What contributes to work-life balance in a way that is more than simply ‘not working too much’? What can organizations do to help decrease employee burn-out while also meeting their financial goals and embracing sustainability responsibilities? What does human flourishing look like from an organizational level? All these questions are relevant to organizational application versus theory. The newly published special issue of the Journal of Management, Spirituality, & Religion titled “Practical wisdom: The ultimate purpose for cultivating spirituality in business” addresses the integration of practical wisdom and spirituality from an organizational perspective. This issue, edited by Raysa Geaquinto Rocha of the University of Essex, United Kingdom & Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Florian Kragulj from the WU Vienna University of Economics and Business, Austria, includes 5 chapters addressing wise leadership, organizational practical wisdom, and organizational ethics from researchers across the globe.
Special issue on Organizational Practical Wisdom & Spirituality
Rocha and Kragulj introduce this special issue with a brief overview of contributing authors’ work along with an argument for the benefits of integrating practical wisdom and spirituality within organizations to enhance performance. The editors stated "the consequences of neglecting these dimensions of human experience can be significant. Without practical wisdom, organizations may struggle with ethical challenges, short-termism, and an inability to navigate complex trade-offs between competing values. Without spirituality, they might miss opportunities for deeper meaning and purpose that enhance motivation, commitment, and well-being.” They further clarified that organizations which focus solely on capitalistic and financial frameworks tend to lean towards unsustainable practices, causing our current ecosystems crises and wealth disparities that shift away from human flourishing.
The chapter contributions begin with “Being and becoming a wise leader” by Eric H. Kessler from the Lubin School of Business at Pace University. He argues that applying practical wisdom founded in Plato’s Republic leads to foundational, multidimensional and context specific leadership tools which can address modern dominant leadership challenges. The second chapter by Peter McGhee of the Auckland University of Technology titled “Cultivating ethicality in organizations through spirituality, practical wisdom, and indigeneity” examines the integration of spirituality, practical wisdom, and ethics in business organization. McGhee provides a framework to guide ethical organizational behavior. “Building practical wisdom in business, organisation and management through transformative civic education (´bildung´)” by Wendelin Küpers of Karlshochschule International University, Paul Shrivastava of Penn State, and Laslo Zsolnai of Corvinus University of Budapest addresses integrating the concept of bildung towards civic education in business and management leading to wiser organizational practices. Andreia Magalhães Azevedo, Carlos Manuel Gonçalves, and Patrício Costa, authors from the University of Porto, Portugal contributed the 4th chapter titled “Touching wisdom: A growth model for human/leader development”. They report on research of in-depth interviews with organizational leaders to develop categories and dimensions for wise executive leadership development. This special issue closes with “Cultivating spirituality in organizations: The role of spiritual discernment” by Carolina Verdugo-Rojas, David Roch-Dupré, and Elisa Aracil from Universidad Pontificia Comillas. This paper presents a conceptual framework with applications of practical wisdom, appreciation of beauty and excellence, and social intelligence and how these lend themselves towards spiritual discernment and decision-making processes.
The culmination of this special issue offers insights into leadership development as well as management education. Rocha and Kragulj stated “As we face unprecedented societal challenges, these integrative approaches remind us that human flourishing requires both inward cultivation and outward application. In the words of T.S. Eliot (1934), quoted by Küpers and colleagues: "Where is the life we have lost in living? Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?" By reclaiming the connections between spirituality and practical wisdom, we might just find our way back to what truly matters: living a flourishing life.”
About the editors:
Dr Raysa Geaquinto Rocha is a lecturer in Organisation Studies and Human Resource Management at Essex Business School, University of Essex. She is also an Assistant Professor of Spirituality and Society at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. With a commitment to excellence in research, teaching, and academic citizenship, Raysa brings a wealth of international experience and innovative perspectives to her field. At the forefront of her research are the dynamic intersections of Organizational Behaviour, Human Resource Management, and Management. Raysa's work, which focuses on practical wisdom and spirituality in organisational settings, corporate social responsibility, and entrepreneurship, not only contributes to theoretical advancements but also offers tangible implications for enhancing workplace experiences, productivity, and gender equity.
Dr. Florian Kragulj is a senior scientist with the Knowledge Management Group at the WU Vienna University of Economics and Business, Austria. His research is on organizational learning and managing knowledge, emphasizing its social nature and strategic future potential. He is particularly interested in an ethical perspective on knowledge management to illuminate its implications for doing well by doing good. Together with colleagues, he works on „Responsible Knowledge Management“, which reflects normative ideas of creating, applying, and evaluating knowledge towards ethical ends (purpose) in organizations.
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