3 Philosophy Concepts for Managers

It is easy to overlook the importance of?philosophy coursework in developing strong?vocational skills. But what business could not benefit from what philosophy?delivers, including the ability to think critically, form positions based on facts or sound reasoning and to advocate for a logical position or course of action.

A number of people?have already argued that philosophy ought to be more of a core discipline for business leaders, and made the case that a study of philosophy increases performance on standardized tests including the GMAT. And?as I consider my own experiences, I came up with a quick list of three specific philsophical concepts that managers can learn more about and use, if they care to, as they drive towards business outcomes.

Managing Ambiguity and Philosophical Uncertainty

The great philosopher Bertrand Russel defined philosophy as "speculation about matters where exact knowledge is not yet possible."?From economics, to sales forecasting to marketing to product management or just identifying and dealing with emerging trends and changes, we must live our business lives in large part in the mental future, and this means dealing with uncertainty. Even in the hard sciences, Russel points out that many of the best hypotheses start out as speculation and then are borne out later by concrete facts ... a valuable insight in a day and age when we put a premium on?data-based decisions. What quantum leaps are we missing when we abandon well-reasoned intellectual speculation? How can we invest in new technologies or products, for instance, where there is no past performance history to build a well-founded proforma? When we do have access to data, is it truly applicable to our problem, and are?the conclusions we draw from the data valid? Even in the presence of data, we need sometimes to build logical assuptions on which to act.

The ability to deal comfortably with uncertainty also helps us keep our own opinions and positions in perspective. As soon as we find ourselves advocating too strenuously for a position or as managers surround ourselves only with people who echo our own thoughts back at us, we may have become much more certain of things than, as philosophers, we ought to be. And this can create management blind spots made up of our own hubris or complacency.

Philosophy of the Mind and the Sense of Agency

In the study of the philosophy of the mind, the sense of agency refers to the ability of an individual to recognize that they are initiating action upon themselves and their surroundings. Psychiatrists may see the concept as having to do with complete loss of recognition of the self as controlling the physical body, as is the case with?certain types of severe mental illness. But for the philosopher and to a large extent the manager, the sense of agency implies that the individual can and feels capable of interacting with a wide variety of situations and can make decisions accordingly. It also has implications for whether people see their situation and events in their life as within their own control or as the result of outside circumstances or fate.

It is easy to get into the tall weeds in discussing sense of agency, but in our work lives and careers, our happiness may hinge in part on our ability to conceive, initiate and execute our own actions to the degree we feel capable.?This may be particularly true for people with a strong internal locus of control, who?see themselves as prime movers in their own lives as opposed to?passive objects?that are acted upon by external forces. Studies delve into the degree to which certain employees feel this sense of agency. Others look at the importance of a sense of agency for CEOs.

Management thought also addresses?how leadership styles can?encompass rather than conflict with a sense of agency?of each individual, and how this in turn allows us to generate that coin of the realm in human resource management--employee engagement. ?Philosophers may use the term?"generative transmission," in which an individual intentionally exerts effort toward a goal and can feel the energy of the effort transmitted into the environment to produce an?outcome. The resulting sense of effectiveness, according to researchers, may yield increased performance and an improved emotional response to completion of work.?

My own belief is that the sense of agency has implications not only for leadership and human resources management, but for sales. There is a reason that questions are such powerful sales tools. When we sell by explaining a product's features or benefits, we treat someone like a receptacle for external direction, trying to take the locus of control away from the prospect. When we are asked questions however (how would you use this product, what will a successful implementation look like to you, what do you want to get out of this purchase), we have to formulate a response, and this creative act engages us?as?an active participant in a successful sales process. Asking questions can not only deliver information that can be germaine to the sale, but may give the prospect?a sense of an internal locus of control in directing their own decision and buying process.

Ethics and Stoic Cosmopolitanism

The Stoic school of philosophy encouraged a focus on what the individual truly could control, namely preferences, opinions, and one's own actions. Material success, which was as highly valued?in ancient Greek and Roman times as it is today, was regarded as an externality, something that could be taken away, and therefore not a suitable end in and of itself. Our own values, decisions and choices, meanwhile, are truly our own. It makes little sense, according to Stoic ethics, to sacrifice the true self by violating principles that define us to obtain something that could be stripped from us, be that an estate, money, fame or other ephemera.

While we may be encouraged to pursue material benefit for ourselves or our organization, the Stoic sees the self as part of a whole, expressed by the concentric rings of the Circles of Hierocles. The inner circles represents the self, the immediate family and the next circle friends and neighbors. The outer rings represent the entirety of humanity. The Stoic seeks benefit for the entirety of this broad, cosmopolitan circle, rather than placing the self in competition for benefit?with the rest of humanity.

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Circles of Heirocles -- source, the Stoic Week Handbook

The goal of the individual, according to Stoics including Marcus Aurelius, is to look after the good of humankind ... or all sentient beings. To value what is good for the cosmopolitan universe, according to Aurelius, is the highest virtue.

"Just as it is with the members in those bodies which are united in one, so it is with rational beings which exist separate, for they have been constituted for one co-operation. And the perception of this will be more apparent to thee, if thou often sayest to thyself that I am a member (melos) of the system of rational beings. But if thou sayest that thou art a part thou dost not yet love men from thy heart; beneficence does not yet delight thee for its own sake; thou still doest it barely as a thing of propriety, and not yet as doing good to thyself." ~Marcus Aurelius

Aurelius' description of the Stoic ethical stance, acting in the interest of all of those in?the Circles of Hierocles, may be?a sound basis for corporate and business ethics. Whether we are minding the reputation of our business through ethical dealings or social responsibility programs or seeking to conform to more formal structures like the UN Global Compact, Stoic ethics may be useful.?But Stoicism goes deeper than this, and can help us realize on a visceral level that we are not acting in a vacuum, but as part of an interwoven tapestry where looking after the well being of our customers, suppliers and the economy at large is as important in the intermediate term as securing benefit for shareholders. At the very least, a study of Stoic ethics may make more Balanced Scorecard and other holistic metrics start to look extremely desirable.

So indeed, philosophy is not simply some ephemeral, staid,?academic discipline. Philosophy can help us master the most important challenges of our current business environment, including the need to manage ambiguity, form ethical constructs for commerce and engage the people around us in our cause.?It can and should be a foundational discipline that can underpin and inform even the most secular and commercial of activities.

Charles Rathmann is a veteran consultant, researcher and industrial journalist. Currently, he serves as technology editor across AC Business Media’s portfolio of construction publications, where he helps contractors learn about and understand how to harness emerging and proven technologies and conducts primary research in the space.?When not working, he is happily fishing and exploring the Driftless region of Southwestern Wisconsin, playing guitar or spoiling his wife and daughter.