Call for Papers
Responsible leadership research has soared over the past ten years and entered corporate boardrooms. This is not only due to recurring corporate scandals, aggravation of global warming, and the COVID-19 pandemic but also to business leaders growing awareness and recognition of their co-responsibility in resolving societal issues and global sustainability challenges.
Responsible leadership is understood as a leadership approach that addresses responsibilities and accountabilities of business leaders vis- à-vis different stakeholders insides and outside the organization, is driven by purpose and positive social impact, and promotes a relational, inclusive, and caring approach in leader-stakeholder relationships.
However, responsible leadership is not the same in the mind of all and differs depending on individual opinion, industry mindset, ownership structure, and country culture and history.
We still have a limited understanding of the meaning and scope of the concept in the African context: What are the particular stakeholder expectations of a responsible leader in the Africa countries? What is the scope of a leader’s responsibility and accountability, and how is this influenced by the cultural context? What are the challenges that leaders in business and society are facing? And what are the challenges of behaving ethically and responsibly?
Further collaboration, imagination and development is needed to specify responsible leadership for the African context, to make sense of the concept and to co-create meaning with stakeholders and leaders from different sectors to shape a better and more sustainable future.
The Conference Aim and Topics
The conference seeks to address these questions and encourage further research and academic-practitioner dialogue to advance the discussion on responsible leadership in Africa.
The aim is to move towards a common understanding of what responsible leadership is and what it can achieve on the African continent. We seek contributions that theoretically and empirically assess responsible leadership and its relation to individual ethical decision-making, best responsible business practice (in for-profit, non-profit, hybrid, international organizations and government), stakeholder engagement, community partnerships, and cross-sector collaboration.
The full call for papers and proposals can be found below.
The Conference as a Collaborative Project
Responsible Leadership Reimagined will be hosted by the USB Centre for Responsible Leadership Studies, collaboration with the Allan Gray Centre for Values-based Leadership (University of Cape Town), the Albert Luthuli Leadership Institute (University of Pretoria) and the Globally Responsible Leadership Initiative.
Submission Deadlines
- October 31, 2021: Scholarly paper abstract submissions
- October 31, 2021: Practitioner presentation submissions
- November 30, 2021: Notification of review results of abstract/presentation submissions
- January 31, 2022: Final paper submissions
- March 16-18, 2022: Responsible Leadership Reimagined Conference
Contact
Email address for submissions: RLRConference@usb.ac.za
Conference Logistical Coordinator: Sheena Maneveld, sheena@usb.co.za