The tax director’s trilemma

Tom Duffy FCCA
Consultant Affecton

Tax directors could be forgiven for being confused. They are used to considering how to minimise the corporate tax burden and helping their firm complete in the market place but they now must consider whether the tax affairs of the business satisfy the moral judgment of the wider community?

How should tax directors respond to this new ‘trilemma’? One way to approach this issue is to use the analytical framework set out in ‘The Shell Group Global Scenarios to 2025’ which enables businesses to review their strategy in a changing environment. The scenarios outline a ‘trilemma triangle’ which is designed to illustrate three competing forces – competition regulation and community – faced by businesses. Starting from the idea that society tends to hold...