The Maastricht University Executive Board has appointed two new chairs in honour of former DSM top-executive Peter Elverding, effective as of 1 January 2019, to keep alive the memory of his contributions to the socio-economic development of the Netherlands. What makes the Elverding chairs so unique is that they combine corporate law and economics (more specifically, corporate finance). This is expressed in the close collaboration between professors and chair-holders Mieke Olaerts of the Faculty of Law and Rob Bauer of the School of Business and Economics. The chair positions are financed by the business community.

Long-term goals
The Elverding chairs help companies and European governments with innovative ideas make long-term decisions. Long-term decisions allow for the development of innovative products and services, create job opportunities and contribute to a prosperous and sustainable society. Companies that set long-term goals are better equipped to solve important social problems, such as energy transition and other issues currently being protested by members of the yellow vests movement. Unfortunately many companies are being pressured to generate increasingly higher profits in the short term, under the influence of shareholders or owners and by offering more scope internally for bonuses that affect short-term profitability. As a result, long-term goals are put on the back burner.

Studium Generale will host a special session on this topic on 19 March 2019, from 20.00 to 21.00. Audience members are encouraged to share their opinions.