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Given previous findings that employee satisfaction contributes to firm performance and sustainability, this study examined the relationships between 23 leadership/management practices on employee satisfaction. It identified specific practices with significant effects on employee satisfaction. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Using a theoretical framework and questionnaire derived from Avery and Bergsteiner's Sustainable Leadership Model, data were collected from 1,152 employees in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Bangkok, Thailand.

Overall, adopting sustainable leadership (SL) practices was related significantly to employee satisfaction, consistent with Avery and Bergsteiner's model. Twenty of the 23 SL practices were linked to enhanced employee satisfaction, the exceptions being independence from the financial markets, self-management and environmental responsibility. Specific SL practices predicted enhanced employee satisfaction more than others, the strongest predictor being high staff engagement. Other practices associated with employee satisfaction were: valuing employees, ethical behaviour, considered organizational change, a strong and shared vision, an enabling culture, and quality in products and services.

Considerable scope exists for future research into the relationships between individual and bundles of SL practices with employee satisfaction in different national, industry and other contexts. Further limitations are discussed in the paper.

Managers of SMEs in Thailand and possibly in other contexts should consider adopting the SL practices shown to significantly enhance employee satisfaction and in doing so help sustain their business success.

This study pioneered research into a gap in the literature about the SL and management practices that positively predict enhanced employee satisfaction, an area of importance to both leadership practice and research.

This interview discusses a “Blue Ocean” strategy initiative: how to introduce effective change in diabetes care into Thailand given a strong reluctance in patients, and in Thai society, to see that diabetes is not a condition to be treated by doctors alone.

An interview with Dr Thep Himathongkam, the pioneer of holistic diabetes care in Thailand.

One strategic management problem he faced was the lack of suitably trained staff. Thailand had no university courses producing the multidisciplinary personnel needed for diabetes treatment such as diabetes educators, dieticians, or foot care specialists. He address the multidisciplinary personnel shortage by training the missing specialists, getting universities on board and more recently securing funding from the World Diabetes Foundation.

The result of the diabetic foot-care training for more than 2,500 personnel, mostly from community hospitals, has been markedly successful, with a reduction in annual amputations in Thailand of 80 per cent over five years.

This interview offers a look at the multi-track problem solving required to successfully implement a Blue Ocean strategy.

The purpose of this paper is to present an alternative leadership model to the prevailing shareholder‐first approach that research, management experts and practice indicate can lead to higher performance and resilience of a firm.

This conceptual paper is based on published literature, empirical research, and observations conducted in firms worldwide.

Avery and Bergsteiner's 23 principles differentiate sustainable or “honeybee” practices from shareholder‐first or “locust” leadership. Sustainable practices are arranged in a pyramid with three levels of practices and five performance outcomes at the apex. A total of 14 foundation practices can be introduced immediately. At the next level in the pyramid, six higher‐level practices emerge once the foundations are in place. Finally, three practices cover the key performance drivers of innovation, quality, and staff engagement – all of which end customers' experience. Together the 23 practices influence five outcomes, namely brand and reputation, customer satisfaction, operational finances, long‐term shareholder value, and long‐term value for multiple stakeholders.

Given that research and practice show that operating on sustainable principles enhances business performance and resilience, executives are urged to adopt these practices over business‐as‐usual. If self‐interest does not motivate this change, as it appears to have already done at Wal‐Mart, then major stakeholders or legislators can be expected to force such changes in the future.

This paper provides an answer to the question of whether there is there an alternative to the shareholder‐first leadership model. Its response is: yes, a demonstrably effective alternative already operates among many successful enterprises around the world.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the leadership and management practices that positively affect stakeholder satisfaction, an under-studied area important for both academic researchers and leaders. Relationships between 23 leadership and management practices and overall stakeholder satisfaction (OSS) were examined.

Avery and Bergsteiner ' s (2010, 2011a) sustainable leadership (SL) model provided the theoretical framework for a cross-sectional survey research design used to gather empirical data from 439 managers of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Thailand.

