Corporate Political Responsibility Taskforce
Incubated at Erb, Now Taking Flight
Since its founding in 2021, the Corporate Political Responsibility Taskforce (CPRT) has been a bold experiment in non-partisan collaboration—bringing together leaders from business, academia, and civil society to explore how companies can align their political influence with long-term value creation and their public commitments.
This initiative was born and incubated at the Erb Institute at the University of Michigan, emerging from a powerful insight: sustainability leadership is undermined when the rules of the game don’t support long-term thinking. If companies want to lead on sustainability, their political influence must reflect their stated values—not work against them.
That vision was first articulated in the award-winning article, “CSR Needs CPR: Corporate Sustainability and Politics,” co-authored by Erb Professor Tom Lyon, which introduced the concept of Corporate Political Responsibility (CPR) to the field. This scholarship laid the foundation for the CPRT’s creation—and has since shaped a movement.
Under the leadership of Taskforce Director Elizabeth Doty, CPRT served as a trusted, non-partisan forum where companies could collaborate on strengthening the governance of their public affairs. Through hundreds of convenings, CPRT co-developed groundbreaking tools, frameworks, and strategies—most notably, the Erb Principles for Corporate Political Responsibility, launched in 2023 with five initial companies.
From Incubation to Independence: Welcoming Third Side Strategies
In the spring of 2025, the CPRT initiative transitioned into a new, independent organization: Third Side Strategies (TSS)—an action-oriented think tank and non-profit advisory firm hosted by Future500 and led by founding CPRT Director Elizabeth Doty.
While the name is new, the mission continues. TSS builds on the CPRT’s legacy by equipping companies to integrate CPR into their governance, strategy, and culture—ensuring public affairs are principled, transparent, and aligned with long-term value.
Erb Principles for CPR
The Erb Principles for CPR offer an actionable, non-partisan template to help companies determine whether and how to engage in civic and political affairs responsibly.
Combined with similar efforts by other actors, we believe these principles will foster an environment in which more companies will thrive, more Americans will prosper, we can find solutions to shared challenges and strengthen trust in civic institutions.
A Summary of the Erb Principles for CPR
- Legitimacy: How can the firm determine whether to engage with an issue and what the right course of action is?
- Accountability: How can the firm align its actions with its commitments to purpose, values, stated goals, and stakeholders?
- Responsibility: How can the firm actively support the systems on which the economy, society, and life depend?
- Transparency: How can the firm communicate openly and honestly about its political activities?
CPR News + Blogs
CPR content and news from the Erb Institute, our partners, and outside outlets.
From Idea to Impact: CPRT Launches as Independent Organization, Third Side Strategies
From Idea to Impact: CPRT Launches as Independent Organization, Third Side StrategiesSince its founding in 2021, the Corporate Political Responsibility Taskforce (CPRT) has operated as a bold experiment within the Erb Institute at the University of Michigan—a place...
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The Article that Started It All
In “CSR Needs CPR: Corporate Sustainability and Politics,” published in California Management Review, authors Thomas P. Lyon et al. argue that corporations should be as transparent about their corporate political responsibility (CPR) as they are about their environmental and social responsibility. Assessments of corporations’ social and environmental performance should include their support for (or opposition to) public policies that affect sustainability, they argue.