What does the future have in store for our organization and for us? Will it be good, bad, indifferent? Will we plan effectively, make the right managerial decisions and live…
Abstract
What does the future have in store for our organization and for us? Will it be good, bad, indifferent? Will we plan effectively, make the right managerial decisions and live happily ever after? Or will we be undercut or wiped out by the twin monsters “tion” and “sion”—competition, regulation, inflation, recession, pollution, or atomic explosion?
An account is given of futures research as a scientifically oriented field of knowledge. Its specific contemporary task as a study of transient change of the human society is…
Abstract
An account is given of futures research as a scientifically oriented field of knowledge. Its specific contemporary task as a study of transient change of the human society is described and the futures research approach is outlined. A generalization of the concept of knowledge of the standard sciences is presented as a sine qua non to futurology. The relationship between knowledge and information is elaborated and clarified, which makes it possible to better understand the present era as an information age.
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Based on a report to the non‐profit organization, The Foundation for the Future, this article aims to review methodological approaches to forecasting the long‐term future.
Abstract
Purpose
Based on a report to the non‐profit organization, The Foundation for the Future, this article aims to review methodological approaches to forecasting the long‐term future.
Design/methodology/approach
This is not an analysis of the particular content of the next 500 or 1,000 years but a comparative analysis of methodologies and epistemological approaches best utilized in long‐range foresight work. It involves an analysis of multiple methods to understand long‐range foresight; literature review; and critical theory.
Findings
Methodologies that forecast the long‐term future are likely to be more rewarding – in terms of quality, insight, and validity – if they are eclectic and layered, go back in time as far as they go in the future, that contextualize critical factors and long‐term projections through a nuanced reading of macrohistory, and focus on epistemic change, the ruptures that reorder how we know the world.
Research limitations/implications
The article provides frameworks to study the long‐range future. It gives advice on how best to design research projects that are focused on the long‐term. Limitations include: no quantitative studies were used and the approach while epistemologically sensitive remains bounded by Western frameworks of knowledge.
Practical implications
The article provides methodological and epistemological guidance as to the best methods for long range foresight. It overviews strengths and weaknesses of various approaches.
Originality/value
This is the only research project to analyze methodological aspects of 500‐1,000 year forecasting. It includes conventional technocratic views of the future as well as Indic and feminist perspectives. It is among the few studies to link macrohistory and epistemic analysis to study the long‐term.
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David Alastair Coldwell, Robert Venter and Emmanuel Nkomo
While the problem of unethical leadership is undoubtedly a global one, the urgency of generating ethical leadership to advance the development of Africa has never been more…
Abstract
Purpose
While the problem of unethical leadership is undoubtedly a global one, the urgency of generating ethical leadership to advance the development of Africa has never been more evident than it is today. The challenge for higher education in developing ethical leaders is of core importance, as it is responsible for providing the main recruiting ground of business leaders. The current paper reports findings of a qualitative study of postgraduate students’ ethical development at the end of courses in business ethics aimed to enhance moral reasoning and ethical decision-making. The paper aims to ascertain whether stand-alone ethics courses are more effective than integrated ones in achieving academic ethical competency.
Design/methodology/approach
The study adopts an idiographic approach which aims at eliciting individual student subjective perceptions of the effects of the direct and indirect courses of ethical instruction on their moral reasoning and ethical practice. The research design broadly follows Mill’s (2017) method of difference.
Findings
Findings indicate perceived differences in the relative effectiveness of stand-alone and embedded ethics courses among students but also show that most students hold positive overall evaluations of the effectiveness of the both types of ethics instruction.
Research limitations/implications
Limitations to the study include that it is cross-sectional, involves a small sample of postgraduate students and is restricted to two management courses at one institution of higher learning. Furthermore, while Mill (2017) provides a useful research design in this context, it is not able to indicate causality, as there are other possible unidentified “third variables” that may be the actual cause of student differences between embedded and stand-alone ethics courses. The study is not able to show the durability and transfer of ethical competencies into students’ later working lives.
Practical implications
The study provides a useful practical educational contribution to the extant knowledge in the field in that it suggests that ethical courses aimed at giving students a moral reasoning “toolkit” for ethical decision-making are more effective when delivered in the stand-alone format, whereas practical decision-making skills are best honed by embedded business ethics courses.
Social implications
The problem of corruption in business and politics in South Africa is widely documented and has been regarded as responsible for creating a serious developmental drag on the alleviation of poverty and quality of lives of the majority of people in the country. The moral/ethical competency and behavior of future business leaders is partly the responsibility of institutions of higher learning. The study aims to find the most effective means of imparting moral awareness in postgraduate students who are likely to take up business leadership positions in their future careers.
Originality/value
The study provides useful contribution to the extant knowledge in the field in the African context in that it suggests that ethical courses aimed at giving students a moral reasoning “toolkit” for ethical decision-making are more effective when delivered in the stand-alone format, whereas practical decision-making skills are best honed by embedded business ethics courses.
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Nana Amma Anokye, John Victor Mensah, Harriet Muriel Dzifa Potakey, Janet Serwah Boateng, David Wellington Essaw and Emmanuel Yamoah Tenkorang
Globally, rapid urbanisation characterised by increasing demand for housing and infrastructure needs has resulted in sand mining. In Ghana, sand mining can create or destroy the…
Abstract
Purpose
Globally, rapid urbanisation characterised by increasing demand for housing and infrastructure needs has resulted in sand mining. In Ghana, sand mining can create or destroy the livelihoods of people in urban and rural areas. This paper examines the interaction between sand mining and land-based livelihood security in Awutu Senya District (ASD) and Awutu Senya East Municipality (ASEM).
