A case study on the use of meditation techniques to develop mindfulness in MBA supply chain management students

An increased focus on spirituality and mindfulness in the management education literature has resulted in calls for greater empirical work of a nontraditional nature. Therefore, this research looks to contribute to this growing body of literature by looking at the deployment of a specific aspect of spirituality, mindfulness, in a higher education context in the teaching of a Master of Business Administration (MBA) supply chain management (SCM) module. This research shows that the use of meditation techniques by SCM students can engender mindfulness and increase their attention, awareness, and acceptance. In this case study, students completed a learning journal reflecting their experiences of meditation over a 6-week period. Grounded theory techniques articulated a model of the meditation exercise in this context. The research found a number of expected and unexpected benefits, including students’ ability to focus for longer periods of time. The costs of the exercise, cited only by self-identified skeptical students, included an increase in stress and frustration with the exercise. The subsequent analysis and model show how to improve the techniques and prevent negative outcomes

The level of compliance with the International Code of marketing of breast-milk substitutes: does it matter to stock markets?

The present paper explores, theoretically, and empirically, whether compliance with the International Code of marketing of breast-milk substitutes impacts on financial performance measured by stock markets. The empirical analysis, which considers a 20-year period, shows that stock markets are indifferent to the level of compliance by manufacturers with the International Code. Two important issues emerge from this result. Based on our finding that financial performance as measured by stock markets cannot explain the level of compliance, the first issue refers to what alternative types of mechanisms drive manufacturers who comply the least with voluntary codes such as the International Code. Conversely, from our finding that stock markets do not reward the most compliant, the second issue raised is an inherent weakness of stock markets to fully incorporate social and environmental values