As corporate governance is becoming increasingly moralized, corporations can easily get conflicted in their decision-making process. Doing what is (seen as) right, is no longer clear, if it ever fully was. Public and private calls to action recently are more frequent, vocal and are often directly aimed at the corporation itself, its board and its strategy development and execution. Most of these calls are well-intentioned. However, they impose new requirements that are altogether rather difficult to integrate within current business affairs. Even in cases in which these requirements are suitable for instant implementation, they do inflict additional agency costs.

This is the fourth issue of the Compliance, Ethics & Sustainability journal of 2024 with a focus on Corporate governance and Stakeholder Management. This edition aims to provide new insights and perspectives on these matters. 

The new Dutch Whistleblower Act has been in force for some time. This Act requires employers to adapt their whistleblowing policies and to make strategic choices when publishing their own whistleblowing policies. The new law also requires choices to be made when concluding or modifying, inter alia, employment, consultancy, management and settlement agreements. Further changes are to be made shortly, which will require changes to the whistleblowing rules and will make it possible to report anonymously. In "Wijzigingen in de nieuwe wet bescherming klokkenluiders: wat verandert er nog meer voor werkgevers?" (article in Dutch) Danny Theunis explains the main changes for employers and gives guidance on how the organization can minimize the risks related to (whistleblowing) complaints.