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1 – 10 of 166Bernard Sionneau, Carlos Rabasso and Javier Rabasso
This paper aims at explaining why “Globally Responsible Humanism (GRH)” is presented here as the pivot for a re-foundation of European Business Schools’ culture. Explaining the…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims at explaining why “Globally Responsible Humanism (GRH)” is presented here as the pivot for a re-foundation of European Business Schools’ culture. Explaining the concept and its difference with traditional European Humanism, the related argumentation is organized around two main parts: the first one explains why the European Union and its business schools do not make sense in a globalization process driven by the financialized economy; the second one shows how a sustainable exposition of European management students to a transcultural approach, a postcolonial perspective, and critical thinking, can lead to their training as future globally responsible leaders in New Business Schools for Societal Studies.
Design/methodology/approach
An international political sociology perspective, applied to the interpretation of globalization trends, and a critical thinking approach to education allow for a questioning of the values and contents of mainstream business learning.
Findings
The new proposed transversal, postcolonial and interdisciplinary pedagogical approach regarding business education is conducive to closely related operational tracks: on the one hand, how to improve the skills and systemic understanding of students’ global environment; on the other hand, how to lead, organize and manage the coherent “GRH”-driven business school.
Originality/value
The originality of this paper stems from the combination of critical works issued from the social and human sciences realms to revisit business education.
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Neil Richardson and Michael Cassop Thompson
The aim of this conceptual paper, predicated on a hermeneutic literature review, is to improve understanding of the nature of value continues to be extensively studied with its…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this conceptual paper, predicated on a hermeneutic literature review, is to improve understanding of the nature of value continues to be extensively studied with its ability to create competitive advantage. Understanding what constitutes value improves corporate social responsibility (CSR) comprehension, including managerial CSR values. This paper aligns with studies into value and/or CSR, whether hermeneutic or otherwise.
Design/methodology/approach
This study provides a reflexively critical understanding of the value literature. It focuses on the “identifying” stage of a hermeneutic circle (identifying central terms, core journals and seminal authors). A hermeneutic helix is proposed to better reflect the need of constant re-interpretation of the relevant literature.
Findings
Themes include value location (value in exchange, value in use, value in meaning and value in context); architecture (pathways, constellations and networks); creation versus determination; and value types.
Research limitations/implications
This paper neither seeks to define value nor delve into the overarching value discourses. It does, however, refer to the antecedents for these areas. As a hermeneutic literature review, it lacks empirical testing.
Practical implications
CSR practices are strongly influenced by personal values. Hence, CSR practitioners must identify the processes involved and differentiate between the sought value and value types.
Social implications
The paper could engender better understanding gaps between stakeholder attitudes and practices, i.e. consumers self-identifying as “green” may not engage in ecologically sound practices. As discussed herein, the value sought by university students influences where (and what) to study.
Originality/value
Outdated notions such as value propositions are widely used; value may be proposed; however, only stakeholders can take value. What constitutes value is under-represented in the CSR literature. Hence, terms such as value and values (i.e. value types) are incorrectly used interchangeably.
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Carlos A. Rabasso and Javier Rabasso
The purpose of this paper is to tackle some of the concepts and ideas that the intellectual and business community can learn from Chomsky's thinking in relation with a new global…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to tackle some of the concepts and ideas that the intellectual and business community can learn from Chomsky's thinking in relation with a new global responsible management education environment. The first part of the work will present some of the key elements about Chomsky and education that the authors would like to emphasize. These are relating management education, critical thinking, and systems theory in the twenty‐first century business milieu.
Design/methodology/approach
An insight on post‐colonial theory and education will, afterwards, incorporate the hermeneutical tradition into the mainframe of critical thinking theory. The paper incorporates a decentred approach to education questioning presuppositions and moral values from “fundamentalist market theory.” Cultural studies and non‐western thinkers in this field are another important contribution to back up Chomsky's ideas on business and education.
Findings
When the paper relates social and economic performance concepts to critical thinking business education some questions arise about how to improve the responsible perception and understanding of the global environments and how the authors have to rethink education in a competitive profit‐oriented business community. The ideas of Chomsky can help them to deal with these issues departing from his political vision and his thinking on university education.
Research limitations/implications
Critical management has been questioning in the last years different management models to put forward a responsible paradigm for business organizations and educational institutions. Post‐colonial theory has been another important intellectual ground for critical thinking in the business educational environment, opening up the debate about how to reconcile performance and responsible practices.
