Digital Commons Network^™

Spirituality And The Development Of An Organizational Compliance And Ethics Program, Michael A. Meyer

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

Major corporate scandals and heightened government enforcement of ethical lapses in the workplace continue to emphasize the importance of an effective compliance and ethics program. Compliance and ethics programs effectively became mandatory when the United States Federal Sentencing Commission amended the Federal Sentencing Guidelines for Organizations in 2004 to recognize the existence of an effective compliance and ethics program as a mitigating consideration in the sentencing of organizations convicted of criminal conduct. While legalistic codes, policies, and procedures have become the normative response to the Sentencing Guidelines, soul-less documents in and of themselves will not develop the “thoughtful behavior” upon …

Encounters With God: Rabbinic Stories And What We Can Learn From Them, Hershey H. Friedman, Linda Weiser Friedman

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

Storytelling skills are an indispensable way of teaching people lessons. Unlike case histories that are limited to facts, stories can stir emotions and arouse the audience's passion. This may be why stories, even fiction, have been used to teach ethics/Mussar. The sages of the Talmud were not historians; they told stories—fascinating ones. The Rabbinic stories involving God are a clever device to teach various lessons about the Divine. Several of the above narratives demonstrate conclusively how the legal system based on the Torah is supposed to work. The stories are also designed to show that God cares about people and …

Blood Is Not Always Thicker Than Water: A Family Business Case Study, Hai Ta, Todd M. Inouye, Shih-Jen Kathy Ho, Vincent Agnello

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

According to the US Census Bureau, 90% of businesses in the U.S. are family-owned or controlled. Unfortunately, the succession rates for family-owned businesses are dismal. Only 30% survive a transfer from the founder to a child and only 11% survive a second transfer to the third generation. Two major factors that contribute to this are lack of succession planning and failure to deal with family conflict, both of which are management failures and are often intertwined. Failure to properly manage the family fosters a sense of unfairness, unequal workload, and perhaps a free-rider problem among family members. This not only …

The Relationship Between Spirituality And Greed: Sex Matters, Alan G. Walker, Ian S. Mercer

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

Abstract

Organizational malfeasance is oftentimes attributed to greed (Hansen & Movahedi, 2010). Such attributions appear appropriate given recent research demonstrating relationships between greed and shareholder return (Hayes et al., 2017). However, research exploring antecedents of greed is scant. We explored one such antecedent by examining the relationship between participants’ spirituality and a trait measure of greed. Results indicated that individuals’ spirituality explained unique variance in greed above that variance explained by sex (being a male) and college major (being a business major) - which have well-established relationships with unethical outcomes. This finding suggests that (a) spirituality was a precursor to …

Towards A Normative Philosophical Foundation For Management: Contributions From The Catholic Faith Tradition, Christina Kheng

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

In recent years, there have been increasing efforts to improve management in the Catholic Church. Whilst positive outcomes have been observed, a key challenge is that the accompanying pastoral education and resource materials sometimes conflict with the Church’s theological tradition particularly regarding human work, ethics, and the view of reality. This article notes that a wider debate exists over the principles, effectiveness, and even legitimacy of management per se. It argues that the road to resolution has to begin at the level of philosophical foundations, and that this can be normative for management in both Church and society. An outline …

Sin In Business And Business In Sin: Negative Externalities, Total Depravity, And Freedom From Perfection, Kathryn D. Blanchard

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

It is not difficult to find examples of sin in business. These include blatant individual sins like theft or fraud, as well as larger systemic failures such as negative social and ecological externalities. It is a task of Christian business ethics to address such failures, but we invariably come up against problems that defy easy solutions, no matter how scrupulously we try to root them out. This is because business itself—like all human life—exists under conditions of sin. The Calvinist notion of total depravity reframes “sin in business” as “business in sin,” necessitating greater humility about the possibility of good …

Fides Et Ratio: Saint John Paul Ii On The Ground Of Business Ethics, Jim Wishloff

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

The question of the proper conduct of business is probed by undertaking an in-depth examination of Saint John Paul II’s encyclical Fides et Ratio in conjunction with the entire corpus of Catholic social thought. Business culture arising from the understanding of reality offered by a philosophy of being and Christian revelation is contrasted with that developed out of the modern mind’s rejection of the synthesis of faith and reason.

