Values-Based Leadership: Exploring Exemplary Approaches

Abstract

This chapter chronicles the genesis and development of an important journal, called the Journal of Values-Based Leadership (JVBL). As the process of defining various parameters unfolded, several broad-based topics of universal interest quickly emerged and included theories and orientations based upon faith, spirituality, environmental sustainability, servant leadership, authenticity, and corporate social responsibility. From these general topics, specific approaches to principled leadership have been derived. The central theme throughout the journal’s life has been principled leadership – ethically premised orientations of guidance rooted in various concentrations. In analyzing the various approaches propounded over the years, there has inevitably been a crossover of overall thematic components, but nuances of each theory remain distinctively remarkable. During its 12-year history, the JVBL has featured the lifework and interviews of scores of scholars and practitioners of leadership, most notably the 2009 interview of Ray C. Anderson, the founder of Interface, Inc., conducted by the author. The chapter brings together some important lessons culled from various issues of the journal on various positive forms of leadership.