Practical implications
Chomsky's committed political views open up the way for many educational institutions and business organizations to become responsible in a technological business environment severely damaged by greed and personal interest. Management schools will have learned from his contributions and the actions of many international organizations engaged in changing for the better attitudes and material values in favour of management for globally responsible practices and the construction of new learning objectives.
Originality/value
In business studies, comparative, critical, cross‐cultural, and diversity management many scholars have been dealing with some of the subjects of serious concern by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology leftist professor presented in this study. The paper has to take into consideration a transversal approach of business education in relation to the concept of cross‐cultural performance, already developed in the work on cross‐cultural and diversity management.
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Guoqing Zhao, Jana Suklan, Shaofeng Liu, Carmen Lopez and Lise Hunter
In a competitive environment, eHealth small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs’) barriers to survival differ from those of large enterprises. Empirical research on barriers to…
Abstract
Purpose
In a competitive environment, eHealth small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs’) barriers to survival differ from those of large enterprises. Empirical research on barriers to eHealth SMEs in less prosperous areas has been largely neglected. This study fills this gap by employing an integrated approach to analyze barriers to the development of eHealth SMEs. The purpose of this paper is to address this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors collected data through semi-structured interviews and conducted thematic analysis to identify 16 barriers, which were used as inputs into total interpretive structural modeling (TISM) to build interrelationships among them and identify key barriers. Cross-impact matrix multiplication applied to classification (MICMAC) was then applied validate the TISM model and classify the 16 barriers into four categories.
Findings
This study makes significant contributions to theory by identifying new barriers and their interrelationships, distinguishing key barriers and classifying the barriers into four categories. The authors identify that transcultural problems are the key barrier and deserve particular attention. eHealth SMEs originating from regions with cultural value orientations, such as hierarchy and embeddedness, that differ from the UK’s affective autonomy orientation should strengthen their transcultural awareness when seeking to expand into UK markets.
Originality/value
By employing an integrated approach to analyze barriers that impede the development of eHealth SMEs in a less prosperous area of the UK, this study raises entrepreneurs’ awareness of running businesses in places with different cultural value orientations.
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With the emergence of the European Community, a new type oftranscultural and transformation leadership is required on theContinent. Examines the why and the what of preparing…
Abstract
With the emergence of the European Community, a new type of transcultural and transformation leadership is required on the Continent. Examines the why and the what of preparing executives and managers for the new work culture now in the process of creation. For both the global marketplace and cultural renewal among the nations from the Atlantic to the Urals, provides insight into the leadership qualities to cultivate, in terms of technical competence, people skills, conceptual skills, judgement and character, as well as the characteristics for meta‐industrial leading. These include providing more open communication/information, creating more autonomy/participation, promoting the intrapreneurial/ entrepreneurial spirit, enhancing the quality of work life, generating innovative/high performing norms and standards, utilizing informal, synergistic organizational relations, advancing technology venturing and research/development. Considers innovative strategies of human resource management and development.
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J. S. Osland, M. E. Mendenhall, B. S. Reiche, B. Szkudlarek, R. Bolden, P. Courtice, V. Vaiman, M. Vaiman, D. Lyndgaard, K. Nielsen, S. Terrell, S. Taylor, Y. Lee, G. Stahl, N. Boyacigiller, T. Huesing, C. Miska, M. Zilinskaite, L. Ruiz, H. Shi, A. Bird, T. Soutphommasane, A. Girola, N. Pless, T. Maak, T. Neeley, O. Levy, N. Adler and M. Maznevski
As the world struggled to come to grips with the Covid-19 pandemic, over twenty scholars, practitioners, and global leaders wrote brief essays for this curated chapter on the role…
Abstract
As the world struggled to come to grips with the Covid-19 pandemic, over twenty scholars, practitioners, and global leaders wrote brief essays for this curated chapter on the role of global leadership in this extreme example of a global crisis. Their thoughts span helpful theoretical breakthroughs to essential, pragmatic adaptations by companies.
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María Consuelo Cárdenas, Alice Eagly, Elvira Salgado, Walkyria Goode, Lidia Inés Heller, Kety Jauregui, Nathalia Galarza Quirós, Naisa Gormaz, Simone Bunse, María José Godoy, Tania Esmeralda Rocha Sánchez, Margoth Navarro, Fernanda Sosa, Yenny Aguilera, Marion Schulmeyer, Betania Tanure, Mónica Naranjo, Beatriz Helena Soto, Silvana Darre and Rubén Carlos Tunqui
Because women ' s status in Latin American countries appears comparable to their status in organizations of more economically advanced nations, this paper probes the…
Abstract
Purpose
Because women ' s status in Latin American countries appears comparable to their status in organizations of more economically advanced nations, this paper probes the mystery of how and why these women fare relatively well in their careers, given that socioeconomic and cultural factors could limit their possibilities of achieving higher management positions. The paper aims to discuss these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
Exploratory study of 162 Latin American women who demonstrated exceptional success by attaining first and second level positions in private organizations. They responded to a semi-structured interview of 49 closed-ended questions about career challenges and barriers, leadership style, ambition, personal goals and work-life balance, plus two open-ended questions about men and women ' s leadership differences and how they understand their success.
