Business Ethics from the Standpoint of Redemption: Adorno on the Possibility of Good Work

Abstract

Given his view that the modern world is “radically evil,” Theodor Adorno is an unlikely contributor to business ethics. Despite this, we argue that his work has a number of provocative implications for the field that warrant wider attention. Adorno regards our social world as damaged, unfree, and false, and we draw on this critique to outline why the achievement of good work is so rare in contemporary society, focusing in particular on the ethical demands of roles and the ideological nature of management’s self-understanding. Nevertheless, we show that Adorno’s comments on activities such as art and philosophy mean that it is possible to draw on his work in a way that contributes constructively to the conversation about good and meaningful work within business ethics.

A Pharmacological Perspective on Technology-Induced Organised Immaturity: The Care-giving Role of the Arts

“…On this basis, we argue, any context of business ethics, including research related to the ethics of digital technologies, must consider the care-giving role of the arts. In thus advocating a remedial ethical role of the arts in business ethics contexts, we align with an emerging stream of business ethics scholarship, including studies published in this journal, that has emphasised the ethical potential of the arts to “transcend the damaged, unfree and false conditions” of contemporary workplaces and occupational existence (Reeves & Sinnicks, 2021: 517).…”

Adorno’s Critique of Work in Market Society

“…As uptight as contemporary Kantians can sometimes seem, it is at least conceivable that they do not accept this and other aspects of Kant's ethical thought. Similarly, it's perfectly legitimate to draw on Adorno's ethical thought without restricting oneself to claims he would have endorsed, as we tried to do in our recent paper (Reeves and Sinnicks 2021). Nevertheless, we believe we can respond to Nevasto's thoughtful objections on good Adornian grounds, in furtherance of our shared aim to elucidate "the relevance of Adorno's thought to new directions in business ethics" (Nevasto 2021: 41).…”

Needs, creativity and care: Adorno and the future of work

“…The impulse to engage in creative work is common to all forms of human society, appearing wherever humans have been able to produce the necessities of life sufficiently to create time for further activity (Dissanayake, 1990), and Adorno sees art as a paradigmatic example of genuine activity and thus good work (Reeves and Sinnicks, 2021). Clearly, the desire to engage in creative work is a deep an enduring one.…”