Sin And The Hacker Ethic: The Tragedy Of Techno-Utopian Ideology In Cyberspace Business Cultures, Bruce D. Baker

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

This article traces the course of idealistic thinking in the “hacker ethic” of the computer industry, with the aim of diagnosing the unfortunate lapses in business ethics that can ensue from idealistic thinking. Several Silicon Valley companies are mentioned, but Facebook is the prime example, simply because they are the biggest target and clearest example of bad ethics. The original “hacker ethic” was founded on admirable ideals, but the problem occurs when these ideals are used to rationalize a self-serving ideology. Facebook’s history shows how idealistic thinking can become embedded in a business culture. As an antidote to the ethical …

Higher Education Industry Consolidation: Where Does It Leave Students?, Todd M. Inouye Ph.D., Vincent Agnello J.D.

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

Mount Ida College, operating as a private non-profit higher education institution, permanently closed on May 17, 2018 after giving six weeks of notice to its existing and recently accepted students. Mount Ida College had two campuses, a small one in Foxboro, Massachusetts and its main campus in Newton, Massachusetts. The Newton campus was sold to the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and students in good standing were offered automatic acceptance to UMass Dartmouth. Soon afterwards a class action lawsuit was filed by students against Mount Ida College, the Board of Trustees, and seven college administrators based on seven legal claims: breach …

Wesley, ‘Holy Tempers’, And Commercial Practice, Kevin J. Brown

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

In the early 18^th Century, it was satirist Bernard Mandeville who suggested that private vice led to public virtue. More specifically, baser human qualities such as avarice, greed, envy, and pride were said to mobilize the industrial forces in a manner that spurred economic growth and efficiency, an outcome seemingly beneficial to all. While few would argue for vice on such terms today, this article suggests that a neo-Mandevillian argument has found its way into our present context. This argument contends that it is virtue, not vice, that actually services economic growth. Importantly, this manner for animating virtue maintains …

The Business Of Double-Effect: The Ethics Of Bankruptcy Protection And The Principle Of Double-Effect, Henry S. Kuo

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, most legacy airlines filed for bankruptcy protection as a way to cut costs drastically, with the exception of American Airlines. This article applies the Principle of Double-Effect to the act of filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for reasons of management strategy, in particular, cost-cutting. It argues that the Principle can be a useful tool for discerning the ethicality of the action, and demonstrates the usefulness by proposing three double-effect criteria that, when fulfilled, argues for the ethical justifiability the action in question.

Academic Service Learning And Society: From Individual To Institutional, Niall Hegarty, John P. Angelidis

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

This paper examines how Academic Service Learning (ASL) has gone from being an initiative by individual faculty to being institutionalized by universities as means to promote learning, pursue mission, and impact society. It outlines various uses of ASL by individual faculty and examines its progression into a university sponsored service-learning vessel of vision and mission. Its use acknowledges the interconnectedness of universities and society and emphasizes the need and obligation that universities feel, or should feel, in contributing to the betterment of the world we live in. In terms of being a university-sponsored initiative it highlights its use in the …

Catholic Social Thought In Catholic Business Schools In The U.S. Today: A Survey And Conclusions, Andrew B. Gustafson, Matthew Mccarville

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

When it comes to religion and business ethics, Catholic Schools have a uniquely important position in that they are institutions generally founded in support of religious values which in turn supposedly impact the content and method of teaching of business (and business ethics). Catholic business schools claim to have a distinctiveness which gives them an advantage over non-Catholic business schools (Spitzer, 2010; Lowney, 2012). It is clear that Catholic schools are better than their peers at providing business ethics education in their curriculum. But it also appears that many Catholic business schools and departments consider their business ethics education one …

Religious Ethics And Socially Responsible Behaviors Of Small Firms In Nepal, Binod Krishna Shrestha

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

Exploration on moral or ethical managerial behavior has become imperative to generate discussion on solving social and economic problems of the society while encouraging business people to make profit from their businesses. This study explored the extent of fulfillment of responsibilities as prescribed by religious values in the consumptions, business practices and uses of wealth using Hindu’s and Buddhist's principles of business ethics by small firm owners. The research began with review of literature on Hindu (Vedic) and Buddhist principles. A survey on 300 respondents found that owners of small firms have positive attitude towards pursuing the religious principles of …

The Intersection Of Religiosity, Workplace Spirituality And Ethical Sensitivity In Practicing Accountants, Joshua Sauerwein

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

A broad range of ethical decisions cross the desk of practicing accountants everyday. Rest and Narvaez (1994) theorized that ethical sensitivity is influenced by personal factors such as religion. Using Rest’s theory, this study found that workplace spirituality was positively related to ethical sensitivity and extrinsic religiosity was negatively related to ethical sensitivity. In additional analysis significant associations were found between the meaning an accountant ascribes to their job and ethical sensitivity. Significant differences in ethical sensitivity were also observed across the accountant’s role. The results of this study provide evidence that religion and spirituality are associated with ethical sensitivity …

