Recent failures in the corporate sector are to a large extent a failure of accountability. Unfortunately, accountability tends to be characterised by atomistic research; confusing language; models of limited scope; poor conceptualisation of key constructs; context insensitivity; and, a lack of methodological integration. This book not only integrates but substantially adds to the extant accountability literature, providing a holistic view of accountability, showcasing a newly-generated Holistic Accountability Model (HAM). This book clarifies the purposes of accountability; identifies what triggers accountability exchanges; generates a set of well-defined responsibility and accountability constructs; and, via a grounded graphic model, links these constructs to the accountability process and to the influences that impact on this process. Several working models are proposed to help practitioners achieve a better understanding of the extent and nature of their accountability obligations, develop and implement more effective accountability policies and practices, and make better accountability decisions.

This book is unique in analysing the new Scottish Parliament from a systematically comparative perspective. Its basic premise is that since devolution in 1999 Scotland can be considered a Scandinavian-style democracy with several features of a Scandinavian-style parliament. The basic research question, therefore, is: 'Has the Scottish Parliament in its first four-year term manifested a Scandinavian-style politics in the sense that there has been a high incidence of inter-party negotiation within Parliament?' The architects of the Scottish Parliament saw the committees as the motor of a 'new politics' and gave them extensive powers. Outside Austria, only the Swedish and Icelandic committees have comparable powers. Accordingly, the study sets out to describe and analyse the workings of the committees in the Scottish, Swedish and Icelandic Parliaments. The concluding chapter also discusses the operation of the Danish, Finnish and Norwegian committees.

This book is unique in analysing the new Scottish Parliament from a systematically comparative perspective. Its basic premise is that since devolution in 1999 Scotland can be considered a Scandinavian-style democracy with several features of a Scandinavian-style parliament. The basic research question, therefore, is: 'Has the Scottish Parliament in its first four-year term manifested a Scandinavian-style politics in the sense that there has been a high incidence of inter-party negotiation within parliament?' The architects of the Scottish Parliament saw the committees as the motor of a 'new politics' and gave them extensive powers. Outside Austria, only the Swedish and Icelandic committees have comparable powers. Accordingly, the study sets out to describe and analyse the workings of the committees in the Scottish, Swedish and Icelandic parliaments. The concluding chapter also discusses the operation of the Danish, Finnish and Norwegian committees. The book draws on in-depth interviews with the chairs of the Scottish, Swedish and Icelandic committees. The first six chapters are organised around the theme 'The Scottish Parliamentary Committees. The Motor of a New Politics?' Chapters

The business case for operating along sustainable principles is becoming very clear. Sustainable organizations outperform their peers on many criteria, including corporate social responsibility, employee satisfaction and -- surprising for some -- even financially. Sustainable Leadership: Honeybee and Locust Approaches presents an evidence-based view of how 23 leadership practices facilitate outcomes that go beyond what is commonly referred to as the triple bottom line -- environmental sustainability, corporate social responsibility and financial success. The book centers on a powerful metaphor of honeybee and locust behaviors, which illustrate two leadership philosophies with very different outcomes for a business and its viability. Gathering evidence from scholars combined with observations from successful firms around the world, the book presents a bundle of principles, behaviors and beliefs that forms a sustainable leadership system. This engaging, insightful book offers a set of principles that can be adapted in many ways to underpin sustainable leadership in different situations. It provides evidence and a rationale for building a business case to change towards more sustainable practices.

The business case for operating along sustainable principles is becoming very clear. Sustainable organizations outperform their peers on many criteria, including corporate social responsibility, employee satisfaction and -- surprising for some -- even financially. Sustainable Leadership: Honeybee and Locust Approaches presents an evidence-based view of how 23 leadership practices facilitate outcomes that go beyond what is commonly referred to as the triple bottom line -- environmental sustainability, corporate social responsibility and financial success. The book centers on a powerful metaphor of honeybee and locust behaviors, which illustrate two leadership philosophies with very different outcomes for a business and its viability. Gathering evidence from scholars combined with observations from successful firms around the world, the book presents a bundle of principles, behaviors and beliefs that forms a sustainable leadership system. This engaging, insightful book offers a set of principles that can be adapted in many ways to underpin sustainable leadership in different situations. It provides evidence and a rationale for building a business case to change towards more sustainable practices.

Our world is under pressure, with growing inequalities in wealth and access to food and clean water. We depend too heavily on polluting fuels and diminishing natural resources. Traditional cultural practices are being swamped by global popular culture. The Thai model of sufficiency thinking aims to transform the mindset of a whole population to achieve the seemingly impossible: enriching everyone's lives in a truly sustainable way. Innovative management practices developed by King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand have been applied across Thailand in agriculture, education, business, government and community organisations for over two decades. In this book, chapters written by eminent Thai scholars explain sufficiency thinking and review its implementation in different sectors including community development, business, agriculture, health care, schools, and even in prisons. Is Thailand unique in having discovered the holy grail of a more responsible form of capitalism? No, it is not, but it is the first country whose government has adopted this kind of thinking as national policy. '...we obviously need to revise dramatically our thinking about the outlines of a just economy and a decent society in which everyone can lead dignified lives. Sufficiency Thinking provides creative approaches to this quandary and this important volume is a brilliant addition to the growing literature critical of mainstream business-as-usual ideology.' - John Komlos, Professor Emeritus, University of Munich