PROPOSED PANEL SYMPOSIUM
ON
Innovating for The Future:
Keeping Purpose as The Core of Business Strategy and Sustainability
Chair:
Sunita Singh Sengupta, Ph.D., Professor of Organizational Leadership, Faculty of Management Studies, University of Delhi, India
CONCEPT NOTE
The two most important days in your life are
the day you are born and the day you find out why. -Mark Twain
The fundamental basis of the long–term success of a firm is the achievement and maintenance of a sustainable competitive advantage through a purpose driven approach. The benefits of high-integrity and high-responsibility organizations are well established conscience mechanisms that emphasize on fair practice which are manifested in responsible decision making and organizational citizenship behavior. This cannot be possible unless and until the organization combines a reflective approach in its managerial style. The reflective managerial style on the one hand provides caring climate to the organization where members freely interact and have a free frank dialogue and on the other hand is aware of the purpose of its existence in the society (Singh Sengupta, 2003, p.78).
Barney (1991) writes, "A firm is said to have a sustained competitive advantage when it is implementing a value-creating strategy not simultaneously being implemented by any current or potential competitors and when these other firms are unavailable to duplicate the benefits of this strategy" (p.102).
Chester Barnard in his book The Functions of the Executive (1938) emphasizes competence, moral integrity, rational stewardship, professionalism, and a systems approach, written for future generations (Gabor and Mahoney, 2010). Barnard (1938) focused on the complexities of the human element in the organization, on the psychological forces of human behavior, and on developing ways to manage the complexities of human behavior and to cope with its limitations (Gabor, 2000).
"...When leaders and workers operate from a deep awareness of their consciousness – they naturally behave responsibly beyond what appears to be their self-interest (Singh Sengupta, 2001; 2007, p. 11). Some of the most successful companies focus beyond profit margins and returns on investments to craft strong mission statements and purpose-driven strategies (Kate Gibson, 2022). This poses two important questions:
(a) How can businesses craft purpose-driven responsible and sustainable business strategies? and
(b) How can employees adopt a purpose-driven approach to work?
Therefore, the purpose of this Panel Symposium is to engage a group of panelists in a formal, moderated, interactive discussion of (1) Innovating for the future by putting 'purpose' as the core of business strategies, (2) the relationship between sustainable business strategies and integrity and morality, (3) Spirituality – the guiding force behind creating responsible business strategies, (4) DEI for crafting a holistic purpose centric approach, (5) Purpose-driven approach to work and changing nature of power relationships.
Anyone who would like to be a Panelist and contribute meaningfully to this proposed symposium kindly reply by December 31, 2023.
Sunita