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Michael Posner

Jerome Kohlberg Professor of Ethics & Finance, Director of the Center for Business & Human Rights

NYU Stern School of Business

New York, NY, USA

Michael Posner

Jennifer Prosek

Prosek Partners

Michael Posner’s Biography

Michael Posner is the Jerome Kohlberg Professor of Ethics and Finance at NYU’s Stern School of Business and the Director of its Center for Business and Human Rights. The Center for Business and Human Rights at the NYU Stern School of Business is the first-ever human rights center within a business school.

Previously, Michael served in the Obama Administration as Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, and prior to that he was President of Human Rights First. Earlier in his career, Michael was a lawyer with Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal. He is recognized as a leader and expert in advancing a rights-based approach to national security, challenging the practice of torture, combating discrimination, and advocating for refugee protection. He is a frequent public commentator on these issues and has testified dozens of times before the United States Congress.

Michael's philanthropic work includes serving as a Board Member of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, an appointment that highlights his extensive work as a prominent voice in support of human rights protections, in global business operations in the manufacturing supply chain, the extractives industry, and the information and communications technology sector. He helped found the Fair Labor Association, was a Founding Member of the Global Network Initiative, and has spoken widely on the issue of internet freedom. Michael spearheaded the U.S. Government's efforts to enhance the effectiveness of the Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights and played a key role in proposing and campaigning for the first U.S. law providing for political asylum, as well as the Torture Victim Protection Act.

Michael lectured at Yale Law School, at one time teaching with former Dean Harold Koh. He was a visiting lecturer at Columbia University Law School, and is a Member of the California Bar and the Illinois Bar.

Michael’s Newsfeed

Eminetra

American Enterprises and Civil Rights: Chauvin Trial Highlights Changing Expectations

After breaking the silence about racial injustice last summer, “I [many CEOs] “OK, I’ve done what I promised,” said Michael Posner, a professor at NYU Stern School of Business, but Georgia law and more than 300 similar bills in other states changed that calculation.

Forbes

Conservative Twitter Trending As Study Claims There Is No Anti-Conservative Bias

"Over the years, we've seen the toxic and damaging real-world effects of violent content run amok on social media, and now we've seen those consequences come home with the January 6 attack on the US Capitol," Michael Posner said. "The January 6 attack should—and must—inspire policymakers to reform our laws and policies relating to online content moderation, starting with Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. This is an ambitious agenda that will require bipartisan support."

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Michael’s Background

NYU Stern School of Business

Jerome Kohlberg Professor of Ethics & Finance, Director of the Center for Business & Human Rights

New York, NY, USA

New York University's Leonard N. Stern School of Business is one America's premier management education schools and research centers. NYU Stern offers a broad portfolio of academic programs at graduate and undergraduate levels.

Human Rights First

Founding Executive Director & President

New York, NY, USA

Human Rights First is a non-profit, nonpartisan international human rights organization with offices in New York and Washington, D.C. that works on a range of domestic and international human rights issues.

The White House

Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Obama Administration

2009 - 2013

Washington, DC, USA

As Assistant Secretary, Posner traveled extensively, representing the U.S. Government to foreign officials and representatives of civil society in countries of strategic importance to the United States, including China, Egypt, Russia, Burma, Bahrain, Nigeria, Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Columbia Law School

Visiting Lecturer

1984 - 2008

New York, NY, USA

Columbia Law School is renowned for the intellectual rigor of its curriculum and the scholarship of its faculty which offers J.D., LL.M. and J.S.D. programs.

Yale Law School

Lecturer

1981 - 1984

New Haven, CT, USA

Yale Law School is one of the world’s premier law schools. It offers an unmatched environment of excellence & educational intimacy in a world renowned faculty, with small classes, opportunities for clinical training and strong encouragement of public service.

Sonnenschein, Nath & Rosenthal LLP

Lawyer

Chicago, IL, USA

Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal LLP was an international law firm, founded in 1906, with nearly 800 lawyers and other professionals in the U.S. and Europe, serving businesses, non-profits and individuals.

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Michael’s Gallery

Michael Posner speaks at the Concordia Conference

Michael Posner on a panel at the Concordia Conference

Michael Posner at a Human Rights exhibit

Michael Posner testifies before a Senate panel

Michael Posner speaks at the 2016 Concordia Conference

Other Business Interests

Global Network Initiative

Founding Member

Washington, DC, USA

Global Network Initiative was launched in 2008 to address how technology companies can best respect the rights of their users. It is a multi-stakeholder initiative aimed at promoting free expression and privacy rights on the Internet.

Philanthropy

RFK / Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights

Board Member

New York, NY, USA

Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, founded in 1968, is led by human rights activist and lawyer Kerry Kennedy and advocates for a more just and peaceful world. Working alongside local activists to ensure lasting positive change in governments and corporations, the RFK team includes leading attorneys, advocates, entrepreneurs and writers united by a commitment to social justice.

