Recently there's been a lot of talk about the role of corporations in our economy but no one takes the

time to explain exactly how they work or the benefits they provide.

Corporations are designed to make a profit while delivering value to their shareholders and by doing so
they drive economic growth and all the good things that come with it. As corporations grow many
individuals invest directly or indirectly through mutual pension and retirement plans. These
stockholders provide seed money or capital for corporations to grow and in doing so they create
economic growth and reward investors with the opportunity to profit.

Now, when you think about how a company runs, your first instinct may be to compare it to something
like a school board or a homeowner's association or even Congress where decisions are made by a
simple majority vote but corporations are more complex.

In fact, there are three principal groups that govern corporations. They are the management, board of
directors and shareholders. Now, the relationship and responsibilities of these three groups are defined
primarily by state law and a corporation's own Charter and bylaws.

That means each Corporation is a little different but all have government oversight. The management is
made up of all those people with acronyms like CEO and CFO. Their responsibility is running the day-to-
day operations of the company. Most importantly, management identifies and manages corporate risks.

Now, the Board of Directors responsibility is overseeing the strategy and performance of the
management. Within the board, our various committees designed to tackle specific issues such as audits
compensation or corporate governance. Committees recommend policy for approval by the entire
board. The Board of Directors main responsibility is to make decisions in the best interest of the
corporation shareholders.

The company shareholders are the people who voluntarily invest by buying stock. That's why they are
commonly referred to as owners. Shareholders peace of power is the right to elect these directors. They
also approve mergers and acquisitions.

And that's the structure of the corporation employing millions of people in all sectors of the economy
providing health insurance and retirement plans, providing investment opportunities for all generations
and providing innovative products and services that affect every aspect of daily life.