The ethical and moral-based dimension of leadership in CSR-oriented strategies and sustainable entrepreneurship

This chapter addresses the theme of leadership and its influence on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability-oriented strategies. Specifically, it aims to analyse, through a deductive and literature-based approach, the relevance of the ethical and moral leadership models with respect to the diffusion of CSR and sustainable entrepreneurship. Linking ethical and moral-based leadership to the CSR and sustainable entrepreneurship discourse allows us to point out the relevance of an authentic orientation in supporting change and fostering sustainable entrepreneurship The theoretical construct of responsible and sustainable leadership derives from the intersection of the moral-based leadership concepts with those of CSR and sustainable entrepreneurship..Drawing from these premises, this chapter seeks to identify leadership models and attributes consistent with (and necessary to develop) an authentic CSR-oriented strategy and able to foster sustainable entrepreneurship. Accordingly, in this chapter, we argue that leadership represents a key aspect that warrants more research within both CSR and sustainable entrepreneurship studies. The research questions that orients this study can be summarised as follows: Which leadership models favour authentic CSR practices? Are moral, ethical-based and virtues-based models of leadership effective in developing CSR and fostering sustainable entrepreneurship? These questions guide the critical review of the different leadership approaches, bringing attention to the models that are most coherent in regard to the actual socio-economic context which requires managers and entrepreneurs to govern the internal and external complexity and actively contribute to sustainability. The methodological approach is mainly based on a literature review that surveys critical points in current literature that is relevant to the topic. The work is structured as follows. First, we offer an analysis of the leadership theoretical framework in the context of the CSR debate. We begin with a brief methodological note, followed by an analysis of the antecedents of CSR and sustainable entrepreneurship in terms of values and virtues. Second, a review of relevant literature on leadership approaches and models consistent with the CSR and sustainable entrepreneurship discourse is presented, emphasising the relationship between transformational, moral and virtues-based leadership and CSR-oriented strategies and sustainable entrepreneurship. Drawing from the analysis, four main propositions are introduced. The final sections illustrate the propositions and summarise the implications and limitations of the study.