Virtues and the common good in production

This chapter explains the nature of leadership and why ethics is critical both in the behavior of the leader and the study of leadership. It also explains leadership from the perspective of Aristotle, MacIntyre and Catholic Social Teaching. The chapter discusses the virtues that today's leaders need. It integrates notions of human dignity and the common good into a framework for virtuous leadership. The chapter examines the leader: why ethics and the virtues are critical and how the leader's character relates to the firm in particular and society in general. This is because good corporate performance needs good leadership. Leadership literature has focused on leaders' personal characteristics, leader-related skills and behaviors. There is also a stream of research on differentiating transformational from transactional leaders. Transactional leaders guide followers towards established goals by clarifying role and task requirements. ©2018 Taylor and Francis Group.