Abstract
Corporate governance is a theme that is important to Business Ethicists for various reasons. It relates to how and for whose benefit corporations are governed, to how important corporate decisions are taken, and to how organizational cultures are “managed.” In this article, it will be argued that in each of these respects, corporate governance relies on particular identity constructs that need to be questioned. In fact, it will be argued that the way in which corporate governance initiatives address the various crises of capitalism, allows us to gloss over some crucial ontological questions that could precipitate a more rigorous questioning of capitalist practices. The article will plot the limitations of the kind of thinking that we encounter within the corporate governance realm, and expose its problematic assumptions by exploring a selection of Deleuzoguattarian concepts. It will be argued that the challenges facing corporate governance relate to the relationship between identity crises and crises of control. We will argue that a better understanding of the nature of capitalism could open new avenues for ethical questioning of contemporary corporate practices, and put the various “crises” that capitalism faces in a new perspective.
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Notes
The Federal Sentencing Guidelines’ seven steps include: (1) formulating compliance standards and procedures such as a code of conduct or ethics; (2) assigning high-level personnel to provide oversight (e.g., a compliance or ethics officer); (3) taking care when delegating authority; (4) effective communication of standards and procedures (e.g., training); (5) auditing/monitoring systems and reporting mechanisms, whistle-blowing; (6) enforcement of disciplinary mechanisms; and (7) appropriate response after detection.
Thanem (2004, p. 208) criticizes Linstead’s analysis of the body without organs as a metaphor by emphasizing organisations are populated by bodies, which are themselves BwO’s, and that the real disruptive effect of such bodies should not be ignored. He also points to Deleuze’s own disbelief in metaphor.
Painter-Morland (2011).
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Painter-Morland, M. The Relationship between Identity Crises and Crises of Control. J Bus Ethics 114, 1–14 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-013-1670-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-013-1670-x