The role of CEO spirituality in strategic decision-making

Abstract

Economic theory has traditionally been built on materialistic conceptions and rationalism, but the human side has been ignored. As a result, in a society where CEOs are increasingly stressed and confront fast changes, additional examination of elements unique to the individual is required. As a result, the purpose of this study is to fill a research gap and expand existing knowledge on the role of CEO spirituality in strategic decision-making. The research strategy adopted was multiple case study, mostly using primary data, specifically interviews with six CEOs of SMEs in Marco de Canaveses, Portugal. As a result, this study discovered that the CEO's spiritual discernment serves to increase clarity during the decision-making process. This clarity is linked to the individual's mental, spiritual, and physical well-being. Furthermore, via spiritual practises and values, this clarity has been demonstrated to have a favourable influence on CEOs' professional anxiety and work-life balance; yet, CEOs encounter hurdles, including tactical bias. On the other hand, CEO discernment was discovered to have an impact on the company's organisational culture, resulting in higher employee satisfaction, productivity, and retention; however, its implementation is becoming more difficult with shorter employee life cycles and a new generation's approach to life. These results from the study are presented in the final theoretical framework that CEOs can utilise to get a big picture of this phenomenon and optimise their practises.

Date of Award	25 Oct 2023
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Ricardo Alexandre Morais (Supervisor)