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This paper presents a philosophical and practical discussion of the role of development of consciousness for realization of a learning organization. Consciousness is the capacity to know, the capacity to learn. As the knower is, so is the knowledge. Development of consciousness can lead to more profound and holistic learning and enable organizations to flourish.

Models of the potential range of consciousness development from Western and Eastern psychology are discussed. Research regarding the Transcendental Meditation technique and its effects on mental development, brain functioning and managerial performance is reviewed.

The Transcendental Meditation technique leads to improved performance on multiple measures of intelligence, brain integration and exceptional levels of psychological maturity. Results of this technique in business settings have included growth of leadership behaviors, big-picture awareness, enhanced team problem-solving and high levels of trust.

This paper discusses a research-based approach for enhancing learning capabilities – seeing systems, collaborating across boundaries and creating desired futures – through the development of consciousness.

Learning in organizational studies has generally been explored in terms of concepts from Western behavioral sciences. This paper brings out a philosophical perspective as well as practical technologies, which links Western and Eastern concepts regarding consciousness and learning.

New paradigms in science and in management are recognizing that consciousness pervades the evolving order of the natural world and is the essential foundation for organizational transformation. We describe seven properties of a consciousness‐based organization: efficiency on a par with nature’s principle of least action; spontaneous and frictionless coordination; creative inspiration akin to artistic genius; doing well by doing good: prosperity and social value; harmony with the natural environment; spontaneous change in an evolutionary direction; and leadership which promotes full human development. Specific practices to develop consciousness in organizations are identified. These qualities and practices are illustrated through a fictional story of a manufacturer of top quality, environmentally friendly solar energy technologies.

Investigates higher stages of human development in some of the world’s most accomplished performers. Indicates that far more frequent experiences of a silent, expanded, restfully alert and non‐attached state of heightened awareness characterize those individuals who display outstanding skill and accomplishment in their action. Interprets these findings in the light of the Vedic Psychology of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, which describes higher states of consciousness in which peak performances are all‐time phenomena rather than extraordinary happenings. There is widespread agreement that only very few individuals reach the highest stages of human development; as a consequence, there is a considerable latent human potential in organizations and society.

Today, there is a global need for more effective leaders. The purpose of this paper is to present a model of human development which covers the psychological, physiological, and sociological dimensions of leadership.

The authors review three research studies in which they have investigated the relationships between consciousness, psycho‐physiological integration, and leadership performance using physiological measures, psychological tests, and self‐reports.

These studies support the model that leadership ability is closely related to psycho‐physiological refinement – the authors found that higher integration of the electrical brain activity, more mature moral reasoning, and more frequent peak experiences are found in top performers compared to average performers.

The high frequency of peak experiences among top performers reveals the importance of such gratifying inner experiences for the business community.

The research suggests that practical methods for psycho‐physiological refinement – such as the widely researched Transcendental Meditation technique – can be useful in developing more effective leadership. The brain integration scale presented here may be a reliable objective instrument for assessing an individual's leadership and performance capacity.

A unique contribution of the authors' research is to recognize that integrity – an essential requisite for leadership – has a physiological counterpart in the integration seen in the functioning of the brain through electroencephalography.

Clarifying constructs, methods, and measures for systematic research can advance knowledge about spirituality in organizations. In this paper, we define constructs of pure spirituality, applied spirituality, and spiritual development. We survey research methods for exploring spirituality in organizations – including not only objective studies but also subjective experience for personal growth. We consider five indications of spirituality – health, happiness, wisdom, success, and fulfillment – and identify research instruments for each based on measures used in prior studies of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's Transcendental Meditation program. Research is seen as valuable for assessing the practical applications of spirituality for the individual, organization, and society.

The purpose of this paper is to examine how small- and medium-sized organisations that were already participating in recognised sustainability programmes in Iowa, USA, in how they were utilising activities normally associated with human resources (HRs) to implement sustainability – activities included communication, engagement, incentives and recruitment and retention.

The authors were interested in how small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) were utilising HR functions to implement sustainability. This was an exploratory, qualitative research study utilised semi-structured interviews to obtain data.

Based on the findings, some of the functions are being utilised more than others, with some activities not being implemented at all.

This research offers empirical research on how sustainability is achieved in SMEs.

This paper outlines some practical methods that any SME could utilise to help implement sustainability within an organisation.

This paper adds empirical research on how SMEs are implementing sustainable practices into their operations by using activities normally associated with the HR department.

Progressive stages in the evolution of organizations correspond to progressively deeper aspects of the mind. The stage of task‐based management emphasized the more superficial sensorimotor and concrete thinking capacities; this approach of rigid rules and structures is now unsuited for an increasingly knowledge‐based economy. The next stage, process‐based management, makes greater use of the intellect of organizational members to design, implement, and evaluate systemic productivity improvements. A few organizations today demonstrate the lasting success of values‐based organizing, managing on the level of feelings and ego. The new millennium will see organizations that utilize the deepest level of human consciousness, connecting the human mind to the intelligence of natural law which spontaneously organizes for optimal simplicity, synergy, and holistic progress.

This paper introduces the second issue of the special issue on research issues and research findings in spirituality in organizations. The first issue explored issues of definition and methodology, and included empirical research studies (published as Journal of Organizational Change Management, Vol. 16 No. 4, 2003). This second issue continues and deepens that exploration, with further refinement of definitions, interdisciplinary approaches to methodology and the selection of constructs, and reports on quantitative and qualitative studies. This introduction contains an overview of the aims and themes of this special issue, summarizes the state of play in the field of organizational research and provides synopses of the papers presented.

The active and passive flow of information that this issue of WwOP has so far explored is all about the betterment of older people's lives. But how far can we drill down into the minutiae of an individual's life in order to make it better without being intrusive? Through the story of Dennis, Sam Bennett, Helen Sanderson and Gill Bailey now describe a method that is being refined to do just that.

This paper adds to the literature on societal grand challenges by shifting the focus away from business firms and other formal organizations as key actors in addressing such challenges toward the inherent organizing capacity that lies in the use of language itself. More specifically, we focus on the organizing capacities of metaphor-based communication, seeking to ascertain which qualities of metaphors enable them to co-orient collective action toward tackling grand challenges. In addressing this question, we develop an analytical framework based on two qualities of metaphorical communication that can provide such co-orientation: a metaphor’s (a) vividness and (b) responsible actionability. We illustrate the usefulness of this framework by assessing selected metaphors used in the public discourse to make sense of and organize collective responses to the Covid-19 pandemic, including the flu metaphor/analogy, the war metaphor, and the combined metaphor of “the hammer and the dance.” Our paper contributes to extant research by providing a means to assess the co-orienting potential of metaphors in bridging varied interpretations. In so doing, our framework can pave the way toward more responsible use of metaphorical communication in tackling society’s grand challenges.