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Ever since I started publishing in 1989 quite a variety of publications have seen the light of day.

Ranging from philosophical articles and ethical books to publications on agape, wellbeing, evaluation, social entrepreneurship, pension funds, impact investing, socially responsible investments and - last but not least - two cook books with my friend Rob Beernink.

Please find the most relevant and characteristic publications in this section.

De weg van waarden - Verkorte versie

De weg van waarden - Verkorte versie

This is a guidance document for private and public labour organisations. It aims to support the inclusion of people with mental, behavioural, or multiple disabilities in the workplace. They are talented people who can contribute to organisational success, if supported in the right way.

De weg van Waarden - Management summary

De weg van Waarden - Management summary

This document is the management summary of (I), without the illustrations and examples that make document both comprehensible and lively.

De weg van waarden - Uitgebreide versie

De weg van waarden - Uitgebreide versie

This extended document supports private and public labour organisations, and care organisations. It provides guidance to include people with mental, behavioural, or multiple disabilities in the workplace. The document is an extension of (I), including some insights relating to care organisations.

De weg van waarden - Toelichting zorg

De weg van waarden - Toelichting zorg

This is an explanatory document for care organisations that helps them to better understand document (III)

Mensen in Ketens

Mensen in Ketens

Dit opiniepaper gaat over de noodzaak van sociale, ethische en milieu minimumnormen in internationale waardenketens. Die normen zijn noodzakelijk maar niet voldoende. In het paper pleit ik voor ‘medemenselijk’ ondernemen: internationaal goed zaken doen door mensen en natuur te respecteren.

Humans in Chains

Humans in Chains

This opinion paper is about the need for minimum social, ethical and environmental standards in international value chains. These standards are necessary but not sufficient. In the paper I argue for 'communal' entrepreneurship: doing good international business by respecting people and nature.

Alternative Growth

Alternative Growth

Alternative Growth is an essay calling for the transformation of our organisations into humane businesses. It was already Mahatma Gandhi who said: “The greatness of humanity is not in being human, but in being humane.” But what does humanising mean and how can it be furthered? That is what the essay is about. It is based on the book Anders Groeien, published in December 2022.

'Other-wise Organising'

'Other-wise Organising'

This article, that I wrote together with Patrick Nullens, applies the notion of agape to organisational theories and the practice of organising - in particular to holacracy and sociocracy.

The kitchen as an institution for social change

The kitchen as an institution for social change

In June 2022 we had dinner as Osteria Francescana at Casa Maria Luigia. Sensational!! But what is even more sensational is the work that Massimo Bottura and Lara Gilmore are doing to create a better world.

De keuken als maatschappelijke institutie

De keuken als maatschappelijke institutie

In June 2022 we had dinner as Osteria Francescana at Casa Maria Luigia. Sensational!! But what is even more sensational is the work that Massimo Bottura and Lara Gilmore are doing to create a better world.

Bloed, zweet, maar samen

Bloed, zweet, maar samen

On 8 March 2022 we published Bloed, zweet, maar samen (Blood, sweat, and cooperation). The book addresses the collaboration between innovative startups and scale-ups and corporations aimed to create a more sustainable, just and inclusive society. We dive into a world of mutual collaborations aimed at changing the economic and social system to make it more just and sustainable.

Agape: People driving the company

Agape: People driving the company

Agape: de mens als motor van de onderneming is a research project concerning the commitment to the wellbeing of employees by Dutch companies. The study is based on a survey among nearly 3500 Dutch companies with 100 employees or more. The results surprised us as researchers. This document contains the summary of the report.

Holacracy and sustainable winners

Holacracy and sustainable winners

This white paper is about holacracy - a form of organizing without managers. Fast-growing enterprises such as bol.com, car manufacturer Lightyear, learning platform Springest, mortgage advisor Viisi, or solar panel manufacturer Enie.nl have experience with the principles. The paper resulted from a collaboration between Deloitte and Maastricht University.

An Agenda for Agape, a mandate for Humanity

An Agenda for Agape, a mandate for Humanity

When we started researching the commitment to wellbeing and flourishing of others, we ran into the unfamiliarity of ‘agape’ among business executives. Equivalents such as love, empathy or compassion are not widely embraced either. They sound ‘soft’ and make managers and employees hesitate. The document reports on our conversations with executives, students and professionals about 'agape'.

The Future on Love and Business Organizing

The Future on Love and Business Organizing

Article that describes the corresponding grammars of agape (love) and business. The article conceptualises love in ways that business executives, managers and employees can understand, adopt, and implement it. We aim to contribute to expanding the theory and practice of responsible organizations and their leaders caring for others.

Holacracy and sustainable winners

Holacracy and sustainable winners

This white paper is about holacracy - a form of organizing without managers. Fast-growing enterprises such as bol.com, car manufacturer Lightyear, learning platform Springest, mortgage advisor Viisi, or solar panel manufacturer Enie.nl have experience with the principles. The paper resulted from a collaboration between Deloitte and Maastricht University.

