A Pragmatic Theory Of 'Pension Fund Capitalism': Implications For Managing Pension Organizations

“What does ‘long-term value creation’ mean? There is no simple, single right answer to the question. However, with the passage of time, I am increasingly leaning toward Bartley Madden’s “The Pragmatic Theory of the Firm” as providing the most useful answer. The best way to describe Bartley is as the non-academic that academics turn to when they really want to know what is going on in the business world. He has worked relentlessly as an intermediary between the theory of economics and finance, and the practical corporate world of actually creating measurable value. That is why I believe his “Pragmatic Theory of the Firm”, clearly set out in his new book, is so powerful.”

From “Travelling the Road to ‘Pension Capitalism’”The Ambachtsheer Letter, March 2024

“My work career can be categorized as research in finance and in knowledge building. It has logically led to ‘The Pragmatic Theory of the Firm’ which describes the key components of a corporation’s            value-creation process.”

From the book “My Value Creation Journey” (2024)Bartley J. Madden

Who Is Bartley Madden?

Bartley Madden’s name first surfaced as part of our efforts to understand the investment implications of climate change generally, and of their implications for security analysis and corporate risk modelling in  particular. For example, see the October 2021 Letter “Grappling With An Unknowable Future: Statistics Or Stories?” and the January 2024 Letter “Improving Investment Models for Pension Funds: How Are We Doing?”