Swami Vivekanandas insights on management and leadership a philosophical exploration

Abstract

Swami Vivekananda has been hailed as an accomplished Leader-manager. His exemplary leadership strengths, his path breaking leadership accomplishments as also his leadership legacy are equally well recognised, but his Leadership and Management (LandM) doctrine has not been adequately articulated. This study attempts to collate his LandM doctrine which lies embedded in several of his profound insights scattered in his prolific writings and which also gets manifested in his exceptional leadership behaviour. To this end we developed a Leadership lens and undertook an indepth survey of his entire leadership journey to crystallise his LandM doctrine which we call as Spiritual Servant Leadership (SSL) model. Though this study claims to be a philosophical exploration but it attempts to draw the attention of LandM scholars to reassess the roles of spirituality, selfless service, love, empathy and address the misplaced emphasis on the culture of competition, neglect of common good, pejoration of the term followership and counter the hegemony of profit maximization approach. The study endeavours to critically examine Practical Vedanta, Dynamic Spirituality, Universal love, Man-making approach and Renunciation and Service as the foundational principles of his LandM doctrine. SSL doctrine, which is an all new holistic leadership model, brings together Awakened Spirituality and Selfless Service for the first time and argues for a 3H balanced leadership. This doctrine raises the stature of followers to potential leaders and proposes to replace command and control approach with love, obedience and selfless service. It establishes spirituality as the very basis of leadership which draws its strength from Vedantic ethics and its metaphysical foundation. The principle of oneness of existence helps SSLs to rise above the dilemma of choosing between the interest of self and that of others. This model raises promise for the cause of humanistic concerns in leadership and offers some new insights for leadershipscholars battlingwiththelack ofethos