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Formal and Informal Benevolence in a Profit-Oriented Context

Author

Listed:
  • Guillaume Mercier

    (LEM - Lille économie management - UMR 9221 - UA - Université d'Artois - UCL - Université catholique de Lille - ULCO - Université du Littoral Côte d'Opale - Université de Lille - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

  • Ghislain Deslandes

    (ESCP Europe - Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris)

Abstract

Faced with the disenchantment and disengagement expressed by their employees, business leaders are considering ways of incorporating more benevolence into managerial practices. Nevertheless, ‘benevolence'—care and concern for the well-being of others—has not yet been studied in an organizational profit-focused context. In this paper, we seek to investigate the emergence and practice of benevolence with an eye on profit and performance. We begin by investigating the main ethical approaches to benevolence—virtue ethical, utilitarian, and deontological. Then, based on an empirical study (in the context of an upward feedback system in a consulting firm), we identify two distinct types of benevolence. On the one hand, formal benevolence is defined and monitored by the organizational processes and actions of leaders; it is understood by all concerned to be bounded by organizational performance. On the other hand, informal benevolence exists at the margin of these processes, in interpersonal and discretionary relationships. We set out to analyze these two types of benevolence and the complementarity between them. We also discuss to what extent they can be managed, teasing out some implications for managers and some potential avenues for further research.

Suggested Citation

  • Guillaume Mercier & Ghislain Deslandes, 2019. "Formal and Informal Benevolence in a Profit-Oriented Context," Post-Print hal-02117521, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02117521
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-019-04108-9
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    Cited by:

    1. Martinez, Luisa M. & Pacheco, Natália & Ramos, Filipe R. & Bicho, Marta, 2023. "Would you try it again? Dual effects of customer mindfulness on service recovery," Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    2. Toledano, Nuria & Gonzalez-Sanz, Juan D., 2024. "Beyond the good and the right: Rethinking the ethics of academic entrepreneurship from a relational perspective," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(2).
    3. Harry Hummels & Anne Put, 2023. "Agape in the Workplace. A Survey Among Medium and Large Dutch Companies," Humanistic Management Journal, Springer, vol. 8(3), pages 287-314, December.
    4. Zhifeng Chen & Haiming Hang & Weisha Wang, 2024. "COVID-19 Policy Actions, Trust in Government and Tax Compliance Intentions: A Study of the British Self-Employment Income Support Scheme," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 193(2), pages 441-458, August.

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