Design/methodology/approach
Based on pragmatism philosophy, the study used a mixed methods approach to collect quantitative data and qualitative data from 431 household heads, ten core staff of the Assemblies, five traditional leaders, two tipper truck drivers' associations and ten farmer groups. Statistical Product and Service Solutions, version 21 and NVivo 12 facilitated quantitative data analysis and qualitative data analysis, respectively.
Findings
The study revealed that sand mining had different consequences on land-based livelihood security. Some block makers and truck drivers acknowledged positive effects of sand mining on their livelihoods while the majority of the household respondents and other key informants claimed that sand mining had negative effects on their livelihoods.
Research limitations/implications
This paper focuses on two selected local government areas in Ghana. Therefore, the results may be generalised on the country with caution because local government areas have different characteristics. Further research is needed to contact the customers of sand in Accra.
Originality/value
This study provides new insight into the connections between sand mining and people's livelihood security in two local government areas. It also introduces a novel idea of collaboration among stakeholders to address negative effects associated with unsustainable sand mining.
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José Luis Fernández Fernández, Anna Bajo Sanjuán and José Luis Retolaza Ávalos
Despite the boom corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability are enjoying nowadays in the agendas of both small and big companies, we still have difficulties in…
Abstract
Despite the boom corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability are enjoying nowadays in the agendas of both small and big companies, we still have difficulties in providing a clear definition of the concept of sustainability. There is no consensus on the criteria to be used to define and enhance responsible management that creates sustainable development.
After a systematic revision of the literature, authors have been mapping the limits of the research already done at different levels, dimensions, and horizons, so we do have a 360° map of the research on sustainability. Future developments are also explored to enrich and align the diverse approaches demanded to define this wide, complex, and by now, equivocal concept and the conclusions reveal the many gaps not yet covered in the research field, signposting key issues for further work.
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BASF Lacke + Farben AG, Muenster (Federal Republic of Germany) and Tanabe Chemical Industries Co Ltd., Osaka (Japan) have established a joint company for the sale of OEM…
Abstract
BASF Lacke + Farben AG, Muenster (Federal Republic of Germany) and Tanabe Chemical Industries Co Ltd., Osaka (Japan) have established a joint company for the sale of OEM automotive paints. THe agreement was signed in Osaka by Hrimata Tanabe, President of Tanabe Chemical Industries, and Dr Juergen F Kammer, member of the Board of BASF Lacke + Farben AG.
An International Exhibition of Hygiene, Arts, Handicrafts, and Manufactures will be held in the Crystal Palace, Madrid, from September to November next, under the patronage of the…
Abstract
An International Exhibition of Hygiene, Arts, Handicrafts, and Manufactures will be held in the Crystal Palace, Madrid, from September to November next, under the patronage of the Spanish Government. The participation of British exhibitors is particularly desired by the promoters, who state that the attendant expenses will be small. His Excellency the Spanish Minister of Commerce will be the Honorary President; the President of the Committee will be his Excellency the Duke of Tamames and Galisteo, Grandee of Spain, Senator, and ex‐Governor of Madrid. The American war on the one hand, and political changes on the other, have had the effect of seriously damaging the credit of Spain, and many exporters, in view of then existing difficulties, refused to trade until affairs became mere settled. To‐day, however, the Spanish Government are making every effort to restore the economical prosperity of their country. Markets have gained strength, commerce has quadrupled, imports have trebled, and exchange is greatly improved. Well‐advised manufacturers sell in quantity and at good prices, the demand being greater than the supply. Again, the immense natural richness of the Iberian Peninsula, which has not yet received the attention of enterprising and powerful capitalists in any proportion to its value, makes Spain one of those countries where industrial progress is the more certain. The decision to hold this exhibition is evidently a wise one, and considerable advantages may accrue to British manufacturers and merchants taking part therein. There appear to be ample guarantees to show that the undertaking may be supported with every confidence. We understand that all detailed particulars with reference to this important exhibition can be obtained from the Spanish representative in London, Mr. A. DONDERIS, Spanish Arts Exhibition, Compton House, 99A, Charing Cross Road, London, W.C.
Technological innovation is needed to shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy, recycling and redesigning industrial processes. More fundamental strategy levels need…
Abstract
Purpose
Technological innovation is needed to shift from fossil fuels to renewable energy, recycling and redesigning industrial processes. More fundamental strategy levels need re‐examining: policy models, assumptions, institutional inertia and cultural values fueling today's drive toward increasing unsustainability. This study seeks to examine this issue
Design/methodology/approach
Reviews the current scientific debate about the unwarranted predominance of economics in public and private decision making; whether economics is a science or a profession and the demands by mathematicians, physicists and other scientists that the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economics be de‐linked from the original Nobel prizes.
Findings
Conventional economic models still drive such unsustainability: the malfunctioning “source codes” replicating traditional industrialism world‐wide. Scientific research on the human brain and ecosystems now refutes most of economics' core tenets. Multi‐disciplinary policies and appropriate metrics beyond money coefficients are needed for steering societies toward sustainability and quality of life.
Originality/value
Strengthens the case for strategies for global sustainability to address current economic models that are driving today's unsustainable forms of globalization.