Greenwashing In Islamic Finance? An Analysis Of Islamic Private Banks' Non-Financial Reports And A Proposal For An Islamic Finance Reporting Initiative Standard, Stefan Leins, Peter Seele, Franziska Vogel

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

Since the beginning of the financial crisis in 2008, Islamic finance has been subject to a number of intriguing debates. While evidence suggests that Islamic private banks got through the imponderabilities of the financial crisis more easily than conventional banks, Islamic finance has been criticized by some as incapable of performing the functions of modern banking. Moreover, there has been a debate among academics as well as among practitioners whether Islamic finance indeed represents a new faith-based form of banking or whether it represents just a conventional way of banking that is based on the use of religious terminology. Against …

Sociological, Psychological And Historical Perspectives On The Reemergence Of Religion And Spirituality Within Organizational Life., Timothy G. Ewest

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

The intent of this paper is to account for the most recent philosophical shift occurring within organizational life away from the modern philosophical preference towards secularization, and the corresponding focus on technical competence, as posited by Fordism, to a philosophical shift that inculcates endemic religious and spiritual beliefs. The impetus for this change can be best understood by using psychological and sociological paradigms including groups of individuals whose collective human agentic action (humans making choices as groups and imposing those choices on the world) and social movements theory as an attestation of the unwillingness of many to lead a bi-furcated …

Are Faith-Based, Long-Term Care Nonprofit Organizations More Effective? A Survey Study Of Nursing Homes In Virginia, Bulent Ucar, Zubeyir Nisanci

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

The role of religion in effectiveness of organizations has been part of serious debates among policy makers, practitioners and scholars after President George W. Bush's creation of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives in 2001.

The primary purpose of this study is to determine whether being a faith affiliated nursing home influences performance. The secondary purpose is, regardless of ownership type - religiously affiliated or secular - to investigate if more religiously involved nursing homes perform better than their less religiously involved counterparts. Performance is measured based on criterion put in place by the Center for Medicare …

The Whole Greater Than The Sum Of Its Parts: Being Whole In The Workplace, Cristine Margaret Atienza, Andrea Santiago

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

In a world where the benefit to the common good has been overshadowed by the need to spur consumer demand to increase profitability, one begins to wonder if business has turned a blind eye and if the workforce has grown so detached that who they are at work is different from who they are outside the workplace. While there are many challenges that a worker encounters inside and outside the workplace, it is the contention of this paper that it is possible to remain integral and not to disintegrate amidst so much pressures, provided organization is there to support such …

Common Threads Among Different Forms Of Charismatic Leadership, Ylva Sandberg, Christopher M. Moreman

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

The following paper examines the role of charismatic leadership across religious, political, and business leadership in order to come to terms with charisma, what is often described as an intangible quality. The term itself is derived from a Greek term indicating divine favor, a notion that scholars have increasingly tried to move away from, or ignore, but from a systematic analysis of ways in which charisma manifests, the authors hope to bring the subject into a more defined relief.

Ethical Principles Of Old Testament Economics: Implications For The Teaching Of Business Ethics, Sigmund Wagner-Tsukamoto

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

The paper reviews ethical principles, including certain theological principles that have been drawn from the field of economic research on the Old Testament. It critically examines the type of lessons that can be learned from adherence to such principles for the teaching of business ethics, and how such principles can subsequently inform and be incorporated into management practises.

In terms of ethical assessments, on the one hand the paper connects to the Judeo-Christian tradition, and to institutional and constitutional economics on the other. The paper reviews several stories from the Old Testament and extracts ethical principles on good management practice, …

Is Servant Leadership Inherently Christian?, Andrey V. Shirin

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

Servant leadership has gained broad currency among Christians of various persuasions. At the same time, surprisingly little consideration is given to cultural assumptions behind servant leadership, particularly to the meaning of service in question. The paper will examine these assumptions in light of Christian tradition as reflected in works of St. Augustine. The paper will argue that, while there are some affinities between traditional Christian spirituality and servant leadership as commonly understood, this should not lead us to conclude that the latter is an outgrowth of the former. While an Augustinian theology of leadership will inevitably have a robust service …

Ethical Implications Of Catholic Social Teachings On Human Work For The Service Industry, Ferdinand Tablan

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

This study examines from an ethical framework the circumstances of workers who are engaged in non-professional services that are offered through corporations that are organized to serve high volume of costumers. Drawing on the relevant ethical teachings of the Catholic social tradition (CST), it explores some practices, strategies, and policies that could address the problems experienced by many service providers in the United States today. CST refers to a wide variety of documents of the magisterium of the Catholic Church which respond to the changing social and economic challenges of the modern world. The study argues that the primacy of …

A New Philosophy Of Clothes: Brunello Cucinelli's Neohumanistic Business Ethics, David Larocca Ph.D.

