RT Article
T1 What Makes a Business Ethicist? A Reflection on the Transition from Applied Philosophy to Critical Thinking
JF Journal of business ethics
VO 150
IS 3
SP 647
OP 656
A1 Seele, Peter 1974-
LA English
PB Springer Science + Business Media B. V
YR 2018
UL https://www.ixtheo.de/Record/1785665006
AB This article discusses the transition that business ethics has undergone since its start essentially as a philosophical sub-discipline of applied ethics. Today, business ethics—as demonstrated by four examples of gatekeepers—is a well-established field in general management, and increasingly business scholars without a “formal” background in philosophy are entering the scene. I take this transition to examine an updated positioning of business ethics and offer a proposal to redefine what makes a business ethicist. I suggest taking critical thinking as the common denominator of all business ethics activities beyond the academic silos of various disciplines. In conclusion, by borrowing from the post-colonial theorist Edward Said, this article offers a definition of what makes a business ethicist in the broadest possible sense. Implications are discussed, including the consequences suggesting that if critical thinking is the common denominator, business ethics-as-business-case logic is not considered a part of business ethics publications (except discussing the ethicality of business ethics-as-business-case), but should be addressed within more instrumental publication outlets of business.
K1 Philosophy
K1 Field maturation
K1 Mainstreaming
K1 General Management
K1 Applied philosophy
K1 Discipline
K1 Business Ethicist
K1 Business Ethics
DO 10.1007/s10551-016-3177-8