Spirituality and business leadership

[摘要] The theme for this study was inspired by an intuitive and cognitive awareness of, andconcern for, the challenges and complexities faced by business leaders in the twentyfirstcentury.The shift from the industrial to the post-industrial era has brought about a new,complex network of activities globally. The increasing uncertainties and divides that arefacing the business world - as well as society in general - have led to the hypothesis thatthe old paradigms and the existing repertoire of leadership approaches to business areno longer effective. The shift to a networked society also demands a shift in theconsciousness levels, virtues and values of business leaders. This view is built on thepremise that, under certain conditions and in certain situations, business is an importantdriver of transformation in general. Business has the ability and the power to influencethe whole, i.e. societies, communities, environments, etcetera. The assumption is thatbusiness per se could be an important catalyst of change in society, and that businessleaders are certainly accountable for the co-creation of a sustainable and meaningfulenvironment.Business' role is now often understood as serving the whole, i.e. accepting someresponsibility for all or most processes in which the business may be involved.Business leaders' values and worldviews are perceived as sometimes directlyinfluencing their decision-making processes, and the argument, therefore, is that a newconsciousness or a values-based, holistic approach to business and society – i.e.spirituality – could be an enabler in creating meaning that can incorporate thesedimensions.The awareness of the challenges for business leadership was enhanced by a statementmade by Manual Castells (1998:368) that, in the Information Age, there is 'an anxioussearch for meaning and spirituality.This study particularly addresses the personal, transpersonal and organisationaltransformations that are influencing our ability to make sense and to create meaning inthe context of post-industrial business. The theme of sense-making in organisationshas been influenced by the theories of Karel Weick in particular. The hypothesis isthat mental intelligence alone is no longer sufficient for the interpretation of the postindustriallandscape, and it argues the importance of business leaders' developingspiritual intelligence and a new spiritual awareness as a probable enhancer oftransformation and sustainability. The spirituality that is needed provides a holistic,values-based approach and the consequent capacity to deal with complexity andchange that was lacking in previous management frameworks. The theories onspirituality and spiritual intelligence are based on the principles of quantum physics, orthe 'new science as described by physicists such as Heisenberg, Bohm, Capra, Kakuand others. A comparison between the Newtonian approach and the quantumapproach underpins the argument. The views of specifically Zohar and Marshall wereused to substantiate this argument.The principles of spirituality and spiritual intelligence are juxtaposed against theleadership theories of specifically three contemporary authors, i.e. Robert Terry, JimCollins as well as Richard Barrett. These three authors respectively and collectivelyargue in favour of the evolvement of a new holistic consciousness and of authenticityin servant leadership. The assumption is that these leadership qualities could enhanceinterdependency and may lead to sustainability. Spirituality and business leadership istherefore explored as a probable enabler of a process of transformation in people, inorganisations and in society, as well as a possible catalyst for creating meaning,fulfilment and sustainability. The line of thought in this study is that people, as anintegral part of the universe, are being challenged to change not only themselves, butby virtue of a raised intelligence and holistic consciousness called spirituality, alsochange the world (organisation) in which they behave, through their leadershipconduct. This requires leaders to aspire to a better understanding and interpretation ofa new world, and to reflect on the organisation and themselves from more dimensionsthan purely the cognitive. This study argues that this could include a consciousnessthat is referred to as spirituality and spiritual intelligence.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University