The (In)Visibility of Diversity in Alternative Organizations

Regine Bendl (), Alexander Fleischmann () and Angelika Schmidt ()
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Regine Bendl: WU Vienna
Alexander Fleischmann: IMD
Angelika Schmidt: WU Vienna

Journal of Business Ethics, 2025, vol. 196, issue 2, No 3, 273-289

Abstract: Abstract Reflecting current debates on ‘organizational virtues’ as going beyond the capitalocentrist bias of contemporary economies and to see diversity as ‘ethical responsibility,’ this article explores ‘ethical organizing’ at the intersection of alternative organizations and diversity. Our interest in a diversity-oriented analysis of alternative organizations stems from the assumption that those which question taken-for-granted notions of existing economies and follow alternative values of autonomy, solidarity, and responsibility might also be likely to challenge existing diversity relations and, thus, potentially open up new avenues for ethical organizing. Discussing our findings in terms of Lewis and Simpson’s (in)visibility vortex, our study shows that even though organizations position themselves discursively as ‘alternative,’ this positioning is not related to diversity issues. We conclude that a shift is needed to fully constitute ethical organizing, namely the establishment of a strong connection between alternative organizations’ virtues with, e.g., the feminist, anti-racist, queer, and disability rights movements.

Keywords: Virtue ethics; Ethical organizing; Invisibility vortex; Alternative organizations; Diversity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1007/s10551-024-05683-2

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