Business leadership for peace

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to describe what business leaders can do to promote peace. The paper begins by reviewing the salient literature on business and peace and adding to this discussion, leadership concepts that enrich an understanding of the role of business in promoting peace. Using a case example of a business leader committed to advancing peace, the paper introduces the concept of a theory of change to describe the process of transformation business leaders can take to promote peace. Design/methodology/approach This conceptual paper draws on literature from business and peace and adds literature from the field of leadership studies to enrich the discussion of business and peace. Findings This paper suggests business leaders promoting peace can take action using a theory of change that includes the application of participative and ethical leadership, strategy that embeds peace goals and the use of entrepreneurships in buffer conditions to mitigate identity-based conflict between opposing groups. By understanding a leader’s theory of change, insight is gained on transformational change in promoting peace. Originality/value This paper adds to the theoretical and practical discussion on business and peace by including leadership concepts and the concept of a theory of change as a way to describe business leadership for peace.