Nancy Kubasek

Do we really want more leaders in business

In this article, we focus on the concept of leadership ethics and make observations about transformational, transactional and servant leadership. We consider differences in how each definition of leadership outlines what the leader is supposed to achieve, and how the leader treats people in the organization while striving to achieve the organizations goals. We also consider which leadership styles are likely to be more popular in organizations that strive to maximize short run profits. Our paper does not tout or degrade any of these leadership theories. Instead, it points out which theories allow reason to play more than a minimal role in ethical decision-making, as well as those that are most consistent with a firms desire to achieve efficiency in the short run. We explain our view that the way leadership is practiced in large, bureaucratic organizations suggests that ethics is often absent from the leaders decision-making process. Consequently, we suggest that before we engage in a meaningful dialogue about what kind of leaders we might really want in business, we must consider how much short-run profit we are willing to forego in exchange for more ethical corporate cultures.

Reframing the Argument for National Plant‐Closing Legislation

Many believe that a major problem in today’s economy is the unregulated movement of physical capital. Most other industrialized nations have plant‐closing legislation which prevents this problem from arising. This article explores possible reasons why proponents of such legislation have been unsuccessful in securing its passage in the United States, primarily a value preference for efficiency over equity and a restrictive definition of efficiency. Taking these reasons into consideration, the writer suggests an alternative rationale for plant‐closing legislation which has not been previously voiced arguing that (1) we should focus the debate over plant‐closing laws on whether they are dynamically, not allocatively, efficient, and (2) that we should consider whether the proposed legislation will help protect the most vulnerable members of our society.