时代,乔伊纳德有望激励更多成功的企业主探索基金会所有权的可能性。

 

关键句翻译

 

国家发展改革委、国家统计局、生态环境部已于近日公布《关于加快建立统一规范的碳排放统计核算体系实施方案》,明确建立全国及地方碳排放统计核算制度。那么碳排放统计核算制度的英文是什么?

 

Carbon Emission Calculation System

calculation n. 计算

emission n. 排放 

翻译、撰稿:丁适于(杭州市基金会发展促进会)

 

 

 

 

杭基会是由杭州地区致力于推动基金会行业发展的社会组织、企事业单位等机构和个人自愿结成的联合型、枢纽型社会团体,是继深圳市基金会发展促进会后,国内第二个专门针对区域基金会行业的联合性组织。

 

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杭基会的宗旨是遵守宪法、法律、法规和国家政策,践行社会主义核心价值观,遵守社会道德风尚,推动杭州市公益慈善事业持续、健康、快速发展。根据《中华人民共和国慈善法》的有关依法成立慈善行业组织的规定,促进基金会行业自律机制建设,健全基金会行业运作规范,加强对基金会行业的服务,提升基金会行业专业水平和社会公信力。

 

 

创建时间:2022-11-07