Findings
Interviewees disagreed on issues of discrimination, recognized few serious professional career barriers and regarded work-life balance as their main challenge. They understood their success in terms of individual factors such as personality characteristics, performance and results, and their own leadership traits. Most admitted that machismo limits women ' s access to upper level positions. They recognized their ambition to attain power positions mainly for personal satisfaction, and their main goal was personal development and fulfilment.
Research limitations/implications
Given the sample size per country, future research could include a more representative and large sample or concentrate on one country per region to establish relationships between women ' s personal characteristics and organizations ' sector, or challenges faced and leadership style. Also family-owned companies as well as women entrepreneurs could contribute knowledge about women ' s leadership in these countries. Studying only national companies, a more neatly description of local culture and gender awareness in its organizational practices that hinder or promote women ' s leadership and participation in decision-making positions may be obtained. Transcultural studies that compare women ' s rise and upper management performance in countries where support from domestic help and extended family as well as cultural values are very different, could permit to understand more fully what it takes to reach top management positions and the weight that these particular cultural conditions have.
Originality/value
This study is unique in shedding light on a multinational sample of Latin American female executives and their perceptions of their success, leadership style and barriers and challenges faced.
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Izabela Franco, Rosamaria Moura-Leite, Matheus Wemerson Gomes Pereira and José Carlos de Jesus Lopes
The purpose of this paper is to broaden the knowledge to identify which factors influence the relationship between business undergraduates and corporate social responsibility…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to broaden the knowledge to identify which factors influence the relationship between business undergraduates and corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Design/methodology/approach
Hypotheses have been developed to test the relationship between personal values of business undergraduates and CSR. Results have been achieved from 434 questionnaires within a survey through seven campuses of Brazilian universities. The data were primarily submitted to descriptive statistics – univariate analysis, followed by a four-factor analyses and finally, a structural model – one of the components from the structural equation modelling (SEM) was applied.
Findings
The results identified that undergraduate students who valued issues and behaviours connected with self-direction, stimulation, universalism and benevolence are more prone to value organizational philosophy towards CSR. Furthermore, it was identified that the more business administration students value such themes, there will be a higher chance of them of getting involved in CSR, when occupying decision-making positions. Further results show that women valued the issue more – and their interest increased, as they become older.
Practical implications
The results contribute to the identification of a student profile with increased affinity towards CSR, as well as highlighting gaps in business education, which will affect future managers’ social responsibility standards and decisions.
Originality/value
This paper suggests new hypotheses and adopts measures towards personal values and CSR, which had not been used together previously.
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This paper aims to discuss and demonstrate the synergies between the western concept of corporate social responsibility that is emerging from a background of individualism and…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to discuss and demonstrate the synergies between the western concept of corporate social responsibility that is emerging from a background of individualism and market competition, and the traditional values of Chinese Confucianism, as applied to managerial practice.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is primarily theoretical in perspective. It also draws upon interview data derived from an in depth study of a large state‐owned corporate group in China in order to demonstrate the model that is known as modern Confucian entrepreneurship.
Findings
Adherence to Confucian values was demonstrated by both manager and employee interviewees. However, Chinese managers also need to reform some practices as they move into the international market place. As western managers, at the same time, increasingly seek to increase their social capital it is clear that Chinese and western managers can learn from each other.
Research limitations/implications
The examples drawn upon in this paper come from a state‐owned corporation. Indications are that smaller, privately owned companies in China are more aggressively adopting market models built upon competitive individualism. Further research is needed to develop comparisons.
Practical implications
The paper suggests a hybrid model of business management that combines aspects of both western and Confucian‐based management styles that are proven to be successful in building social capital. It also suggests that fundamental change needs to be effected through business school teaching.
Social implications
The paper urges a more collective view of management that is built upon trust and focuses on employee and social wellbeing. Indications are that increased wellbeing generates more cohesive, productive and happier societies.
Originality/value
The introduction of interview data provides unique insight to Confucian values in practice in a modern Chinese company.
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