Corporate Purpose and Sustainable Decision Making: Examples from Dutch Corporate Practice

In this contribution we examine the state of the art of purpose statements in Dutch corporate practice. We discuss the general debate on corporate purpose, explore differences between purpose and related terms such as mission and vision, and outline the legal qualification and effects of purpose statements. We also review the Dutch legal background against which purpose statements are used, present empirical findings on the use of these statements over the past decade, and reflect on their value for the sustainable future of companies in a Dutch and European corporate law setting.Overall, we identify that discussions on corporate purpose have influenced Dutch corporate practice. We demonstrate a notable increase in such statements over the past decade and show that they have become increasingly oriented towards sustainability and extrinsic aims. We do not, however, infer from these developments that purpose statements have had a standalone, positive effect on the sustainability of companies since they are often vaguely formulated, seldom included in articles of association, and are typically formulated as a voluntary act by the board. Ultimately, we conclude that the effectiveness of corporate purposes depends on how companies implement them within the regulatory context that is provided by society.