A New Future for Business? Rethinking Management Theory and Business Strategy

Abstract

In this introductory article, we discuss the need for a rethinking of the theoretical foundations of management and the practice of business strategy in view of a range of social, environmental and ethical challenges that highlight the limits of ‘business as usual’. Calls for a reconsideration of current approaches have come to the fore in the fields of management, accounting, marketing and finance and we briefly review them here. We then introduce the four papers included in this special issue, each of which answers previously unechoed calls from different field of business research. We highlight how each paper contributes to novel perspectives on a future for business - perspectives that more adequately reflect the challenges faced today by both the private sector and society at large. Areas for further research are indicated as well.