Fair Labor Association

Co-Founder

Washington, DC, USA

As a member of the White House Apparel Industry Partnership Task Force, Michael helped found the Fair Labor Association (FLA), an organization that brings together corporations, local leaders, universities, and NGOs to promote corporate accountability for working conditions in the apparel industry.

Media

Applying Human Rights to the Business World

Podcast Interview

Jun 2020

Michael Posner, the Jerome Kohlberg Professor of Ethics and Finance at NYU’s Stern School of Business, joins the Future of Work Pioneers Podcast to discuss a range of topics related to human rights and the business sector, including the ways that global business operations can support human rights protections.

Publications

To Unite As A Nation, We Need To Begin With The Truth

Author

Jan 2021

New York, NY, USA

To unite, Michael Posner says, the US needs to 'find the right balance between seeking meaningful accountability for past abuses and building a more inclusive democratic future.' The most important lesson we can learn from other societies that made this transition, he says, is the value of establishing the truth about past wrongdoing and gaining an acknowledgement of that truth by those in power.

Amid A Threat To Democracy, How Companies Can Rebuild Trust

Author

Jan 2021

New York, NY, USA

Citing an Edelman survey in which 2/3 of respondents say they want corporate CEOs to work to confront significant threats, Michael Posner says business leaders need to step up to enact change at three different levels: social media platforms; technology companies like Apple and Amazon; and ethical filter to guide political giving by corporations, notably a rethinking of the power and role of PACs.

How Business Can Boost Human Rights In 2021

Author

Dec 2020

New York, NY, USA

With a focus on the opportunities ahead in 2021, Michael Posner compiled a list of 10 areas where business executives have an opportunity to lead and where the incoming Biden Administration needs to play a significant role. The list includes :Addressing economic inequality; Reforming buyer-supplier relations in post-COVID supply chains; and Making racial and gender diversity a priority.

The Case for Human Rights in Business Education– A Tool Kit

Co-author

Nov 2020

This Tool Kit includes information and resources explaining the increasing relevance of human rights in a business school context and provides resources that can be helpful to those in other business schools who wish to become involved. It provides an overview of readily available teaching resources, research outlets, and various ways of institutionalizing human rights at business schools.

Forbes

Senior Contributor

New York, NY, USA

Michael writes on a range of topics, including human rights, economic inequality, human rights, and labor issues.

Why the Federal Government Needs to Lead on COVID-19

Opinion Piece

Mar 2020

New York, NY, USA

Michael Posner outlines three things the federal government needs to do in order to fight the spread of Covid-19: Implement greater coordination and burden-sharing among the states; the President needs to invoke the Defense Production Act to mobilize the private sector to produce essential items; provide the financial resources necessary to pay for the production and delivery of essential items.

"What’s Driving The New Push To Measure Companies On Social Performance"

Author

Feb 2020

New York, NY, USA

Michael Posner discusses developments at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, and looks at changing attitudes toward Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and Sustainable Development Goals. He focuses on the need for the WEF task force to “develop new metrics for “social” goals that recognize shifts in the modern workforce and help to define good management practices.

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Speaking Engagements

The First Amendment, Crisis Edition

Featured Speaker

Jan 2021

Titled the "Emergency legal briefing for journalists on social media bans, the meaning of ‘incitement’ and threats to free speech", this talk brings together three distinguished free speech experts who are versed in domestic and international aspects of incitement, social media bans, and censorship. They discuss these issues in the wake of the attack on the Capitol.

RFK Compass Investor Virtual Summit

Panel Member

Oct 2020

Michael Posner, Director, NYU Stern Center for Business and Human Rights, took part in a Fireside Chat titled 'Corporate Purpose in 2020 with Business Roundtable' at the Fall RFK Human Rights Virtual Investor Summit. The RFK Compass program discusses new approaches to investing, enlisting the private sector’s influence in the cause of human rights, good governance, and justice.

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Bar Admissions

The State Bar of California

Member

San Francisco, CA, USA

The State Bar of California’s mission is to protect the public. It includes the primary functions of licensing, regulation & discipline of attorneys, the advancement of the ethical and competent practice of law and support for greater access to and inclusion in the legal system.

Illinois State Bar Association

Member

Illinois City, IL, USA

The Illinois State Bar Association was founded in 1877 and is the premier legal association in the state. As a voluntary organization, the Association's primary focus is to assist Illinois lawyers in the practice of law & to promote improvements in the administration of justice.

Michael’s Education

University of California, Berkeley

Juris Doctor

University of Michigan

BA, History (Distinction & Honors)