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A Deliberative Case for Democracy in Firms

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  • Andrea Felicetti

    (piazza degli Strozzi)

Abstract

The increasing centrality of business firms in contemporary societies calls for a renewed attention to the democratization of these actors. This paper sheds new light on the possibility of democratizing business firms by bridging recent scholarship in two fields—deliberative democracy and business ethics. To date, deliberative democracy has largely neglected the role of business firms in democratic societies. While business ethics scholarship has given more attention to these issues, it has overlooked the possibility of deliberation within firms. As argued in the paper, a combination of reforms based on the ideas of workplace deliberation and business deliberation is necessary in order to promote the prospect of deliberation in different business contexts. The paper also discusses the importance of more democratic firms for deliberative democracy at large and, in particular, for the recent debate on deliberative systems. Finally, the paper suggests new areas of investigation to better understand the prospect of democratic deliberation in business firms.

Suggested Citation

  • Andrea Felicetti, 2018. "A Deliberative Case for Democracy in Firms," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 150(3), pages 803-814, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:150:y:2018:i:3:d:10.1007_s10551-016-3212-9
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-016-3212-9
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Harry Hummels & Patrick Nullens, 2022. "‘Other-wise’ Organizing. A Levinasian Approach to Agape in Work and Business Organisations," Humanistic Management Journal, Springer, vol. 7(2), pages 211-232, October.
    3. Sandrine Blanc, 2023. "Deliberative Democracy and Corporate Constitutionalism: Considering Corporate Constitutional Courts," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 188(1), pages 1-15, November.

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