Heiko Spitzeck - Böcker

What is the purpose of our economic system? What would a more life-serving economy look like? There are many books about business and society, yet very few of them question the primacy of GDP growth, profit maximization and individual utility maximization. Even developments with a humanistic touch like stakeholder participation, corporate social responsibility or corporate philanthropy serve the same goal: to foster long-term growth and profitability. Humanism in Business questions these assumptions and investigates the possibility of creating a human-centered, value-oriented society based on humanistic principles. An international team of academics and practitioners present philosophical, spiritual, economic, psychological and organizational arguments that show how humanism can be used to understand, and possibly transform, business at three different levels: the systems level, the organizational level and the individual level. This groundbreaking book will be of interest to academics, practitioners and policymakers concerned with business ethics and the relationship between business and society.

What is the purpose of our economic system? What would a more life-serving economy look like? There are many books about business and society, yet very few of them question the primacy of GDP growth, profit maximization and individual utility maximization. Even developments with a humanistic touch like stakeholder participation, corporate social responsibility or corporate philanthropy serve the same goal: to foster long-term growth and profitability. Humanism in Business questions these assumptions and investigates the possibility of creating a human-centered, value-oriented society based on humanistic principles. An international team of academics and practitioners present philosophical, spiritual, economic, psychological and organizational arguments that show how humanism can be used to understand, and possibly transform, business at three different levels: the systems level, the organizational level and the individual level. This groundbreaking book will be of interest to academics, practitioners and policymakers concerned with business ethics and the relationship between business and society.

A Global CEO study by Accenture and the UN Global Compact has shown that 94% of CEOs think that their board should discuss sustainability. And yet there is a real danger that boards are not living up to expectations on sustainability, paying lip-service to the concept rather than fully embedding social and environmental issues into their strategies and operations. Talking Sustainability in the Boardroom sets out why this is the case, identifies the obstacles, and then explains the opportunities for the long-term performance of the organisation that can arise through focusing on social and environmental issues. Written by two leading specialists in sustainability who have significant experience of working directly with boards, this book presents a very practical framework for embedding sustainability into board conversations and strategies. Steps include identifying and prioritising the social and environmental issues that are most pertinent to the organisation and will have the biggest impact on business, presenting the competences and skills to enable this, guidance on how to structure board meetings to ensure that these conversations truly take place, and the development of action plans and tools for measurement.

A Global CEO study by Accenture and the UN Global Compact has shown that 94% of CEOs think that their board should discuss sustainability. And yet there is a real danger that boards are not living up to expectations on sustainability, paying lip-service to the concept rather than fully embedding social and environmental issues into their strategies and operations. Talking Sustainability in the Boardroom sets out why this is the case, identifies the obstacles, and then explains the opportunities for the long-term performance of the organisation that can arise through focusing on social and environmental issues. Written by two leading specialists in sustainability who have significant experience of working directly with boards, this book presents a very practical framework for embedding sustainability into board conversations and strategies. Steps include identifying and prioritising the social and environmental issues that are most pertinent to the organisation and will have the biggest impact on business, presenting the competences and skills to enable this, guidance on how to structure board meetings to ensure that these conversations truly take place, and the development of action plans and tools for measurement.

In response to the world’s rapidly growing social, economic and environmental challenges, a growing wave of "social intrapreneurs" are harnessing the power of large companies to create new business solutions to address societal problems. Social Intrapreneurism and All That Jazz reveals how these highly creative social innovators are improvizing alliances across, as well as beyond, their companies to create micro-insurance products for low-income people; offer delivery services to millions of small businesses in slums around the world; develop alternative-energy solutions inside a major gas and oil corporation; partner with a Brazilian community to produce new natural care products; establish a green advertising network within a major media company; apply engineering expertise to help alleviate poverty and much more – all while generating commercial value for their companies.Distilling insights from interviews with social intrapreneurs, their colleagues and experts around the world, the authors bring to life how business can be about more than just maximizing profit. They identify the mind-sets, behaviours and skills that have helped successful social intrapreneurs journey from initial idea to roll-out by their company – and some of the pitfalls.Although their journeys may be lonely at times and require considerable hard work while working "against the grain" of large conventional businesses, successful social intrapreneurs are, above all, great communicators who inspire others to join them in achieving a higher purpose beyond the realms of conventional business.Drawing on the metaphors of ensemble jazz music-making, the authors describe how "woodshedding", "jamming", "paying your dues", being a "sideman", joining and building a "band" but, above all, "listening" to what is happening in business and the wider world – are all part of the life of a successful social intrapreneurism project.Whether you’re an aspiring social intrapreneur who wants to change the world while keeping your day job, or want to renew the entrepreneurial spirit of your own company, this book is for you.