Companies enter into contracts (both explicit and implicit) with various stakeholder groups as a matter of everyday business and these contractual arrangements can serve as the basis for accountability relationships. For example, companies that receive environmental permits and approvals from regulators to operate facilities are often held accountable by the regulators for whether the terms of the approval are being met.
Proponents of social contract theory suggest that corporations are given a “license to operate” by society in exchange for good behaviour, (read judicious utilisation of resources) and as such the corporations should be accountable to society for their performance. 29.