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

The Italian entrepreneur Brunello Cucinelli has spent decades building a successful eponymous international clothing brand from the small Umbrian hamlet of Solomeo. What is perhaps less well known is the degree to which his business ethics are informed by the long history of Western humanistic philosophy. Given that Cucinelli recently received an honorary doctorate in Philosophy and the Ethics of Human Relations from the University of Perugia, and around that time saw annual sales exceed two hundred million dollars, there is an increasing mandate to explore whether or to what extent Cucinelli’s investment in the humanistic tradition contributes positively to …

Brunello Cucinelli: A Humanistic Approach To Luxury, Philanthropy, And Stewardship, David Larocca Ph.D.

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

Over the past few decades, the Italian clothier Brunello Cucinelli has created a highly profitable, globally present, luxury fashion line while reading medieval monastics. Entrepreneurs and business ethicists might be intrigued to explore how this apparent paradox is resolved in Cucinelli’s manner of running his company—a practice inspired, in part, by drawing widely from works in the Western humanistic and religious canon. From his study of St. Benedict and St. Francis, among others, Cucinelli has found ways of squaring particularly daunting circles: the correlation between luxury and quality; the meaning of labor for human dignity in an age of excessive …

Learning About Leadership, Trust And Benevolence From Ethics Of The Fathers (Avot), Hershey Harry Friedman Phd, Dov Fischer Phd Cpa

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

Leadership has become an important subject in numerous areas ranging from business to education to religion. An organization or country that is going to prosper needs effective leadership. Ethics of the Fathers (Pirkei Avot) is the perfect tool for learning about what it takes to restore organizational trust in business leadership. Avot consists of sayings of Jewish sages — many of whom were leaders — who lived from 300 BCE to 200 CE as well as many anonymous sayings. It is essential to any leader who wishes to achieve organizational trust through ability, integrity and benevolence.

Sitting In The Hoop Of The People: Linking Lakota Values And Business Ethics, Robin T. Byerly

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

As self described, the Lakota (or Teton Sioux) are a group of Native Americans characterized by their emphasis on ideals such as community, affinity, generosity, cooperation, and strength. The term Lakota roughly translates to "an alliance of people." Traditionally, they are a people strongly motivated by personal responsibility to the whole of society and philosophically wedded to the notion of “affinity,” which involves living in harmony with others, having a sense of belonging to one’s community, valuing interpersonal relationships, and trusting one another (Marshall, 2005). This manner of living has allowed the Lakota to synergize efforts through teamwork and cooperation …

The Ethical-Religious Framework For Shalom, Michael E. Cafferky

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

This paper explores the ancient Hebrew Decalogue, the Ten Commandments, a traditional ethical-religious framework for business conduct, in terms of its contribution to well-being. Some elements of the Decalogue align with what contemporary scholars believe are generally-accepted moral principles expected of businesses. This paper addresses the question of how all the elements of the Decalogue might contribute to the Hebrew concept of Shalom. The purpose of the Decalogue is established in the context of a covenant community of believers. Each of the Ten Commandments is evaluated in terms of its contribution to Shalom.

Nature Is Prior To Us: Applying Catholic Social Thought And Anabaptist-Mennonite Theology To The Ethics Of Stakeholder Prioritization For The Natural Environment, Cathy A. Driscoll, Elden Wiebe, Bruno Dyck

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

We develop a spiritual and ethical based understanding of stakeholder theory that treats the natural environment as a primary stakeholder. We consider how Catholic social thought and Anabaptist-Mennonite theology can be seen as important resources for stakeholder thought and management, especially as they pertain to the natural environment as a primary stakeholder. We provide a discussion and implications for academics and practitioners in terms of dignifying both ecology and humanity, and creating solidarity between them. We also discuss how managers can become more attuned to the environment as a primary stakeholder through the development of relationships with the land and …

Fiduciary Principles: Corporate Responsibilities To Stakeholders, Susan C. Atherton, Mark S. Blodgett, Charles A. Atherton

Journal of Religion and Business Ethics

The recent corporate scandals and financial crisis has increased demand for accountability in business decisions. Corporate governance reform initiatives designed to increase financial disclosure and responsibility are insufficient to rebuild public trust in business. Corporate boards and officers must comply with the legal norms to which they are already subject; as fiduciaries they have duties of care, loyalty and good faith. This article examines modern fiduciary duties that currently govern corporate conduct and thus severely limit corporate responsibility. Revisiting the historical and religious origins of fiduciaries that shaped the ethical and moral duties gives insight into the true role of …