Agape: People driving the company (Summary)

Agape: People driving the company (Summary)

Agape: people driving the company is a research project concerning the commitment to the wellbeing of employees by Dutch companies. The study is based on a survey among nearly 3500 Dutch companies with 100 employees or more. The results surprised us as researchers. This document contains the summary of the report.

Pivoting towards wellbeing

Pivoting towards wellbeing

This report addresses the way in which four medium-sized companies (Auping, Van Wijhe Verf, Royal Lemkes, and Viisi) design, develop and implement the wellbeing and flourishing of their employees. We developed a web of wellbeing that consists of six dimension enabling the description and analysis of the companies' relevant characteristics, policies, practices, actions and outcomes.

A perspective on child labour in West Africa

A perspective on child labour in West Africa

This article in World Development was written by Milande Busquet, Niels Bosma and me. The study proposes a new perspective on child labour based on comparing the Global Value Chain (GVC) literature and the Sustainable Livelihood Approach (SLA). A case study on child labour in the cocoa chain in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire is provided.

More than a monthly allowance

More than a monthly allowance

The report, commissioned by the second largest pension fund of The Netherlands, PFZW, analyses the need for more active involvement of pension fund beneficiaries regarding their (future) wellbeing. The research was based on a literature review and more than 30 interviews with a wide range of stakeholders.

Planetary Demands - redefining sustainable development

Planetary Demands - redefining sustainable development

In this article Aikaterini Argyrou and I argue that the definition of ‘sustainable development’ provided by the World Commission on Environment and Development (WECD) in 1987 requires an update. We suggest that the definition should be linked to the planetary boundaries. We describe the case of Interface as an interesting and relevant illustration.

In the eyes of the other

In the eyes of the other

This white paper explains the concept of agape and presents eight companies – ranging from SMEs to large multinationals – that apply an agapeic way of working in their business operations. The paper demonstrates that all businesses are committed to agape. It leads to positive results – both financially and non-financially.

Legal personality and the Whanganui River

Legal personality and the Whanganui River

Legislation in New Zealand dictates that the Whanganui River is a living entity and a legal person as part of Māori culture and tradition. In this article in Water International Aikaterini Argyrou and I provide a conceptual discussion of the river’s economic well-being, understood as the mutual enhancement of natural and human elements through community entrepreneurship.

The 18th SDG. Social Entrepreneurship in a global society

The 18th SDG. Social Entrepreneurship in a global society

In my inaugural address at Utrecht University, I call for active participation by the beneficiaries as a necessary condition for social entrepreneurship.

Responsible leaders and inclusive leadership

Responsible leaders and inclusive leadership

This contribution to SSIR focuses on the Compact for Responsible Business Leadership that was signed in 2017 at the World Economic Forum. It is an important step forward for corporations operating in a global society, but it needs reworking if it is to truly foster long-term societal value.

1001 Mezze Nijmegen

1001 Mezze Nijmegen

This cookbook consists of Levantine recipes and interviews with refugees coming from the Middle East and Northeast Africa. It is both available in Dutch and English. (Please continue to scroll the attached cookbook. It starts on page 6)

1001 Mezze Nijmegen

1001 Mezze Nijmegen

This cookbook consists of Levantine recipes and interviews with refugees coming from the Middle East and Northeast Africa. It is both available in Dutch and English. (Please continue to scroll the attached cookbook. It starts on page 6)

Cooking the books

Cooking the books

This book contains lovely recipes for good conversations and good food. The book, which recipes of Rob Beernink, appeared at the occasion of my second Inaugural Address at Maastricht University. Best conversations are held over lunch or a good dinner. As it is not available in an online version, we provide readers with our latest contribution based on the works of Alain Passard: Encounter with a tomato.

Trust in scientific publishing

Trust in scientific publishing

Hans Roosendaal and I wrote this article to zoom in on the ways in which trust reduces organisational complexity and uncertainty. We used Zucker's framework to understand the variety and development of trust in organisations, which distinguishes three types of trust: process-based, institutional-based and characteristic-based trust. We added a fourth one: values-based trust.

Teamwork and morality

Teamwork and morality

Jan de Leede and I wrote this article in the Journal of Business Ethics about the ethics of organising in two different contexts. The paper compares lean production and socio-technology.

Organizing ethics: a stakeholder debate

Organizing ethics: a stakeholder debate

This article in the Journal of Business Ethics summarizes the development of the stakeholder concept in the last decade. The academic debate has been dominated over the last ten years by the managerial version of the stakeholder concept. The case of Shell in Ogoniland is elaborated to demonstrate that the managerial version does not pay sufficient respect to other interpretations of the concept.

Anders Groeien

Anders Groeien

Anders Groeien a guide that helps businesses to transform their organisations into more humane companies. It takes the discussion on corporate social responsibility to the next level by focusing on humane engagements with stakeholders.

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