Keiko Krahnke

Point‐counterpoint: measuring workplace spirituality

Presents a point‐counterpoint discussion on whether or not we can – or should – measure something as ineffable as spirituality in organizations. Topics covered include “Workplace spirituality: on the need for measurement” and “Towards wholeness in spirituality research: embracing other ways of knowing”

Spiritual leadership as a model for performance excellence: a study of Baldrige award recipients

Abstract Issues regarding workplace spirituality and spiritual leadership have received increased attention in the organizational sciences. The implications of workplace spirituality for leadership theory, research, and practice make this a fast growing area of new research and inquiry by scholars. The purpose of this research was to test a dynamic relationship between the revised spiritual leadership model, consisting of inner life, spiritual leadership (comprised of hope/faith, vision, and altruistic love), spiritual well-being (i.e. a sense of calling and membership), and key organizational outcomes in a sample of Baldrige Performance Excellence Program award recipients. With structural equation modeling, results revealed a positive and significant relationship between spiritual leadership and several outcomes considered essential for performance excellence, including organizational commitment, unit productivity, and life satisfaction. These relationships were explained or mediated by spiritual well-being. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Art, 'Knowing' and Management Education

This article explores the concept of knowledge as an internal process of inner knowing. In the educational context, we describe our experiences in using art in the classroom to assist our students in accessing this inner knowing. We describe the design and use of such creative expressions. Our findings indicate that students have to integrate both right- and left-brain thinking to access their inner tuition. This slows down linear thinking in order to access the more affective-based learning process. Further, it encourages students to experiment with non-linear methods of learning. We argue that these findings assist students in accessing more choices in their decision making, which in turn will build managers who energize, revitalize and facilitate the growth of humanity through organizational compassion and understanding.

Reexamining Transformational Leadership in Complex Systems

We live in an increasingly complex, digitized, and globalized world. The two-dimensional, traditional concept of leaders transforming the organization or the followers is obsolete. Transformational leaders in modern organizations are required to be more cognizant of the power of asymmetric knowledge located in different parts of the organization, design thinking potential, and self-organizing capabilities with a need for urgency. This chapter explores how effective transformational leaders can respond to the challenges of the complexities in the world today through the lens of complex natural systems.

Leadership and Vision

Organizations have evolved into complex entities that exist within even more complex and dynamic societal and global systems. Understanding the complexities and facing today’s challenges may require different leadership skills. Traditional leadership theories, vocabulary, and perspectives on leadership vision are insufficient in guiding the knowledge economy. Vision can mean a long-term goal or an idealized future state, but vision can also mean the ability to see. This chapter explores a new perspective on leadership vision by turning to new science theories such as the quantum field theory and the holographic principle.

Wisdom of a Leader

Complex systems, issues, and problems call for a careful analysis of choices and decisions, and how these decisions affect multiple stakeholders in the present and the long term. Generic leadership characteristics and competencies such as cognitive ability, emotional intelligence, and cultural intelligence are not sufficient in providing effective leadership in a complex, globalized world. The focus of this chapter is to highlight and describe the concept of wisdom as an essential foundation of leadership in resolving today’s challenges. In the recent past, scholars have identified wisdom as the missing dimension in providing effective leadership. Wisdom involves making informed decisions, bearing in mind short-term and long-term consequences of decisions to multiple stakeholders. McKenna and Rooney1 have articulated the concept visioning and a perspective-taking capacity that incorporates long-range goals. This perspective may at times be at odds with notions of leadership effectiveness that are based on objective measurements and tangible benefits. Wisdom involves transcending above a narrow focus of decisions to higher ideals of improving and sustaining the human condition, resources, and the environment. Wisdom also involves understanding complex systems by tapping into different gestalts of knowledge to distill relevant issues into actions, and the ability to unite different interest parties into a winning coalition. Our focus is on the concept of wisdom and how it can be applied in dealing with these challenges. We proceed by describing the contextual globalized world, our understanding of wisdom, selected relevant literature, the need for a wise leader, and profiles of wise leaders.

Empathy, Consciousness, and Transcendence

In this symposium, we will explore “empathy” from various perspectives. Empathy is a mechanism for creating a shared existence and thus moves the focus from I to WE. The discovery of the mirror neurons has opened a window to recognizing our fundamental capacity to care about another. Although “empathy” has recently received more attention academically, further research and exploration are needed to better understand the implications of empathy in organizations, society, and in the global community. The role of empathy in decision making, spirituality and consciousness, and systemic change will be discussed. The ACES Decision-Making Technique as a Reframing Tool for Increasing Empathy Presenter: Larry Pate; Decision Systems International Presenter: Traci Shoblom; Decisions Systems International Developing the Capacity for Managing with Empathy Presenter: Sabita Sawhney; Maharishi U. The Source of Empathy in our Lives: An Explanatory Journey into the Realm of Spirituality Presenter: Dunia Harajli; Lebanese ...