Results show all SL practices except financial market orientation were significantly related to OSS, and the more an organisation adopts significant SL practices, the higher the OSS is likely to be. The particular SL practices that positively predicted enhanced OSS were amicable labour relations, staff retention, strong and shared vision, strategic and systemic innovation, and high staff engagement and quality.

Future research should further examine relationships between SL practices and a range of organisational performance outcomes in different contexts, as well as the relationship between SL practices and sustainable human resource management (SHRM), and between SHRM and stakeholder satisfaction.

The findings provide guidance on which SL practices to adopt for managers of SMEs in Thailand and possibly in other countries, who wish to improve their stakeholder satisfaction and sustain their business success.

Policy makers may gain insights into practices that drive performance in SMEs, a strong force in many economies.

This study extends current knowledge of leadership and management practices that positively predict enhanced stakeholder satisfaction, an area in which empirical evidence has to date been largely lacking.

This study investigated whether the direct supervisor's leadership style affects employee engagement using Avery's classical, transactional, visionary, and organic leadership paradigms as the theoretical framework. The study also investigated how many and which components of employee engagement (“say”, “stay” and “strive”) contribute to the construct. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

A sample of 439 retail sales assistants in Sydney, Australia, responded to a mixed-mode questionnaire survey. Factor analysis, independent t-tests, analysis of variance and structural regression models were used in the data analysis.

Both research questions were supported. Results showed that the visionary and organic paradigms are likely to enhance employee engagement, whereas classical and transactional styles negatively affect employee engagement. Furthermore, the data confirmed that the three behavioral-outcome factors all do contribute to the employee engagement construct.

One implication for researchers is that an employee engagement measure with demonstrably high reliability and validity, and known components has been developed. This study could be replicated in different national and occupational contexts, the leadership measures reconfirmed and expanded, follower characteristics included as moderating variables, and links to organizational performance investigated.

The findings suggest that direct supervisors should be encouraged to use visionary and/or organic leadership wherever possible to drive employee engagement.

This paper is original in several ways. It resolves an ongoing dispute in the literature about the components of employee engagement, namely whether all three components contribute to the concept. In answering this question, a valid and reliable questionnaire was developed. Using four leadership paradigms, including classical and organic leadership that are rarely investigated, this study demonstrates that employee perceptions of the leadership style used by their direct supervisor are linked to employee engagement.

This study examines the question of whether sustainable leadership principles, also known as Rhineland leadership, can apply to a listed business in an emerging economy.

Avery's sustainable leadership grid provided the framework for analysis of a major publicly‐listed Thai enterprise, the Siam Cement Group (SCG). A multi‐method case study used semi‐structured interviews with various stakeholders, observations, and internal and external documentation. The Rhineland principles were grouped into six categories for analysis: long‐term perspective, investing in people, organizational culture, innovation, social and environmental responsibility, and behaving ethically.

Overall, data showed moderate to strong evidence for 18 of the 19 grid practices at SCG, the exception being the CEO serving as speaker of the top team rather than being a heroic leader. Moderate evidence was found for consensual and devolved decision making and self‐governing teams. All 16 other elements were strongly evident.

Case studies cannot lead to generalizations, and therefore further research is required into other businesses to gauge the extent of Rhineland practices in Thailand and other developing economies.

Rhineland principles link to enhanced brand and reputation, customer and staff satisfaction, and financial performance compared with business‐as‐usual practices. Therefore, managers are advised to evaluate their current practices with a view to adopting more sustainable versions. The sustainable leadership grid provides a useful checklist for this purpose.

Society and the planet stand to benefit under Rhineland practices. Increasingly, business is expected to help address many of the pressing problems facing humankind, such as climate change, pollution, unethical practices, and shortages of fossil fuels, water, and other resources. Rhineland leadership can contribute here because of its concern for the wider effects of its activities on society and the environment.

This paper is highly original. It contains the first examination of Rhineland leadership in a developing economy. In addition, it shows that even a public company can resist pressures to conform to business‐as‐usual practices and adopt the long‐term, socially responsible principles of Rhineland leadership.