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God as a Managerial Stakeholder?

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Abstract

Can or should God be considered a managerial stakeholder? While at first glance such a proposition might seem beyond the norms of stakeholder management theory or traditional management practice, further investigation suggests that there might be both theoretical and practical support for such a notion. This paper will make the argument that God both is and should be considered a managerial stakeholder for those businesspeople and business firms that accept that God exists and can affect the world. In doing so, part one of the paper first discusses the growth of religion and spirituality within the business and academic communities. Part two raises several arguments based on stakeholder theory and business reality to support the notion of God as a managerial stakeholder. Part three addresses the arguments against God as a managerial stakeholder. Part four discusses the managerial implications of considering God as a managerial stakeholder. The paper concludes with its limitations.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Administrative Studies, Atkinson Faculty of Liberal and Professional Studies, York University, 4700 Keele Street, Toronto, Ontario, M3J 1P3, Canada

    Mark S. Schwartz

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  1. Mark S. Schwartz
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Correspondence to Mark S. Schwartz.

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Mark S. Schwartz is an assistant professor of corporate governance, law and ethics at York University. He received his Ph.D. from the Schulich School of Business, York University in 1999, and graduated from the Joint M.B.A./L.L.B. Program at Osgoode Hall Law School and the Schulich School of Business, York University in 1991. He is a research fellow of the Business Ethics Center of Jerusalem as well as the Center for Business Ethics, Bentley College. His research interests include corporate ethics programs, corporate social responsibility, corporate governance, ethical investment, and religion and business.

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Schwartz, M.S. God as a Managerial Stakeholder?. J Bus Ethics 66, 291–306 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-005-5599-6

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