It is fruitful to consider two complementary perspectives on the concept of corporate reputation and its relationship to success and credibility. The first of these can be said to be a managerial or pragmatic perspective. Its basis is economic rationality and it focuses on traditional notions of corporate success. It is primarily concerned with the qualities imputed to the corporation by its stakeholders and aims at protecting and improving corporate image. This pragmatic perspective on corporate reputation is having an increased effect upon the behavior of business leaders due to the growing expectations of employees, customers, investors, and the media -and is promoted and marketed by eager hordes of consultants and PR experts.The second perspective can be said to be a reflective perspective. It is existential or philosophical in nature and, in comparison with the pragmatic perspective, employs a broader repertoire of measures of corporate success and focuses on organizational identity rather than image. It is reflective rather than communicative in nature and is more concerned with the inherent 'character' of the organization rather than its outward appearance.
A new global leadership paradigm is gradually emerging, spiritual-based leadership. The article contextualizes this development within a framework of scientifi c and economic rationality. In contrast to these, a spiritual approach to leadership is presented as integrating a leader's inner perspective on the purpose of life and leadership such that this inner perspective is the foundation for decisions and actions in the outer world of business. Empirical research is presented, based on interviews with 31 top leaders from 15 countries in six continents. It demonstrates that leaders can obtain happiness, respect, peace of mind and success, while at the same time serving the needs of all those affected by their leadership when they lead from a spiritual basis. It also indicates that spirituality can serve as the foundation for leadership that considers ethics, social responsibility and concern for the environment not just as instruments to protect corporate reputation and income generation but as fundamental principles and values in their own right.
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